Musician and Appalachian Mountain Dulcimer Maker
Posted in Tools on Oct 21st, 2009
Another gem from the Internet Archive, 507 Mechanical Movements has detailed llustrations of gears, pulleys, water-wheels and all the marvels of modern technology in 1908. Get your copy here: 507 Mechanical Movements by Henry T. Brown
Posted in Music on Oct 13th, 2009
I am a frequent visitor to The Toolemera Press and The Toolemera Blog. Gary does a wonderful job of sharing his library of rare books on woodworking, tools and related ephemera. I have learend a lot about tools from reading the PDF files he offers for free download. Gary also offers a digital edition of [...]
Posted in Tools on Oct 10th, 2009
As I recover from gallbladder surgery the most frustrating thing is not being able to work in my shop for a week. I feel pretty darn good but I’m not supposed to lift anything over ten pounds, push a plane, etc. Probably not a good idea to go to the sawmill and sort through lumber [...]
Today, like every other day, we wake up empty and frightened. Don’t open the door to the study and begin reading. Take down the dulcimer. Let the beauty we love be what we do. There are hundreds of ways to kneel and kiss the ground. – Mevlana Jellaludin Rumi
Lutherie requires precision work with a material that prefers to bend and sway with the weather! I have learned that it is better to accommodate the will of the wood then to force it to meet my demands. I have tried both approaches and have learned that the will of the wood always wins! Working [...]
I was recently asked about using back-bevels on a plane blade. Putting a small bevel on the back of the blade effectively increases the angle at which the sharp edge slices the wood. The higher angle causes less (or no) tear-out on tricky or figured hardwoods. One of my favorite planes is a high angle [...]
Posted in Dulcimer on Sep 14th, 2009
Friends Of The Mountain Dulcimer is a social network for dulcimer players; think of it as Facebook for people who are mountain dulcimer players, makers and enthusiasts, There are already well over 100 members and you can be one too!
I am often asked which species of wood makes the best sounding dulcimer. Any answer would be very subjective at best. Each tonewood has the potential to become an instrument with a fine, unique voice. There are some generalizations as to the potential tone of various woods but the outcome is dependent on the design [...]
Posted in Tools on Aug 25th, 2009
A few years ago I learned that a sloyd knife was named after the Slöjd method of teaching woodworking. There are many handbooks covering the basics of choosing and using woodworking hand tools. The variety of tools, methodology and illustration is almost always fascinating and colored by the era in which the book was written. [...]
