kwl - Posted - 12/25/2015:  17:58:35

You're welcome Mike.

Dan Knowles - Posted - 12/26/2015:  20:32:48

MERRY CHRISTMAS

(a day late!)

Thank y'all for all your kind wishes! You have each been so wonderful! Thank you for being with me in this Luthier's Life!

I have a couple of new friends to welcome to the post, my grandsons Keaton & Braden Jayne. You've seen them before (and will see them tonight) but it's great to have them truly here on board at the ole BanjoHangout!

​David,

Tuesday when I return fro Louisville I plann to finish the body sanding and poke the white oak 000 off in a tent with a bunch of the smelly color turning stuff...Bill,

Thanks so much!!!

Tyler,

After the first of the year I plan to start spraying so finish on the newly refurbished sweetie!

David B, 

Thanks so much, I wish we were closer too!

Kenny,

Merry Christmas to y'all too! Please give Meg a big hug for me!

Mike & Kenneth,

Thanks to both of you!

Dan Knowles - Posted - 12/26/2015:  21:02:16

DAY AFTER CHRISTMAS

Saying just Saturday for a title doesn't seem fully appropriate. So the Day After Christmas it will be. These last few days have been so busy getting ready for Christmas and celebrating Christmas with friends & family that to just drop it doesn't seem right. 

Tonight it's getting late and we are leaving bright and early in the morning for Louisville to visit with our son and his family so I won't write a lot of verbiage, but I do have a boat load of photos to post.

So here goes...

Here is new member Keaton Jayne helping sand his grandmas new coffee table...

 

And the Braden power sanding. Then both helping French polish the top...

In the spray booth we finished the legs with spray shellac...

And you talk about great helpers! They even did most of the cleanup!

Guitar building class today. The (soon to be) owner of the Yin & Yang  Ryan Kovan and his mom Lisa dropped in to help carve the beck for his guitar. Here I'm band sawing off some of the waste...

Yep, he's doin' it!!!

And Lisa joined in to make shavings too!

After the carving it was back at it! Jeff Joined & laminated his back, Chris did some detail work on his back, made & glued on his back braces,

Zeb finished sanding and then filled the grain on the back and sides of his guitar...

  

And Kevin gave the old Gorton pantograph a work out and made a beautiful truss rod cover for his box. He brought in his box finished out & strung up. It is stunning. I'll try to get him to bring it in sometime for some 'glamor' shots!

Oh yes, here is a painting that I've been working on in the evenings. It's to be titled A MEMORY OF TOMORROW. This one is 63" X 17", not as tall as the last one. I'll post shots as it continues to develop.

More Soon!!!

DEmery - Posted - 12/27/2015:  05:40:37

Dan..., ye' ole shop is buzzing over the holidays. Sounds like the 000 is headed to the ammonia tent soon. The results will be interesting when she comes out. I assume since you tested all the wood types and the oak is largely changed while spruce, etc., are not; it won't require a lot of masking to protect each wood area. I too see the final sanding will occur before the fuming process. I wasn't sure if any prep work would be required after fuming and before finish. Guess I will wait to see how all this unfolds as it heads to the finish work. Hope X-mas was good. Enjoy Kentucky. David

Edited by - DEmery on 12/27/2015 05:50:57

Dave1climber - Posted - 12/27/2015:  07:34:22

Dan

All sorts of things going on, a oak and maple coffee table, neck carving by the happy owner and his mom, joining a back, installing back braces, sanding and filling, and making a truss rod cover.  All of these projects being done by different persons at the same time, makes me think that you have an enormous shop, or the people are very friendly.

And then, as if that wasn't enough, in the evening to relax you are doing this good looking painting.

Your shop must have been vibrating with activity.

Enjoy your visit with your son and his family.

Dave

Dan Knowles - Posted - 12/30/2015:  05:42:18

David,

Today I will be trying to complete the sanding and perhaps construct a fuming tent for the guitar body. It'll be fun to see how the oak reacts to the ammonia fumes.Cool thing is that it won't require any masking due to the lack of tannins in the spruce.

Dave,

Thanks for your traveling wishes.

My shop isn't tremendously large. The main working space is about 1000 square feet. We do try and keep it friendly around here though.It was most certainly an enjoyable shop morning and early afternoon.

Our trip to Louisville was great too, although the weather traveling was rough. Lots and lots of rain. 

Dave1climber - Posted - 12/30/2015:  11:14:38

Dan

I wish that I had about 300 more square feet in addition to the 700 that I have that seems to be shrinking due to the addition of more "stuff".  I am happy to hear that you had a great trip also, we had freezing rain and snow here.  It made for no travel from home.

Kaelri - Posted - 12/30/2015:  17:53:17

Dan, wanted to stop by and wish you, your family and all those who stop by this thread a Happy New Year! Looks like you are in for a busy one, at that.  

