jbalch - Posted - 12/31/2013:  14:05:14

Dan:

I  mounted and stained one final head for 2013.  This time I used some of the walnut stain you gave me.  This stuff makes a hide look OLD!

The color is almost exactly like I have seen on 100 year old instruments.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Edited by - jbalch on 12/31/2013 14:05:41

kwl - Posted - 12/31/2013:  14:15:47

I was just checking in and see that the magic number to go is 533. Should have that by the end of week easily.

jbalch - Posted - 12/31/2013:  16:36:53

quote:

---

Originally posted by kwl

I was just checking in and see that the magic number to go is 533. Should have that by the end of week easily.

---

 I'll probably check the thread 533 times before the end of the week.  That is about par for the course. ..;<)

Dan Knowles - Posted - 12/31/2013:  17:57:02

David,

It has been an exciting year alright! Having the first ebony banjo come home ranks way up there! As a side note it is all over the new recording and I expect that it will be my main axe this season. The counter is a' creeping up... last look it was 453 reads away.

John,

The reason that stain makes your skin heads look like they are 100 years old is because it was made from walnuts that fell from a tree that is about 150 years old!

Ken & John,

I think we might just make it tomorrow or the next day. It's almost like watching the ball drop on New Years Eve.

Paul R - Posted - 12/31/2013:  18:33:47

Well, make that 452 (or fewer by now)!

HAPPY NEW YEAR, DAN!

Tom Berghan - Posted - 12/31/2013:  18:49:24

OK . . . I'll post in order to hit the New Year's Target!  

Hey John . . . Man that walnut stain looks great!  I'm gonna order one of those.  I finally removed one of my old Bill Miller heads.  It was a good sounding head but the flesh hoop had two problems: ONE, It was too great in diameter . . . and, TWO, it was out-of-round, so the dang thing sat all katywompus (i.e. crooked) on the rim and after disliking the way it looked for last four years I finally took it off . . . it just bugged me.  

So, I'll be ordering a new head in the near future.  My family asked me what I wanted for Christmas.  I said a piggy-bank . . . so they made me a piggy bank jar that says "Will Twang for Coins" on the lid.  And the idea is that when anyone passes by Dad's piggy bank that sits on the counter they maybe drop in some spare change.  

It's working!  I already have over twenty bucks!  This way when I need a new tail piece, or a head, or strings, whatever, I just rattle the jar and play loudly!

C Nyal de Kaye - Posted - 12/31/2013:  18:53:02

Over $20 Tom in less than a week, where do I get one?

Dan Knowles - Posted - 12/31/2013:  20:51:26

LAST RIM TURN OF 2013

Late today I was able to stat on one of my favorite jobs, rim turning. This always takes me back to when I was 8 or 9 and my dad showed me how to use the lathe, we turned some yoyos. One was large enough that we had to go up on the roof to make it go up & down. This rim blank is of curly maple, has quite a lovely tap tone and came from my friends over at Rickard Banjos. It will be going on Will Turner's Galileo banjo. 

Here I'm chucking the rim blank up...

Truing and begining some serious wood removal...

Check size with a set of outside callipers...

Turning the skirt ledge for a White Lady tone ring...

Checking...

Turning the inside....

After the inside is turned the rim is flipped in the chuck to turn the bottom of the rim...

After rhe bottom is turned true, I made a rabbit on the inside for the binding. I'm using a white pearloid binding to contrast with the dark stain. Here previous to gluing I check the fit... 

Trimming the binding end for a perfect fit....

Cutting a groove (groovy man!) for the perfelng... 

Gluing it in...

In...

The outside rabbit turned the binding is fitted...

Now sanded to an exact fit...

Glued in...

Edited by - Dan Knowles on 12/31/2013 20:53:12

taiger - Posted - 12/31/2013:  21:46:48

Thanks Dan for all the great threads this year. I know I'm not the only one who appreciate it.
Your lathe. Couldn't get a good view from your pics. Would u mind posting a shot of just the machine. I love building tools almost as much as using them. I built my thickening drum sander after seeing a picture u posted. And my current lathe I build with a wood bed, steel from an old trailer and a concrete base.
Best wishes in the new year
Tai

Dan Knowles - Posted - 01/01/2014:  06:25:45

Tai,

Thank you for reading! It's nice to know that somebody is able to learn from these posts and then put that learning to use. In mye early days of luthing it was visit Frank Ford (a two hour drive) , talk to Chuck Erickson on the phone (long distance, remember that) , have Don McCarty come visit (every great once-in-a-while) and wait excitedly for the four times a year that the Guild of American Luthiers magazine came out. So much of what I do is a direct result of the learning that these people so graciously shared. It is because of people like them that I can be here. It is because of people like you that I am here. Thank you.

