MikeC

All that's left is finishing mostly. Clean up some contours do some sanding and put some finish on it. The anvil is still not attached. I'm still trying to decide what to do with it. I think the wider base on the original may have been functional rather than just decorative. A wide base provides stability which would not be needed if it was inset into a hole in the base bar so maybe it was only glued on, for easy removal if it ever needed to be replaced? well here's mine so far.

as long as there are no fava beans involved.

give him lots of beer! a little WD40 oil on the screw threads will loosen them enough for easy removal and examination! just kidding of course. Are you allowed to take photos of it? It would be interesting to see it from both sides and from the ends and the bottom also. I'll post a picture of mine later this afternoon.

Davide I'm disappointed. I thought you went there especially for me! But thank you for not sending an invoice, I don't think I could afford such a service! Thank you for that information. Do you think the side screw goes all the way through the wood to the spike? Also I still wonder why the anvil would have a wider cone shaped base. If it is inserted in a hole in the base bar then it could just be a round dowel, no need for a wider base.

I'm making a punch and have a question about the original. How is the anvil attached to the beam, does anyone know? is it glued? At first I thought maybe a screw coming up from underneath but don't see that in the pictures. Also if it's glued then that may explain the wider cone shaped bottom portion. Edit... question number two. Usually if you have a cross beam for support it is only morticed half way but the mortice in that beam is more than half way, any ideas about that?

only two pencil lines so it's hard to know which is what. Doesn't button lac have wax in it? Does that matter in a sealer?

well ok it's more like a fold up TV dinner table than a bench. But actually I do have a bench but it's in a storage shed and it's such a jungle in there, the last time I went in there I found a Japanese soldier that didn't know the war was over. No fiddle project yet, just trying out a new hand plane. So just for fun and to practice a little in preparation for making a walking cane I tried using a hand plane to turn a piece of square stock into a cylinder. It came out almost as good as turning it on a lathe. This piece of wood is only 17 inches long and soft pine. Mostly I just wanted to make some sawdust and wood shavings and wanted to play around with two planes I just got, gift from my brother who is now into collecting hand saws instead of planes. Short one is a Stanly no. 4 and the long one is a Record No. 06 made in England. I'm just starting this thread so I'll have a convenient place to blog once I get started making the Cane for Ernie.

Well for fun, I decided to try the inside first method. I wonder of the cradle really was used by Strad, if so then he would have had to do some initial arching on the outside first otherwise it rocks and is unstable in the cradle while working on the inside. I find it hard to use a chain so I made a rigid inside template. I chalk the edge of it so I can see where it's touching.

ah I can see that now. It's like an optical illusion.

The flames on the maple back are painted on.

After a long hiatus I'm making sawdust again. The ribs where easy, more so than I expected. Plate carving on the other hand I find difficult so I am practicing on cheap poplar wood from the local home improvment store. After looking at CT scans I see what may be clues that may relate to original concepts in arching and thicknessing but my skill level isn't there yet. I made a copy of the cradle that may or may not have been Strad's. It works ok but could be more stable.

Gorilla glue expands as a foam but I think they make a non expanding glue now. Didn't Roger Hargrave suggest that the old Cremona builders may have used casein glue for the corners and plate joints?

I'll win the ugly competition.

Have started working on number 3 VSO

beautiful

from dictionary .com Build - Verb construct (something, typically something large) by putting parts or material together over a period of time. This reminds me of something in the world of computer programming. In the licensed internal code of an IBM midrange there is a command called materialize object. So get out there and materialize a violin shaped object!

It can be a bit pricey but for the small quantities that violin builders would use I wouldn't think it would be a major expense. This is goat, they also have other types. They have quite a selection from whole hides to calligraphy sheets.

Why doesn't anyone use parchment?

and I thought trolololo was bad

Instead of an arch why didn't you make a flat section between the Cs and flat from there to both ends.

Hi E, what is burgundy pitch ? looks good so far!

I can't hear any difference. Maybe I just don't have good ears.

use a wooden plane like Strad and the boys, much easier to flatten one of those

The blue circled part, I make the arch match the arch of the violin top plate in that area, just for aesthetics. Anything else is just homeopathic violin tuning.

They didn't finish their own instruments? Where did you find that ?