Check out the previous entry in this series by clicking here!
Recap
This build is getting near it's final stage. In this entry we'll take a look at some aesthetic features. Since it is was a cancelled commission and I went ahead and added more cool stuff to make it a mid tier instrument. With no further a due, let's dive in!
Bindings
Ornaments set instruments apart. Of course, there are other important qualities such as playability, resonance, timbre and else. But the main thing that catches attention are the details. It similar to food. Everything comes through the eyes and then the other senses get to work. However, it is true that a good-looking instruments is always a good one. There has to be a balance of looks and function.
Bindings give an extra layer of detail to the whole piece. Taking the time to install them is a challenge as it implies using a router and getting the perimeter of the sound board and back to get some strips of wood there. It also means preparing the inside beforehand. You need thicker reinforcements or you could pop out the back while you cut.
The process of installation is simple once there's room for the bindings. The tricky part is working with this rope and keeping everything tight. It is a thing of practice. This process also requires a large amount of masking tape to help with the gluing.
Fretboard
This piece was ready for quite some time. After getting the bindings in place, we can put it in place.
The main goal here is keeping everything straight. Wood moves with humidity and glue makes it wet. That's why you need to cover a lot of the surface with something that holds the fretboard in place. There are guide lines drawn on the sound board and the nut resting place to align the piece.
Strumming Guard
One of the main features of the Venezuelan Cuatro is this piece of wood on the sound board that prevents the wood from getting damaged while strumming. If you have seen how this instrument is played (there's a link for that here), you can tell why this is more an issue than let's say on a guitar. I think that long ago someone came up with the idea of putting a piece of wood after the fretboard. This was back when the instrument became its own thing. Think of it as it's evolution from the Renaissance Guitar (it's colonial ancestor).
This is another place to showcase some ornaments or other things as a signature in the style of any luthier. In using some strips of wood that are present in the instrument.
Then it all comes to cutting another hole. This could be bigger than the sound hole of the instrument or not. That's a design choice. Gluing it is a another story. I need more presses. But I can manage with what I have. After this it's all cutting, scrapping and sanding.
Resupplying
That's been all the progress since last time. I also wanted to take some time and address the matter of supplies for instruments. Not everything is about woodworking. Keeping in store things like strings, tuning machines, fret wire and others is important. This was something I had bought two weeks ago and could finally get.
A lot of strings for new instruments, two different sets of tuning machines and 6 meters of fret wire.
I hope you enjoyed this little update from this build. There's another series coming up for two instruments that are coming as a pair. That one is a lot of work but I'm having a blast each day of progress. Until next time!
Have a great day!