We have been hearing a lot about flooding on the Mississippi. We wondered if you have been hearing about the flooding too, and if it has reached the areas where you "banjo" on the riverboats? If so, are there any favorite landmarks or special areas that you are concerned about? We love seeing all the pictures you post from the passing landscape on your riverboat journeys. But I wonder if some of it may look different when you return next year.

kvdkieft - Posted - 12/30/2015:  18:28:38

Daniel!
Well enough about memories of tomorrow!
I have known you since the 70's . Can we be that old?!!!!!
Happy New Year my friend! Your work astounds me and I can't tell you how happy I am to have you as my friend!
Peace!
Kenny and Meg

Dan Knowles - Posted - 12/30/2015:  20:08:24

Dave,

My space always seams to be shrinking due to the addition of stuff & more stuff. Every so often I get a bit cramped and crazy due to the stuff. That's when my friends start hanging close cause I start pitchin' it and oft times they wind up with some great stuff! I hope the snow doesn't lock you down too much!

Ellen,

Thank you so much and a Happy New Year to you too! 

You just gave me a reason to check the Memphis river gage. Right now it's at 29.16 with an expected crest of 38.9 on Jan. 4 or 5. This will be quite high by any standard but I don't think this will put the water up on the Riverside drive. I did hear today that they are installing flood gates in the Paducah, Kentucky flood wall. so they must be expecting the Ohio to get way up too.

The beauty of the river is that it always changes. Always there are new sights around each bend.

Brother Ken,

As I recall it we met in the late winter - early spring of 1975. James McCoy (who had been my band's sound man) found that you wanted to learn how to play the mandolin.  Do you realize that we have known each other 40 years this year! Great Goodness! Still friends after all these years (sounds like a Paul Simon song...). I value your friendship far more than I can ever tell. HAPPY NEW YEAR my friend!

Dan Knowles - Posted - 12/30/2015:  20:40:33

WEDNESDAY

Big day today

Big day tomorrow

Ain't a thing in this ole' world

I can't beg or borrow

Rise up, Rise up

Throw away all sorrow

Surly as the sun goes down

It'll shine tomorrow...

(Big Day by Peter D. Q. Boettcher)

Oh yez, oh yez! Tomorrow is the last day of 2015... more about that later...

This morning I found that I needed a tiny chisel.

To do some tiny work of course.

So I went looking in my drawer where I have my gravers. I figured that I could make do with one of them...

It didn't work. Too big.

So I decided that a needle file might just make me a dandy one. So I hunted around until I found a couple of ole' worn out ones, broke them down to a reasonable length and then took them to the grinder. There I first removed the teeth, shaped and sharpened them...

Next I found a nice piece of curly maple to make a couple of handles. I stuck it in the lathe and went to turning...

This is what they looked like complete. The top one is 3/32" wide and the lower one is 3/64" wide, give or take .0002".

Most of today was spent on the white oak 000. Here scraping before sanding...

Here sanding. The camera shot this one just micro seconds after the vacuum hose left the sander! I couldn't repeat that one if I tried!

More Soon!!!

guitarman8491 - Posted - 12/31/2015:  03:01:11

Dan..really like the way the white oak guitar is coming out. Your a true master! Hoping maybe you can post a little sound track when it is finished.

Happy New Years to you and your family!

Dave1climber - Posted - 12/31/2015:  07:58:24

Dan



Wishing you and all of your family a very Happy New Year!

Just wondering, what will you be using the 3/64" chisel for that you need plus or minus two ten thousands in the width?

DEmery - Posted - 12/31/2015:  08:23:26

Dan I see you are back scraping and sanding that oak body? She going to get gassed soon? There was a time getting gassed was a bad thing. In this case it is good...I think. Looking forward to seeing how it comes out of the tent. David E.

Dan Knowles - Posted - 01/02/2016:  05:37:25

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYBODY 

(a day late)

Finally a cold morning, just like is is supposed to be this time of year! 23 degrees. 

Yesterday was our annual New Years Day, Shop Clean Up and Straiten Stuff Out Day. Yeah! The old shop will feel so much better. When I go in for the guitar building class this AM I may just shoot some photos so's I can brag a bit.

I had (note the word had) a old 1913 pump organ in the shop for a couple of years collecting dust. Yesterday was its time to leave. It had a torn valve and leaky bellows. My son Sam came by, acquired it. Took the thing home, fixed it and called me on the phone so I could hear everybody in his house having a big time making it sing!

The white oak 000 is all sanded (I hope) and so was needing a tent for its ammonia fuming. So I made one using dowels, hot glue and plastic garbage bags. Here I'm gluing on the joists ...

Who'd ever thought hot glue could be this useful in a luthrie shop? I use the stuff quite often to build things like this tent which don't need a tremendous amount of strength and can be taken apart easily....

Here I've hung the guitar as it will hang in the tent. This is something that I may change later on. Ammonia fumes tend to rise and there is an awful lot of empty space due to the hanger so the body may not receive the full amount of fuming down low.

In goes one of the two bowls of ammonia...

