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  1. Replies
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    Drum Sander recommendations

    I'm looking at acquiring a drum sander over the holidays and would like recommendations on makes/models. It would be used for final thicknessing of mandolin ribs, but I'd also like it for flat...
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    Danger of imitating an inlay logo/brand?

    As a novice who one day would like to produce instruments that actual musicians play, I've been considering what my brand and resulting peghead inlay would look like. I've tried my hand at...
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    Re: Where are the ' Big guys ' ?

    As a complete novice (one F5 under my belt in 3 years with three in the works...) I have actually tried more and more to search the archives before posting. And it really is like a database of...
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    Re: Post a picture of what's on your bench?

    Three mandolins and one ukelele (kit)...and lots of glue!

    191405
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    How to achieve a "warmer" sound?

    I am learning to play on the first mandolin I made, an F5 style, while I build the next. While the original functions fine and everything works in terms of tuning, etc. the mandolin has a noticeably...
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    F5 scroll "ridge" - Distance from the side

    On my first build I made the mistake of carving the scroll on the top all the way to near finished sanding before I attached to the side assembly. I then realized that to make the edges of the top...
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    Re: Mandolin from a kit

    Maggie, I am a novice builder who has only completed one mandolin with numbers 2, 3 and 4 in the works. There are many, more experienced and more knowledgeable people on this site than me! That said,...
  8. Re: Tips for bending/fitting the F5 bottom point rib piece?

    Thank you, Rob. I have the clamping block all ready to go.
    I think my mistake thus far is that I first cut the piece then attempt to bend it. It's too small. I guess I need to bend a longer piece...
  9. Tips for bending/fitting the F5 bottom point rib piece?

    I am still a novice working on tuning my build process for F5s, and I could use some tips or suggestions for fitting the smallest rib piece at the bottom point.

    I am using a heat blanket combined...
  10. Non-mandolin question: Archtop, violin building references

    Hello, all.

    I am in the middle of three different mandolin builds, all F5 models. One of these has been reserved by a friend of mine in New Orleans who mainly plays rockabilly/honkytonk music. He...
  11. Re: Is there a particular method for sawing fingerboard wood?

    It's bois d'arc. I was lucky enough to visit a guy here in Texas who actually grows orchards of the stuff (believe it or not; long story...) and harvest a bit that he allowed me to have. The longer,...
  12. Is there a particular method for sawing fingerboard wood?

    I have some logs that I want to process in to blanks for fingerboards. Is there a particular sawing method that is preferable--quartersawn, etc. Thanks.

    (P.S. - I may have posted this same...
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    Rib assemblies too small?

    Question: If an F5 body is roughly 3/32" smaller all around its edge than a traditional F5 (based on replicated Loar plans), is it still an acceptable F5 mandolin?

    Let me explain:

    I made an...
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    Re: Time to practice hand rubbed sunburst

    Mike,

    I am an absolute amateur, so everything I post should be read with that taken in to consideration...

    What I found in practicing my own sunbursting technique is that you just need to...
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    Post-setup: 15th+ fret buzz

    I got my mandolin set up nearly perfectly. I sanded the bridge bottom to perfectly contact the top plate, based on the intonation positioning that I figured out through testing, repositioning,...
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    Re: Should I learn to make bridges while I'm at it?

    No offense taken! I didn't provide any details on my background, so you wouldn't have known. I am absolutely a novice instrument builder, but not a novice woodworker.
    Your references re: violin...
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    Re: Should I learn to make bridges while I'm at it?

    I really appreciate all of the suggestions and comments here. Thank you all.

    As an experienced woodworker, I feel my fundamentals are fairly good. Sharpening, pattern and template making (and...
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    Should I learn to make bridges while I'm at it?

    I'm trying to determine if it would be worth my time to learn to make bridges. As a novice, I have bought the "standard" ebony adjustable bridges and saddles from StewMac...and in trying to fit them...
  19. Re: An extremely dumb question: Ridges on binding

    Thanks, everyone, for your follow-up, questions and offers to help. Upon further inspection, rcc56 was correct that this was a coloration or effect placed on the binding. It is, in fact, entirely...
  20. An extremely dumb question: Ridges on binding

    I've made one mandolin. I used ABS binding. Never again.

    But it was perfectly smooth. For my next build I'm using celluloid binding, which I ordered and recently received. I noticed it has ridges...
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    Re: First attempt at heat bending: questions

    That looks great, Spencer. I'm a newish builder, myself and appreciate seeing your progress. As for worrying about the number of pics/posts, I've been quite prolific myself and so far no one has...
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    Re: Required tools for building own fingerboards?

    For those of you who build fretboards out of green wood, rough lumber, "found" wood, etc... What dimensions do you cut your initial billets to to store them for drying? I'm dealing specifically with...
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    Solid spruce top - What to consider?

    I'm neck-deep in several builds right now. But yesterday I acquired a piece of sitka spruce that, by my measurements, is large enough on its own to produce eight (8) mandolin soundboards--that is, as...
  24. Re: Truss rod: Too tight? And still a string-ward bow.

    Good news: After removing a uniform 4mm in thickness from the neck, the truss rod appears to be functioning now. The fretboard is dead flat with the truss rod tightened just to where it snugs up. No...
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    Re: Neck dovetail and truss rod barrel nut

    So in referring back to my original image and how I'm approaching this now it seems that using a barrel nut is unnecessary and also compromises the dovetail. I should just use a regular nut and a...
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