Oh yes, I'll try to remember to shoot some photos of my little lathe today.

Nels - Posted - 01/01/2014:  07:51:19

Nice start to a New Year!! 

Paul R - Posted - 01/01/2014:  11:16:37

Your influence, Dan, goes beyond lutherie. The first CD I played in 2014 was Carry on John. Now playing is Hot Biscuit Jam. Coincidence?

Take the day off, Dan! You deserve it.

Dan Knowles - Posted - 01/01/2014:  11:38:42

Nels,

Thanks .

Paul,

Oops, it's too late. I've already been to the shop and finished up turning Wills rim and got to work doing my New Years cleaning. If I was the one who introduced you to John Balch's music then I'm glad to have been here. CARRY ON JOHN is one of my all time favorites! hough for my listening pleasure today I listened to Steve Martin's first comedy album and Bela's THROW DOWN YOUR HEART.

DEmery - Posted - 01/01/2014:  16:39:16

Dan I just checker 'er and the thread count was sitting on 100K. That has been fun to watch; so go judge your stories and we can see who won the Knowkes art work. Thanks for countless photos, stories, and Paris wit. David E.

Dan Knowles - Posted - 01/01/2014:  16:44:44

WE MADE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!

Kirk Jacobs - Posted - 01/01/2014:  17:25:10

200,000 here we come!

Dan Knowles - Posted - 01/01/2014:  18:28:38

NEW YEARS DAY 2014

We made it. Back when this started I couldn't have imagined that there would have ever been this much interest. I am certainly thankful that y'all enjoy this enough to read it all the time. Yes David & Kirk we are on our way! The stories have all been sent off to the judges. They are all very good, it will be interesting to see their choices. 

What a nice day, I slept in till 8 AM and I never sleep that late. It was nice.

I ate a leisurely breakfast, took a shower and wondered in to the shop. I got there about 9:30 and jumped right into finishing up Will's banjo.

Disclaimer and apology:

Tai, I'm sorry I forgot to shoot some good ones of just the lathe, I'll try and remember to do it tomorrow.

First I removed the masking tape that clamped the binding on.

And cut in a rabbit for the checked purfling...

After the groove (for you groovy people) was cut I inserted (how bout that word? I could a said stuck) the purfling...

Clamped one end and ran some cyano to hold it...

There it is installed and waiting to be smoothed out. The rabbit was tight enough that I did have to hammer in some sections....

I turned it flat using a scraping tool the went to sanding. It was sanded progressively starting with 120 through 400 grit. The sanding was started with the rim spinning, hand sanding completed the job...

Next I did the same thing to the inside binding & purfling. Also I turned a nice bull nose on the bottom of the rim. I like the comfort that gives an open back banjo.

Sanded the same way too... I like how the binding creates little spider webs on the chuck head as it is being turned...

Here's the rim (notice that I didn't mention pot? I don't want to ruin my repetition) ready for the next step. What ya think Will?

More Tomorrow! 

jbalch - Posted - 01/01/2014:  19:01:38

Dan:

Your "repetition" has been called into question repeatedly ... at least 100,000 times.

WillT - Posted - 01/02/2014:  07:14:17

It's as grand as you described. I can only imagine how the stain will bring out the figure!

Shmockiebaby - Posted - 01/02/2014:  08:33:17

BTW, John Balch - I followed this thread from the first day, when Dan started by saying he arrived at the shop and put your CD on. I bought that CD that day, and not a week goes by that I do not listen to at least a little bit of it. Thanks for the great music. And the great tip on staining heads!

Edited by - Shmockiebaby on 01/02/2014 08:33:41

dbrooks - Posted - 01/02/2014:  09:31:03

Schmockiebaby, I completely agree with you about John Balch's CDs.  Great music that sounds fresh each time I put one of his CDs on.

