Vespa Bob
Well-known member
It has been quite some time since I visited this forum, but since the the beginning of the year my free time has been in short supply! That's life, I guess.
Nevertheless my urge to build another uke had to be satisfied, so in March, to speed things up, I purchased a StewMac Tenor kit. This saved time in rounding up material, although I did switch to a solid spruce top. I also planned adding some "bling" and a bolt on neck rather than the dowel method suggested in the kit.
The kit met my expectations and I'm sure it will be an ideal choice for those with limited skills or equipment, but, personally, I think that Stewmac should continue selling their original kit as an option.
Due to time constraints, progress was very slow, despite my "jumpstart" with the kit. Since this was intended as a gift for my eldest son, an aerospace engineer, who knows a thing or two about quality, I was under a certain pressure not to screw up anywhere along the line!
I decide to use his initials for the headstock design, as he didn't offer any suggestions.
Eventually, after some delay in waiting for the weather to comply, I was able to spray a lacquer finish and, a week later, buff it out.
One tip I would like to suggest when building this kit is to go easy on the sanding. The ply laminates are pretty thin and if one isn't careful, the outer layer can be sanded through, leaving the underlying layer exposed! Don't ask me how I know.
Bob
Nevertheless my urge to build another uke had to be satisfied, so in March, to speed things up, I purchased a StewMac Tenor kit. This saved time in rounding up material, although I did switch to a solid spruce top. I also planned adding some "bling" and a bolt on neck rather than the dowel method suggested in the kit.
The kit met my expectations and I'm sure it will be an ideal choice for those with limited skills or equipment, but, personally, I think that Stewmac should continue selling their original kit as an option.
Due to time constraints, progress was very slow, despite my "jumpstart" with the kit. Since this was intended as a gift for my eldest son, an aerospace engineer, who knows a thing or two about quality, I was under a certain pressure not to screw up anywhere along the line!
I decide to use his initials for the headstock design, as he didn't offer any suggestions.
Eventually, after some delay in waiting for the weather to comply, I was able to spray a lacquer finish and, a week later, buff it out.
One tip I would like to suggest when building this kit is to go easy on the sanding. The ply laminates are pretty thin and if one isn't careful, the outer layer can be sanded through, leaving the underlying layer exposed! Don't ask me how I know.
Bob
