Doug Berch

Woodworker Qing made elaborately carved wooden bell stands.
When others saw the completed bell stands, they were startled and thought they must have been created by supernatural beings.
The Marquis of Lu saw one of them and asked: “What special art (artistic skill) do you have to be able to do this?”
He replied, “Your humble servant is [...]

Many instruments with flat tops and backs actually have some slight arching built into them. The arching ads stiffness and strength to the thin top and back.
On guitars the soundboard must not only create the sound of the instrument but it also must resist the tension of six strings. Traditional dulcimer designs usually employ the [...]

This morning I posted about some wood I was going to resaw. Some of the wood shown in today’s earlier post has been resawn as well as a few other boards.
Some of the boards needed to be flattened before they could be resawn. For the ones with a lot of twist I prefer using a [...]

When I shop for wood I never know what I’ll come home with. Usually I plan on getting something specific but often I find that what I want isn’t available. Sometimes I’m lucky and come home with something unexpected and wonderful.
That is how I came to acquire this Curly Sapele or Mahogany. I’m not quite [...]

Most of the work I do involves light trimming, fitting and the shaping of parts. I prefer paring chisels for the precision, reach and control they offer.

I was lucky enough to find a few old Buck cranked and straight paring chisels at an antique mall a few years ago. These chisels are great for shaping [...]

Here’s where I’m starting off this morning. Today I’ll start working on the pegheads.

Just thought I’d put up a few pictures of #81 as it moves through a few stages of construction.
This sides and back are from a very nice piece of curly Walnut and the top is a very stiff piece of Sitka Spruce with a fair amount of bear claw figure. Unfortunately my lack of skill [...]

I have mentioned before that I prefer working with hand tools. There are a number of reasons for this. A hand tool becomes an extension of my hand when working and I feel more intimately involved in the work. I get a sense of feedback from the wood and the tool letting me know what [...]

It has been a busy day in the shop; sawdust is everywhere but mostly on me! After several experimental prototypes I have begun making the dulcimers that will soon be available for sale.
I brought one of the prototypes into the studio and it recorded beautifully!
Each dulcimer will be somewhat unique but for the time [...]

Many years ago I was playing a friends homemade fretless banjo and a young boy who was listening asked if I could also play a “real” banjo.
I told him that the banjo I was playing was real and if it wasn’t how could I possibly be playing it?
His response was something like “You know what [...]