David

Dan Knowles - Posted - 01/02/2014:  16:49:06

Will,

I'm glad you like it. It sounds great too!

Mark & David,

If introducing John Balch's masterful music to other folks is the only thing that I've ever passed along with this post, then I am well satisfied.

Dan Knowles - Posted - 01/02/2014:  17:32:37

1-2-14(?)

Clean, setup, clean, visit the Doctor, eat lunch, clean, teach banjo set up, setup & clean... and clean some more...

With that statement I've given you my day in a sentence. Now I'll plug it into my Marshall stack (if I had a Marshall stack) or Fender Twin (if I had a Twin) and amplify the day...

I'm about to reach the completion stage of the New Years shop clean up. We've moved the office space back into a room that we had used to store studio gear and a lot of other junk. It's been fun getting rid of stuff that has gathered up around us and clogged up the space. The problem is what to do with all the stuff that was in the room. I think that I may sometime build a little closet to store that stuff in.

Today must have been a Scarborough day. I set up a guitar for Steve...

clean... clean...clean

clean... clean...Dr...eat...clean

And later in the day Ben came by to learn how to set up his banjo. This was a Christmas present and he is coming to be a student. So today he was a student to the Lutherie side of life. Here he's learning how to tighten his banjo head...

clean... clean...clean

And now he's doing it!

clean... clean...clean

clean... clean...clean

It is exciting watching the judging results roll in. With just one more judge to check in we have 8 stories that I'm thinking of as finalists (they are rated very close, two are currently tied). They are so well written that I may post all 8 of these.

MORE SOON!

Edited by - Dan Knowles on 01/02/2014 17:39:07

Weitzel - Posted - 01/03/2014:  14:29:21

Dan, I like looking in the background of your photos at the nooks and crannies of your shop and all the supplies, parts, etc piled (I mean neatly organized) everywhere. I just noticed an instrument body shaped like a mandolin/violin hybrid and wonder the story behind it (maybe I just missed that post 30 pages back). I Wish I lived closer to come visit your shop and you.  In lieu of that, though, It would be great to see a panoramic view of your shop sometime - some shots snapped in order around a 360. I'm currently maxing out for space in my little 1 car garage with stuff neatly organized (I mean piled) everywhere, and shared with 4 bikes, laundry, and gardening equipment. OSHA may not approve, but for now it works!

Looking forward to reading the winners (and runners up) entries!

Dan Knowles - Posted - 01/03/2014:  21:03:58

Jeff,

Oh I don't know if I dare do that! You might just see what a real mess my shop is in! Seriously I'll try to do that for you sometime, I've got a camera at home that can shoot panoramas. Craig Evans does have some nice views in his interview with me in his Banjo builder series.

Dan Knowles - Posted - 01/03/2014:  21:10:06

FROM HENRY COUNTY HOSPITAL

Tonight I'm posting this from the surgery waiting room of our local hospital. My son Patrick is in surgery even as I write. Without going into why he is here, he has been in pain like I have seldom ever seen. I do hope that you'll remember him... it has not been good.

I will post whatever news we have tomorrow.

Thank you.

Pine Cone - Posted - 01/03/2014:  21:43:26

I hope all goes well with your son.  You and your family will be in my prayers...

Had a daughter that got appendicitis when she was a teenager.  Went from feeling under the weather to being under the knife in only a few hours.  Scared the heck out of us.

Hope tomorrow brings a better day

rubicon - Posted - 01/03/2014:  22:25:04

Ill keep him in my prayers Dan best wishes for a quick recovery.

Paul R - Posted - 01/03/2014:  22:51:28

Prayers for Patrick, for you, and the family, Dan. Hoping for the best. - Paul

Kirk Jacobs - Posted - 01/04/2014:  04:21:03

Consider it done.

Brooklynbanjoboy - Posted - 01/04/2014:  04:34:20

Dan, we'll keep a good thought for you and your family, and especially Patrick.

V/R,

Lew

Tylerb1 - Posted - 01/04/2014:  05:08:53

Prayers are going up.  Let us know when you can.

Kaelri - Posted - 01/04/2014:  06:48:33

Prayers for Patrick, yourself & your family, as well as for the medical staff caring for him.

