So, am I a builder? I guess not. Dabbler at best. But let me start with a bit of background.
I have a cheap Epiphone mandolin, fitted a piezo myself, using it in a band I play with but never quite satisfied with the sound.
A good 15 years ago we had to cut down and get rid of an old, huge cherry tree in the garden, before it would fall down by itself from sickness and wind, and flatten part of the house or the neighbor's garage, depending on the direction of the next storm. I kept a few fairly sound pieces of wood (don't tell the wife).
Now what have we? A band situation in need of a better mandolin. Wood that can be made to look really good. Instrument hardware from other projects that never started. Corona lockdown with canceled gigs and time to spare. Basic woodworking implements. A player who is optimistic about his woodworking skills.
Let me whittle myself an electric mandolin!
My guitar is a Rick 360, so I figured it would be a gimmick to model my mandolin to a similar shape.
The laziness
The premade fretboard is for a concert ukulele. A bit too large, so the scale length is going to be 15 1/4". Could have cut it down by 2 frets for a normal mandolin string span, but heck, let me try this!
Glued the fretboard with pva glue (just forget that you read that). Could have used hide glue, but then I would have to buy some and learn how to work with it.
The mistakes
Already mentioned the glue, but that mistake I made willingly.
Cherry tends to warp a bit, and I am essentially carving this instrument out of one single piece of wood. I do not have any neck reinforcement, and the increased scale implies a 20% above average load on the neck. Silk lined strings is perhaps a good idea...
Shaped the neck profile past the nut. That is going to be a weakness. Realized too late. It seems that "volute" is a key element I did not incorporate. Wish me luck!
Finishing with tung oil. Looking good, but I tried to buff it too soon, and got some shiny and some woody areas. Rub down and start over.
To be continued..
Advice and comments welcome, of course.
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