sequoia
Well-known member
Hello, amateur guy here. For some reason I decided to do a double Florentine cutaway. I think I was inspired by some stuff Jerry Hoffmann has posted. You know, the guy that does the exquisite super clean stuff (Hluth). My research showed me that a Venetian cutaway would be a lot easier, but I like the look of the Florentine. I actually think that a cutaway on a uke doesn't make any sense from a players point of view, but I think it looks cool so why not? Just having some fun in the uke shop.
The concept is simple: Bend sides as usual and then cut out the sides and reverse the upper bout. Convex becomes concave. Cut absolutely plumb to the sides, brace, reinforce and go. What could be simpler... Ha ha ha!
The plumb cut was simple, but immediately I was in the weeds when I sanded down for a flush joint. The angle is impossible to calculate and every thing needs to be plumb. After I figured that out, I noticed that the joint is very weak and needs to be seriously reinforced. After gluing in struts and cleats I realized I had bitten off way more than I can chew. I hope I can pull this off, but lord, what a puzzle. The thing that bothers me is that the joint is inherently weak. I'll get it, but do not try this at home unless you have a lot of time to waste.
I built a simple form instead of using a mold to see the reveal in the joint. Anyway, things get genuinely weird quickly. I finally got the thing beat, but what a struggle.
The concept is simple: Bend sides as usual and then cut out the sides and reverse the upper bout. Convex becomes concave. Cut absolutely plumb to the sides, brace, reinforce and go. What could be simpler... Ha ha ha!
The plumb cut was simple, but immediately I was in the weeds when I sanded down for a flush joint. The angle is impossible to calculate and every thing needs to be plumb. After I figured that out, I noticed that the joint is very weak and needs to be seriously reinforced. After gluing in struts and cleats I realized I had bitten off way more than I can chew. I hope I can pull this off, but lord, what a puzzle. The thing that bothers me is that the joint is inherently weak. I'll get it, but do not try this at home unless you have a lot of time to waste.
I built a simple form instead of using a mold to see the reveal in the joint. Anyway, things get genuinely weird quickly. I finally got the thing beat, but what a struggle.