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I haven't read all the posts here so disregard if I'm repeating someone's suggestion. Some times the string slot in the nut or bridge may not be quite right and a string will buzz. Once you finger a...

I'm sensing that part of the reason you're thinking of changing the neck is because you'd like to have a radiused fretboard. If this is the case, most luthiers could radius the board when doing a...

I would be just as excited as you with that find. I can't find an LP of Ralph Stanley when Keith Whitley was with him, let alone an autographed one. Good find.

Here in Canada, we can buy "Alcool" in Quebec and is the only legal source of ethanol I'm aware off and it's what I use. Pure ethanol just works better with shelac for me. It evaporates right and for...

I thin my side material to .080 before bending, using a pipe and torch and heat till water sprinkled on the pipe sizzles. It also helps to use a metal strap as backing to help bend without cracking....

Rob, something to consider is the working time of the hide glue you're using. The higher the strength number, the faster the setup time. It helps to heat the pieces being glued to give a little more...

I use a stained neck with a coat or two of 100% Tung Oil on all my mandolins. The neck feels silky and no grabbing. A fresh rub with fiber cloth and fresh coat of 100% tung Oil once a year or so and...

That's a beautifull looking mandolin Danny. Bob's a true craftsman and makes great looking and sounding mandolins. Can't wait to hear it.

I would fill and redrill them all, using the endpin as a guide to make sure it all fits. Something I do before installing a James a tailpiece is to put it in a vice a give the top a little yank...

I have a lot of uses for a tablesaw but had a few close calls and stopped using it. Then I got one of these and it's great. I now use the tablesaw more than ever and feel quite safe doing so. I also...

The red spruce I use comes from a local spruce tonewood supplier with his own woodlots. He select logs his spruce and has very healthy stands of old red spruce. It's a bonus to be only 45 minutes...

Tony Rice Unit "Still Inside" from 1981 with John Reischman on mandolin.

Saw John and Steve Goodman in Vancouver in the late 70's early 80's. The theatre had a bar and myself and two friends were having a drink while waiting for the show to begin. A gentleman in a black...

:)

A photo of my latest mandolin build. All the goodies...hide glue, red spruce top, hard sugar maple back, sides,and neck. Cumberland Acoustic Bridge, Engraved James Tailpiece,Spirit Varnish finish....

I've wondered why they don't sell a bushing reamer for their vintage bushings as well as the Grovers. I use the waverly reamer/stepped drill for the Grovers and add a little ca glue before I install...

I see a chiropractor once a week to keep the old back in shape. I would end up not being able to work or move around for as long as 2 weeks at a time before chiropractic care. Now at worst I get a...

Here in Canada it can be bought in Quebec Liquor stores under the name Alcool. It's the best thing I've used for mixing shellac and for french polishing.

I'm another who likes seeing Jackson in bluegrass. Look at Rhonda Vincent, Patty Loveless, Ricky Scaggs, Marty Stewart.....and let's not forget Dixie and Tom T Hall, all with a past steeped in...

The 12th Fret.

Here's what I use. $14.00 at a big box store.. I've had this one for 5 years or so and still does what I need it to do.

Canadian builder Elmo MacDonald builds mandolins with adjustable necks.

Hot hide glue and spring clamps. Don't rush. Do a practice run and have your clamps laid out so you can reach them without fumbling.
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I have a bandsaw fence from Lee Valley that's adjustable to compensate for the blade drift. This works great when resawing spruce and maple. I have a 14' bandsaw with I think is a 1hp motor and use a...

When the final leveling of the oil varnish coats is done, the finish is left looking dull and sanded. The french polished top coats,for me, serves two purposes....to polish to a nice finished look...