This baritone for Ron is going to be something special. Today I did the final sanding. As soon as I get the peg head plate installed I will begin the French polishing. It is going to be very handsome.
It is the wood that will make it stand out. A Bubinga body bound with curly maple binding, Honduran Rosewood fretboard, and a wonderful soundboard of "bear claw" Sitka Spruce, plus an amazing tiger stripe maple neck. I put a coat of French Polish on top and neck today so they would not get dirty. It hints at what the wood will look like when completely finished.
Look at that choice "bear claw" Spruce.
This neck is going to be spectacular when all finished. If this Bari sounds as good as the last Bubinga/Spruce I built Ron is going to be very happy.
I finally tore myself away from the baritone to put the side sound port in Stu's tenor. Here I have glued a patch of thin ebony veneer on the inside where the port will be installed. The ebony grain runs counter to the grain of the side. I have clamped a caul, the shape of the side, to hold the patch tight as the glue sets.
Now, with a drill bitt in my Dremel, I cut out the rough hole after marking the shape with a pencil.
Here you can see everything, the patch, the hole, the Dremel
Now the oval ring is installed and held in with superglue. After trimming and sanding both inside and out- it looks like this
A little more sanding and that spot of super-glue will disappear. Looking good, got a good fit with the little grinding wheel in the Dremel. No gaps.
