Here is the top, after I have sanded it all:

  

 

The finished top and back — the product of these last two weeks of work:

 

Now, it's on to the sides!!!

 

INDEX:

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  1. Planning
  2. A Little Change in Plans...
  3. Back Braces
  4. Carving the Back Braces & Cutting the Top Braces
  5. The Rosette / Tapering the Fingerboard
  6. Bracing the Top
  7. Carving the Braces / Gluing the Soundhole Braces & Bridge Plate
  8. The Finished Top and Back!!! / Cutting and Bending the Sides
  9. Fixing Cupped Sides / Making Spreaders & Clamping Cauls
  10. Neck and Tail Blocks
  11. Sanding the Radius into the Sides / Gluing the Kerfing Strips / Side Reinforcements
  12. Fitting & Gluing the Back
  13. Fitting & Gluing the Top
  14. We Have a Soundbox Now!!!
  15. Bending and Routing for Bindings
  16. Gluing the End Wedge & Bindings
  17. Scraping the Bindings
  18. Beginning the Neck
  19. The Neck, Continued!!!
  20. The Neck, Day 3
  21. Peghead, Tuners, Dots, & Frets!!
  22. Peghead Inlay
  23. Backstrap & Gluing the Fingerboard
  24. Carving the Neck / A "Duh!" Moment / Side Dots / Preparing for Finish
  25. Pore-Filling and Sealing
  26. Spraying the Top Coats
  27. Finishing the Finish / Gluing on the Neck
  28. Gluing on the Bridge
  29. Set-Up / It's All Done!

 

Tuesday, June 30th, 2009:

Once again using Colin Symonds's great, simple method of figuring out the profile for your sides, I made a template for my sides and have cut out the sides here, leaving a little extra at the ends. I have left the top edge flat at this point, to make it easier to align it properly in the side bender — later, after I've bent the sides and glued on the neck and tail blocks, I will use a small plane to shape the top edge into its 25' radius profile.

 

  

 

 

I have wrapped the side in a "sandwich" of aluminum foil and dampened kraft paper, and have placed it this way (from bender form, out): spring steel slat /wood "sandwich" / heat blanket / spring steel slat. I place the whole shebang atop the bending form, center the waist mark on the wood to the bender slot, and crank down slightly so it will stay put. I turn on the heat blanket and, as it starts to steam (around 225°), I slowly crank the waist down almost all the way. Then, I bend the lower bout and, after that, the upper bout. When the two bouts are clamped, I crank the waist down all the way. When the temperature has reached around 310°, I unplug the heat blanket and let it cool down a bit. After a bit, I plug in the blanket again, let the temperature rise again to around 300°, then unplug it again. I let it cool down. I will come back to it later to remove the bent side and do the other side.