Ellen

dbrooks - Posted - 01/04/2014:  07:19:32

I'll be thinking of Patrick, you and your family, Dan.

David

Nels - Posted - 01/04/2014:  07:26:02

Prayers from here for Patrick and for you and your family.

Nels

kwl - Posted - 01/04/2014:  09:59:14

My prayer for Patrick is added to the others. By this time I hope is recovering well.

Dave1climber - Posted - 01/04/2014:  12:56:05

I can only add to all of the previous good wishes, and trust that Patrick is or will be recovering nicely.

Bufo Bill - Posted - 01/04/2014:  13:18:29

My thoughts are with you. Take all the time you need.
All the best from Bill.

BNJOMAKR - Posted - 01/04/2014:  14:15:53

Prayers in progress...

Steven M - Posted - 01/04/2014:  15:24:40

My thoughts are with you.

C Nyal de Kaye - Posted - 01/04/2014:  15:55:08

I will pray for you too.

Weitzel - Posted - 01/04/2014:  17:27:56

One more prayer, Dan.

Patrick Hanna - Posted - 01/04/2014:  18:05:34

Prayers definitely flowing. So many people offering prayers at once--that's powerful.

SoundsGoodToMe - Posted - 01/04/2014:  19:25:07

Thinking of you and your son in this rough time.

Dan Knowles - Posted - 01/04/2014:  20:07:16

Scott, Rubicon, Paul, Kirk, Lew, Bob, Ellen, David, Nels, Ken, Dave, Bill, Marvin, Steven, C Nyal, Jeff, Patrick, Sound Good To Me & all of the rest of you wonderful caring folks,

I thank you for your kindness to my family and me in this difficult time. Tonight I was able to read Patrick all of your greetings, wishes & prayers in his hospital room. This meant so much to him and lifted his spirits. Knowing that so many people from so many places care enough to take the time to write is astounding. Thank you all!!!!

Update

Patrick is doing quite well. We came within a few hours of possibly loosing him. His intestinal aria was filled with puss and corruption. An emergency room physician recognized the issue , called in a surgeon and they whisked him off. A couple of hours later the surgeon came out and gave us the positive results.

Patrick has been sick and unable to work since May last year. Numerous tests have been run to no avail. During the surgery they found something which may very well be the root of his illness. This is our hope that now with this finding he can recover and again become the vibrant person he has always been.

trapdoor2 - Posted - 01/04/2014:  20:18:00

Excellent news, Dan. Good to see that all those good vibes from BHO have done their job. We're still pulling for him!

Dave1climber - Posted - 01/04/2014:  20:33:03

Dan

Thanks for the up date, very good that its positive.  Hopefully the cause of his sickness can be cured.  Best wishes for a speedy recovery.

dbrooks - Posted - 01/04/2014:  20:44:51

Thank you for the update with the positive outlook, Dan.  I certainly hope that this recent event helps uncover the problem that has been causing your son so much pain and discomfort.  Patrick, you and your family have a large audience pulling for a clear diagnosis and a full recovery.

David

Dan Knowles - Posted - 01/04/2014:  20:44:53

100 WORD

STORY RESULTS

Well folks the final results of our panel of judges is finally in and tabulated. I'm not sure how they did this difficult job. I'm just glad that when I asked they said "Yes!" They were given the group of stories, minus the authors names. They whittled the group of stories down to the 8 finalists after reading and judging them in a first round. Then they went back through and scored the finalists. These scores we tabulated to come up with a winner.

Tonight I post the winning entry. Tomorrow I will post the other 7 finalists. So here is our winning entry.

This one I think of as THE EVENING JEWELL written by, Marc Smith of Huntsville, Alabama. He's our favorite Trapdoor here on the BHO!

There lying on the floor, by the banjo, was the broken glass. Aghast, I quickly apologized for my clumsiness. She smiled sweetly, “You’ve always had a drinking problem: one drink and you’re a hazard!”

 

We started the evening playing tunes at one another; her fiddle singing like a lark; my banjo: half bullfrog, half barking dog. Somehow we coaxed music out into that soft night, drifting off the porch to accost passers-by like some rhythmic, pulsing Lorelei. Few were cast upon the rocks but all gained from the reverberations. The moon cast its sliver glow: we swept up the shards.

CONGRATULATIONS MARC!!!!!!!