Not About Ukuleles But About a Luthier

Below is an article on a violin maker from a local newspaper. The interesting thing about the luthier (after you wade through all the preliminary stuff), is that he set out to make EVERYTHING locally sourced. He even gets cattle tendons to make his glue and makes his own turpentine for his finish solvent. This is taking it way further than I would go, but who knew you could make your own turpentine? Personally, I just buy my solvents.

Redwood topped violins??? Apparently it works.

https://santarosapressdemocrat-ca-app.newsmemory.com/?publink=1730ee892

The manzanita should provide quite a contrast with the redwood, I would think. Let us know how is sounds if you make it to the performance.

I get the challenge of do it all. To know what the craftsmen of the day did to build their instruments. I am sure they could have just hopped down to the local cabinet maker and sourced some turpentine rather than having to make it themselves. My first guitar had me resawing the wood, making up an adjustable truss rod for it. The luthiers giving me encouragement thought I should go a more traditional rout but I wanted to do it all. Never made a truss rod since. I do need to do another one for a special project. Redwood has a range of densities that overlap spruce so it is not that big a stretch. It would be nice to source things locally, not much of a local selection where I live. The odd oak tree and lots of prairie. I did make a whole guitar out of one 2"x4" though. The bridge, binding and fretboard were not but the rest was. It was a fun project.

Thanks for the heads up on this project, I get the Press Democrat and somehow missed that story. I will now pay more attention to it. I really like the Movie, The Red Violin, makes me wonder about some ukulele that will pass through many hands and stories

If the neighborhood cats start disappearing....you know he's making his own strings too

Violin makers are fascinating - they work almost exclusively in a seated position and engage, if using traditional tools, in a painstakingly slow and structured process of slavishly copying historically curated reproductions. There are measured drawings, defined techniques, even an 'official' repair manual! I admire them but simply could not work that regulated straight jacket of tradition. I just don't have the humility for it.

Pete Howlett said:

Violin makers are fascinating - they work almost exclusively in a seated position and engage, if using traditional tools, in a painstakingly slow and structured process of slavishly copying historically curated reproductions. There are measured drawings, defined techniques, even an 'official' repair manual! I admire them but simply could not work that regulated straight jacket of tradition. I just don't have the humility for it.

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Wonderful but c'mon. that stuff isn't exactly mainstream and the rebec is a wild card