Bell Cittern

Take us through building your guitar step by step. Post pictures and tell us what you're doing.
ruby@magpage.com
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Re: Bell Cittern

Post by ruby@magpage.com »

Maine

Is that an Emmert pattern maker's vice? Wonderful tool that spins 360 degrees and angles up on that big hinge you can see. You can position an item in the jaws to be in any orientation.

Lucky you

where did you buy a block of hard plastic like that? At some marine stores that sell chunks of UHMW plastic - ultra high molecular weight - that are very dense and are used at the base of a mast to lift it out of the wet bilge. A big mast with all the rigging tightened down can put an enormous load on the plastic.

Ed
Ed M
MaineGeezer
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Re: Bell Cittern

Post by MaineGeezer »

Oops -- this was supposed to be the first picture. The holes are from the screws I used to hold it in place when I cut the radius.

No, it's not a "real" Emmert vise. A few years ago Woodcraft and a couple of other outfits were selling a knock-off approximation for a price that was somewhat affordable by ordinary mortals. By some fluke I bought one when it was available; I don't see them advertised now. And I must say, it is great. Not the quality of an original, for sure, but it's good enough to work. [Correction: They are still available.]

I got the Delrin on EBay, I think. There are quite a few sellers. You can also get it from http://www.mcmaster.com (You can get anything from McMaster!)
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Last edited by MaineGeezer on Mon Nov 15, 2021 8:58 am, edited 2 times in total.
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MaineGeezer
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Re: Bell Cittern

Post by MaineGeezer »

I was wrong. The vise is still available. Here is one place that sells it (usual disclaimers):

http://www.highlandwoodworking.com/patt ... gvise.aspx

The neck is starting to look like something. The Spanish cedar is certainly easy to carve.
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When things are bad, try not to make them any worse, because it is quite likely they are bad enough already. - French Foreign Legion
MaineGeezer
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Minimalist fret markers

Post by MaineGeezer »

In keeping with the minimalist look, I tried to come up with some minimalist fret markers. They are just 1/16' x 3/32' bits of hickory inset into the edge of the fingerboard. I've seem that sort of edge placement of fret markers, but not quite as sparse as this.
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Don't believe everything you know.
Anything is possible if you don't know what you are talking about.
When things are bad, try not to make them any worse, because it is quite likely they are bad enough already. - French Foreign Legion
MaineGeezer
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Re: Bell Cittern

Post by MaineGeezer »

i've made the "trapeze" tailpiece, although I may do it again in brass. The prototype originally had only an end plate, drilled to anchor the ends of the strings, but it proved difficult to find strings long enough (44") to go from the end of the body to the top tuners in the headstock so the trapeze was added. I decided to allow for either setup, so I drilled the end plate and made the trapeze easily removable.
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Don't believe everything you know.
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When things are bad, try not to make them any worse, because it is quite likely they are bad enough already. - French Foreign Legion
MaineGeezer
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Re: Bell Cittern

Post by MaineGeezer »

I spent a couple of hours yesterday adjusting the neck angles (up/down, left/right), then I glued the neck in place with hot hide glue. The up/down angle is somewhat of a guess. I've never built anything with a tailpiece and this style of bridge before. The bridge consists of a plate that looks like a 1/4" thick blank for a belly bridge, completely flat on top. The saddle -- or what passes for the saddle -- sits on top of that, free to move around. Because the strings simply pass over the bridge, there is no tendency for the top to lift, but presumably the neck will bend slightly. How all of that is going to average out I have no idea. I may have set the neck a trifle too far back, but I guess better that than too far forward.

One dumb move -- after I got the neck glued on I noticed I had forgotten the heel cap. Well, that can be glued on later, just no as conveniently.
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tippie53
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Re: Bell Cittern

Post by tippie53 »

love the file work on the tail piece
a touch of art
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MaineGeezer
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Re: Bell Cittern

Post by MaineGeezer »

I wish I was that good with a file! I used the CNC router to cut out the lizard. I guess I could pretend I did it all by hand....but I didn't.
Don't believe everything you know.
Anything is possible if you don't know what you are talking about.
When things are bad, try not to make them any worse, because it is quite likely they are bad enough already. - French Foreign Legion
MaineGeezer
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Re: Bell Cittern

Post by MaineGeezer »

It's not *quite* done yet -- the nut and saddle need final tweaking -- but it's close. Here is a picture of the nearly-complete cittern, and a brief sound sample. It's not a great recording. I used the microphone on a video cam, which is certainly a long way from "high fidelity"," but you can definitely get a sense of how it resonates.
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Don't believe everything you know.
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When things are bad, try not to make them any worse, because it is quite likely they are bad enough already. - French Foreign Legion
MaineGeezer
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Joined: Wed Aug 13, 2014 12:14 pm

Re: Bell Cittern

Post by MaineGeezer »

Here is the sound sample, I hope.
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Don't believe everything you know.
Anything is possible if you don't know what you are talking about.
When things are bad, try not to make them any worse, because it is quite likely they are bad enough already. - French Foreign Legion
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