Best selling wood projects - Woodworking Feel the Burn!

Best selling wood projects

Any woodworker who has been pursuing their craft for a long time can reach a point when things seem repetitive or boring.  This feeling is, of course, not restricted to woodworking - but it is in this context that I write.
I have seen passionate woodworkers lose their muse from time to time, and drift off into a kind of woodworking limbo where both inspiration and motivation begin to flag.
This kind of malaise is seldom found among members of groups who share their interests with each other. 

As a member of the Hastings Woodworkers Guild,  I see - every day - the benefits of belonging to a  community of like minded souls.   Techniques are shared, efforts are encouraged, successes are acknowledged, ways to improve are suggested.
Moreover there is available in the collective wisdom of the group, answers to problems and different ways of approaching thorny assignments.

Members with expertise often give of their time to demonstrate and teach technique.

Here, John demonstrates how easy it is to cut and re-join bandsaw blades.
These blades are cast offs from the local butcher shop.  They are discarded when they no longer are able to cut bone.  Interestingly, they are still sharp enough to easily slice through timber, and we get more than 6 months out of a re-sized throw-away blade before it needs replacing.
The re-sizing is necessary to reduce the blade in length to fit our standard 14 inch bandsaws.

Groups like ours often hold "Show and Tell" times where members work can be displayed.

Most importantly, members are acknowledged, their work valued, and their presence appreciated.

And then, of course, there are the conundrums........................

................. the impossible dovetail ..........................
 and ..........
 ................... the impossible housing joint ................

On top of this, the icing on the cake is the sense of community and belonging that members feel, as well as friendships that grow through contact and shared experiences.

If you ever find your woodworking spirits starting to sag, and your inspiration beginning to shrink - maybe a group like this one, can turn things around.

Happy trails pardners.................
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Best selling wood projects - Making A Boat Paddle Tenor Ukulele Part 1 Timber and Template

Best selling wood projects

It is over a year since I last built a ukulele and it is time to address the building of a second.
It will be a different design this time - a boat paddle tenor, with a cutaway for the left hand.

Wood Selection
My last ukulele was made from sassafras with a western red cedar soundboard.  It resonated very well and had tons of volume.  This time, I am going to attempt to tone down the volume with a smaller body and a different selection of timbers.
I have been fortunate to have heard and played a couple of ukuleles made from mango during the year, and the sound was sweet.

I have sourced a few pieces that will serve  for the back and the soundboard, as well as some for the sides.  The piece that I will cut the sides from is a little wild in its grain pattern and I am unsure how well it will take to the bending required.

 In case it is a disaster I have a piece of camphor laurel that I will hold in reserve ...... fingers crossed.

Making a Template

I have used an existing ukulele as a model for the one that I will build.  Simply by sketching around its base onto a piece of craftwood, Ill have the basis for the back and the soundboard.
This is cut out and carefully sanded to make all edges as close to the curves of the finished product as possible.

Making the Mould

Once the template is finished, it is time to create the mould that will hold the body during shaping and assembly.  Since I want this to be able to open up along its mid-line when the body is finished, Ill make it in two halves that can be clamped together and separated as needed.
The template does the work now and the mould cut out and built up to thickness.

It needs to be deep enough to house the sides of the ukulele body, but not quite as deep as the sides, so that the top and then the bottom can be clamped on without fouling on the sides of the mould.  Ill get to that later.

I would normally use craftwood or mdf for the mould, but I am out of it so a couple of pieces of re-cycled meranti will serve nicely.

Cutting the Sheets for the Back and the Sound-Board

The pieces of mango that I have are only just going to be large enough to fashion the top and bottom of the ukulele, so Ill be most careful when I cut not to waste any.

I use my bandsaw for this and cut veneers around 4mm thick.  I leave plenty on these veneers as they will have to have the bandsaw marks planed and sanded out, and be brought back to their final thickness of 2mm.

Both the front and the back of the body will be made up of two book-matched pieces of mango that will be glued down their centre lines.
The sides will be made from a book-matched pair of rippings from a separate mango board.

Thats enough for now.
Next time Ill finish off the mould and start the shaping process on the sides to fit them into the outline of the body inside the mould.  This is time consuming, but worth every minute of care in the process.

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