Chambered body e-mando build part 1

Work is now underway on my next chambered body e-mando. Below you can see the all work that goes into its core which, once the instrument is complete will never ever be seen!

I always treat my wood as precious and try to keep waste to a minimum; therefore, rather than machine the core from one large lump of wood, I laminate it from strips. Also, this method allows me to cut channels for the wiring to run through the body and creates a cavity under the where the bridge will sit.

Once all the of the core has been glued together, a strip of hardwood (maple in this case) is used to reinforce the end joints. . . . . . .

. . . . and then a piece of plywood is inserted, this will take the threaded endpin jack-socket.

With all that done, the final shape can be cut out.

Here you can see the rebate which will eventually take two panels which will “close-up” the chambers.

Chambered Body E-mando now completed.

I’m glad to say that the latest e-mando has been completed and as I write this, it’s in transit, on a 7500 mile adventure!

Below is the last video in the series and some nice photos!

Chambered Body E-mando: part 5

Here’s the latest e-mando video. In this one, I demonstrate how I shape/carve a neck. Although I’m working on an electric mandolin which has a relatively short neck, the process is the same for any of my instruments.

Also below are some choice photos.

Chambered body electric mandolin: COMPLETED!

As the title says, I’ve now finished the latest emando. So, below are some of my favourite photos of it and of course the season finale video! In the video, on a couple of occasions you’ll hear the emando without amplification and it demonstrates how the concept of increasing the natural resonance of the instrument, by building in “chambers” does, in fact, work.

This emando was, by far, the most challenging one that I’ve done, but hopefully you’ll agree that it was worth the effort. Will I make another? Of course! Ideas whirling away in the ol’ brain-box already!

And the video..................

E mando- putting it together: 1

When I do my final assembly of an instrument, out of habit, I always start with the tuners. The shafts of the tuners get a coat of paraffin wax to lubricate them, helping them to rotate more freely as they “bed in” over time. 

Perceived wisdom says that you fit the bushes first. However, I like to fit the tuners and then the bushes as the shafts act as a guide to keep the bushes true. I can only do this because I have a very special tuner bush fitting tool- actually it’s the handle from a multi-bit screwdriver set which just happens to work perfectly!

The tuners are high quality Gotoh MA40; this set has ivoroid buttons which complement the maple bindings and as there is no pearl used throughout the mandolin, pearloid ones didn’t seem appropriate, but it is beyond me why they cost an extra 20 quid!

Then the fret board gets its last coat of lemon oil before the strings go on.

All the “metalwork” gets a final once-over with a fine abrasive pad- I like a “brushed aluminium” look rather than an overly shiny one.

Where I need to, I prefer to use stainless steel screws, all these are cleaned-up for that same brushed look. Each screw goes into an electric drill which is used as a mini-lathe!

Sneaky Peak!

Just I thought I’d show you how the Tru-oil was going on!

Getting there……….

As you saw in the last video, the neck and fretboard joined the body and we now have a whole e-mando! Since then, it’s been fretted, neck carved and had a jolly good clean-up.

So, the next thing is to work on making/fitting the hardware, getting it playing and then taking it apart ready for finishing. This one will be done in Tru-oil; I know there’s quite a bit interest in using this finish, so I’ll do another video to show you my process.

Neck on!

The neck has been fixed to the body on my latest e-mando and it’s all in the video below! It's getting exciting now!

Chambered Body Update

I’ve just finished work on the purflings and bindings for the new chambered body electric mandolin and I must say, I’m pleased with the outcome on a couple of levels….

It was quite time-consuming process, as practically all of the 16 pieces had to be glued on individually.

Now the bindings are on, you wouldn’t know how difficult it was to achieve- the maple (for the bindings) was 2.5mm thick and had to be bent to some pretty extreme curves and also the points had to be mitred cleanly. The white maple is very unforgiving as any gaps in the joints can’t be filled as you can do with ebony or rosewood.

The body is now really complete; one of the aims of this project was to see if I could actually create this shape by bending wood and to get a good idea of the geometry of the top. So, me thinks, an acoustic mandolin built to this shape would be possible!

Happy Holidays!

First thing’s first; Amanda and I wanted to thank you for your continued support and friendship throughout this most difficult of years and wish you Happy Christmas and best wishes for the new year!

The body of the electric mandolin is now together and all that extra internal work hidden from view- unless you watch the video!

Chambered body, electric mandolin: tailpiece

I’ve just made the tailpiece for the next emando and the video below gives you an idea of the processes involved in making one. One thing that occurred to me as I was making it; it’s one of the few things that I make, where you can start and finish it in the same session- no gluing, no finishing etc. just hewn from one piece of material!

Chambered body, electric mandolin 4- Koa back

I’ve been working on the Koa back, to match the sides that you would have seen in an earlier post. One aspect of making the back, that I knew would be challenging was to cut out the access panel for the electrics. Why? Well, normally on my solid bodies, I route the control cavity and make up a cover from aluminium, brass or whatever. But on this one, as it has a thin back, I thought it be a nice idea to carefully cut-out the opening for the cavity and keep the “waste” to use as a matching cover.  I first saw this idea on those amazing Alembic basses; it’s a feature they call it a “continuous wood backplate". However, lacking sophisticated machinery, I had to use my router, a template and template follower and a 1mm diameter cutter. 

I saw these cutters on eBay awhile back from someone called the Highland Slate Workshop. Now, if you’ve drilled 1mm holes you know that the drill can bend or break quite easily, so it was with some trepidation that I put a 1mm cutter into a plunging router……….

Chambered body, electric mandolin 3

As you can see, I’ve been working on the first stages of the neck; preparing the sapele, laminating for both decoration and stability, spliced head joint, inserting carbon fibre, head overlay, shaping the head and volute, tuner holes.

And here's how I got there.........