The morning was spent researching at the State Archive near WWU. I am working on the biography of J.J. Donovan- afternoons are reserved for Ukuleles
I used the regular tenor assembly board and with this easy big oval bend it was simple to clamp the sides down in the proper place. then I glued in about half of the necessary tentalones. That will guarantee no problems when the clamps come off.
Once the tentalones are all glued in I will be able to mark the shape of the back and begin carving a deep concave back from the figured maple that I have ready to go.
Next I donned my rubber gloves and dust mask to sand the Cocobolo sides. They were coated with the oil that had cooked out of the wood in the hot bending process. Above you will see one half of a side sanded with 220 grit paper. Look at the extremely red sawdust generated when you sand Cocobolo.
Look at the difference from the sanded side on the left and the un-santed on the right. When finally finished this will be really beautiful wood. This is the very very early stage and it is already pretty.