Stalling

I have no camera available right now, and the next few things I'm doing (setting the neck, making the pegs, stringing it up in the white) all need photos. Speaking about stringing it up, anyone have a recommendation for strings? I've only used medium Dominates and an assortment of pure gut strings. The gut ones seem to have more overtones, they sound richer and more interesting. The biggest difference in tension between the gut and synthetic seems to be the E string. Maybe guts, with a light tension steel E?
I figured I could use the time to do work outside, but is is always raining. Or write the music down for 8 songs I wrote. There isn't an excuse for not doing the songs. Except that it is hard when you don't know what you're doing! I looked at some Christian song sheet music yesterday and I noticed I've been lazy in my rhythm. Most songs are not on the beat. When I sing the songs I don't notice that they aren't on the beat, so I write them down on the beat. When I play the song back (with the computer software on a "piano") it sounds dull, and lifeless...because it is on the beat. A couple times I got the notes off somehow (easy when you don't know what you're doing) and they switched to eighth and sixteenth notes with ties. I thought it looked weird. That's the way it's supposed to be! As far as grumbling about the weather. That, and slow drivers are my weakness.
I should be like David when he wrote a psalm. Many start off with gripes or complaints, but they always end with thanks and praise. Thanks for the rain. You know we need it. Praise to the One who makes the clouds to bring the rain, to bring the spring growth, to bring the summer ripening and the fall harvest. Praise even for the winter snow. Praise even for the long cold spring (after the long cold winter), we've only cut the grass twice this year so far! The photo is some Evening Primrose blooming by the pond last year. I hope that's what they are! I thought the creeping stuff behind it was Primrose though. Ah, they are Sundrops. Related to the others but the flowers close at night.

Motivation, got any?

I'm not one to be depressed. Don't quite understand it. But sometimes I just don't have any motivation. All week the weather has been fairly nice. Friday and Saturday were beautiful, high around 80 and sunny. I had to work Saturday. Stuff to do outside competing with making violin pegs, and songs to write music for. So now that Sunday is here and the weather is nasty (I don't believe global warming, haven't had a hot summer here in Michigan since 1988), cold (40's), rain (all day long today, and thunderstorms every night all week long to wake you up), you would think the pegs or songs would win out and the lathe would be spinning or the notes written down. Not yet. After a couple of nice days this weather really feels cold. Had to take the car up to get gas and a newspaper. The cold rain dripping on me and the 20mph wind made me shiver, and a couple fingers turned white. Didn't get that all winter! Came home and the cheap (free) program I have to help on music scores wouldn't cooperate. Couldn't remember how to get it to work, and it really is work if you don't know what you're doing. I might get on with the pegs, but it is so gloomy and dark I can't get going. How do people living in the north get through the winter? Once I get going on something today (it's almost 2) I won't want to stop. I just can't pull the trigger. The photo is from February. It's probably only 20 degrees warmer today. It ain't right.

Squeeze in the time

Another week without much done. The belly is tuned now after sealing. It didn't seem to change as much as the back did. Maybe the belly was tuned better in the first place! The next step will be to set and glue the neck in. I noticed the other day I hadn't finished the neck...no fluting or chamfers. So I did a little on it the way I usually do, squeezed in between other stuff. Fluting doesn't take to long. I just hold the neck n my left hand, and carve it in. I hold the gouges way near the ends, not on the handles. Now is not the time for leverage, just small cuts with a sharp tool.

I squeeze in time for other stuff too. Reading done in Kroger or Meijers. Music while washing the car and cutting the grass. My latest readers: From the Cross to Pentecost, by J. D. Jakes. Just started a new one by him Friday! 9 Days in Heaven, by Marietta Davis in the 1800's but updated by Dennis and Nolene Prince just recently. Very moving story. Heaven is for Real, by Lynn Vincent. A story along the same line, but with a little boy who knows much more than he should. I haven't finished Radical by David Platt (only seen it in one store), but it is good so far. At home, besides my normal stuff I read everyday, I've been re-reading Revelation illustrated and made plain, written by Tim LaHaye back when I graduated high school. I have the 18th printing from 1981 (garage sale).

I have my mp3 player on random play so the songs are all mixed up. Here is the playlist from washing the car: Sibelius sym #6 (first movement), My December How I Feel, John Mayer Crossroads, MercyME Love of God, Bartok violin concerto(first movement), Beethoven Sym #5 (third movement?), Casting Crowns To Know You, Jars of Clay Show you Love, Sting Fortress around your Heart. Then I'm related to Adam, by me came up and I had to laugh. A lot of songs to wash the car? Well I waxed it, and rainx'ed the windows too! Found a great tool that will work in the violin shop as well. Microfiber rags. Great stuff.

The belly is sealed

Here is the belly after being sealed. I used the same routine as I did on the back. It is lighter in color after being in the sun all day, but I like it better now. It was almost too golden before.










Now it matches the color of the back more. They are both very shiny. My other grounds were flat. The varnish coat was the only thing shiny. I hope this way works better. The effect of the ground on the belly is very dichromic. It appears much darker when looking at it from the end than straight on.






I put the back on my tuning fixture and did have to do more tuning on it to get it to where it was before. Mostly near the ends (more end grain to suck up the sealant) and in a few other spots that must have been thirstier. I'm glad I did it this way. At least I'll know if the tuning works.

Back is sealed

I sealed the back today. I was going to seal the belly as well, but I found a place where the purfling was carved away and had to fix it. The first step is to burnish the entire back, edges and everything. Then I brush on a liberal coat of gum dissolved in water (60:1 water), let it soak in for a minute or so, blot off the excess with a paper towel. After it feels almost dry I burnish it again. Same sequence again, this time with liquid resin. After this it was nearly sealed. The last methods I used needed more coats than this. Most of the spots that were not sealed as well were near the ends where there is a lot of end grain. So I soaked the ends with some gum again, rubbing some around the rest of the back. After blotting it off I followed with the resin, and when it was almost dry I burnished it up.

At this point it seemed to be at a good point for the final seal coat. I want the top coat to go on when the wood is ALMOST sealed. I want to FEEL a little wood through it. I hope that after the final coat, THEN it will feel sealed. After that the varnish goes on, and if it chips or wears off, the sealing (ground) is still there.

The final coat is a very light coat of very dark varnish I cooked up a while ago. It's like a Fulton varnish with added resin, and no turpentine. It is very thick. I put a bit on a small, stiff artist brush, and use it like a stippling brush. Then I use my fingers to spread it around. It isn't brushable, only the fingers and hand can spread it around. It doesn't take long, and only uses a minuscule amount of varnish. How's it look?