Mandolin build

[hbfdjn]

Hey. New to the forums, I've visited several times while researching how to build a bowlback mandolin before I attempted to make one (as a gift for my aunt). The mandolin is loosely based on the Embergher plans from Lorenzo Lippi that I found out about through this site. The mandolin bowl is made from cherry with blackened maple between the ribs and the top is port orford cedar. The neck is maple with ebony face-plate on slotted headstock. The fingerboard, trim and bridge are ebony with walnut rosette and koa pick-guard and a shellac finish. The shape didn't turn out quite symmetrical (chemist not a woodworker) but over all I think it turned out great and to my ears it sounds surprisingly good, I put the GHS extra low tension strings on and tuned up gingerly just in case it imploded, which would have been funny, but it didn't and my aunt loves it.
thanks for looking.

[billhay4]

Nice job. Is this a first effort?
I'd like to hear it.
Bill

[Wilbur Tabacsko]

Nice job, looks well built!

[Mike-D]

Gorgeous! I don't know if this is your first instrument or not, but it's very nice work.

[Bernie Daniel]

Welcome to the Forum and GREAT job -- it looks super!

[mandobassman]

Wow! Beautiful. Not many people are brave enough to tackle building a bowlback for their for build project. Awesome job. I LOVE the headstock.

[hbfdjn]

Hi, thanks for the comments. It's my first mandolin build but in the last 3-4 years I have also built 1 violin, 4 ukulele (tenor) and 1 banjo uke (concert scale), but by far the mandolin was the most difficult to build and it was alot of fun figuring out how to do it, it's the first slotted headstock I tried as well. I'm would like to try to make one of the larger German style bowlback next.
Derek

[John Kelly]

Very fine effort, especially with the bowl and the slotted headstock.

[Marty Jacobson]

Nice work all around. Good call on the Rubners.

[Jim Garber]

Very nice work on a challenging project. Can you post some in-progress pics? Did you use some sort of mold?

[Pete Jenner]

Looks like a terrific job from the pics.

[hbfdjn]

Hi, I did take a couple pics along the way but not that many, I always forget. I built a mould, using the top plate shape from the Lippy poster, with wood and just carved it by eye till I thought it looked good lol. Pic 2, I mounted the mould to some ply and that evolved into a sort of platform so I could get clamps on to hold the neck (forgot to take pics of neck). I needed to scrape alot on top to make things smooth so some areas of the bowl I was worried would be too thin so after removing from the mould and cleaning it up I glued in some thin spruce strips for support, I had read people used linen strips inside but I was worried about the whole implosion thing so I went with wood =). On the neck I made a small ledge to fit the top, which I did for the ukuleles, and put carbon fiber in the neck which I hadn't done before but with 8 steel strings I thought I should do it. The last is a pic of the bracing glued on and shaped. The glue I used was hide glue for the bowl and titebond for the headstock plates, fingerboard and the rosette/pickguard.

[Champlin]

Very nice. Thanks for sharing.

[Pranav Ajay Warrier]

Hi, I did take a couple pics along the way but not that many, I always forget. I built a mould, using the top plate shape from the Lippy poster, with wood and just carved it by eye till I thought it looked good lol. Pic 2, I mounted the mould to some ply and that evolved into a sort of platform so I could get clamps on to hold the neck (forgot to take pics of neck). I needed to scrape alot on top to make things smooth so some areas of the bowl I was worried would be too thin so after removing from the mould and cleaning it up I glued in some thin spruce strips for support, I had read people used linen strips inside but I was worried about the whole implosion thing so I went with wood =). On the neck I made a small ledge to fit the top, which I did for the ukuleles, and put carbon fiber in the neck which I hadn't done before but with 8 steel strings I thought I should do it. The last is a pic of the bracing glued on and shaped. The glue I used was hide glue for the bowl and titebond for the headstock plates, fingerboard and the rosette/pickguard.

This is really cool.