All set and under way...

More Soon!!!

DEmery - Posted - 01/02/2016:  07:20:58

Dan I didn't know you were into pump organs - but one never knows what might pass through that shop. Excited to see the frame and apparatus to fume the 000. Look forward to seeing er' after the "treatment."  David E.

Steven M - Posted - 01/02/2016:  13:57:40

What does the ammonia do?

Dan Knowles - Posted - 01/02/2016:  15:58:22

David,

I've been a keyboard attempter since I was a boy. This particular organ was used on the recording of TOWBOAT TOWN & on DOWN SOUTH, from my Return to Baptist Allyway CD. The last few years it hasn't seen much use other than taking up space in the shop... so it was time to go! 

Stephen,

It creates a nice darkened aged appearance. It was used extensively on the white oak Arts and Craft movement furniture from Stickley in the early part of the twentieth century.

Dan Knowles - Posted - 01/02/2016:  16:28:42

SATURDAY

Howdie Everybody. 

It's me, ole' Dan, just checkin' in at the close of a nicely busy day. 

I got up late this morning... 6:15. Should a been 6 but you know it's Saturday and I just wanted to sleep in. Maybe I go to bed late tonight... 9:15!

We had a very nice class this morning, just Chris & Jeff. Everybody else was off doin' end of the Holliday kind of stuff. It was nice just spending time with these two fellas though. A lot of progress was made...

For some reason Chris's back braces decided to counter curve we  (me) must have miss-read the grain orientation. They back bowed even after a 25" radius was cut into the bottom side. So off they came and new braces were installed. Here Chris is deciding on his next move in chiseling them off...

Jeff got his braces on and now he is working on installing is back spline...

I pulled the white oak 000 out of the fuming tent and checked on the change. It's not a great change yet. Still subtle, but noticeable. It's interesting how the different arias are behaving differently. This is due to the amount of tannins in each part...

Also notice the new hook. This really pulls the body up into the fume stream!

For the past few days my friend Joe Snow and I have been refinishing the floor of the dance room at Lee Academy for the Arts.Yesterday we finished the second coat. Here we are sanding between coats & clowning too!

Joe really scratchin' it up!

Me takin' a break!

Speaking of the Art School... Next Saturday evening will be the first of our RUMBLE IN ROOM 8 house concert series. Anna & Jon Eaton and their band the Amazing Aces will be performing. Come join us if you are anywhere near!

More Soon!!!

DEmery - Posted - 01/02/2016:  16:38:48

Dan what a range of stuff going on. Figuring out what to do with braces that didn't behave, fuming, floors, and fans at Lee Academy. I had to find four f's to make that work. Anyway..., the fuming is more than subtle to me. I commented on Facebook about the lighter tones next to the roasted maple center boards. It is so symmetrical. I assume it is the same board of wood. Is that the way the board was cut that laid in a section where the tannins are simply different? I think it looks great. It sounds like you plan to hang er' back under the tent for more ammonia. I will keep watching. David E.

Dan Knowles - Posted - 01/02/2016:  21:51:53

David,

Yep, both the sides and the back were sawn from the same piece of oak. I am always amazed by the different ways that wood will behave under different treatments... and this is now exception.

It's back in the tent and tomorrow sometime I go down just to see how it's cookin"!

DEmery - Posted - 01/03/2016:  03:14:32

Well...., we will see how her makeup looks next time she comes out of the tent. Sort of like dating an exotic girl and she goes behind the curtain to get all made up for a date. You just never know how she will put her make up on - so I will just wait. Little things thought. I think the darker tone bringing the contrast between the maple and oak make both look better. Too, the white in the white-black-white binding pops more. Subtle stuff. I have been reading a lot about using oak for guitars and looking at photos from other builders that have used it. Of course you find naysayers on anything off the beaten path..., but there are photos out there that are beautiful using oak. For those that are more technical in their observations, they point out how balanced oak can be in a guitar. I have not found any example of a fumed guitar. Wonder if it is a first? Pretty cool. David E.  

Dan Knowles - Posted - 01/03/2016:  17:09:32

David,

Dan Knowles - Posted - 01/03/2016:  17:24:01

SUNDAY

I slept in this morning.

It seams like this is getting to be a habit. 

Admittedly I did stay up late painting 

and reading the Martian. Got 'er finished. Great book. Well written. Now I want to see the movie. Too bad I didn't go when it was in town.

Ok what did I do today... let me see...

I got up drank some coffee and started painting on the Memory of Tomorrow. Here is how it is now...

This is a close up for those of you who wonder what this thing looks close up!

Another close view...

And one more look before we move on!

Soon I went over to the Art school to pull up the masking tape from the baseboards. Nope I didn't fall down... I sat down...

Oh David, you know I just had to wait till the end of the post for this!:)

This is how the white oak 000 looked after I removed it from the fuming tent.

A little bit of alcohol and the grain really jumps out!

I'd like just a bit more richness in the coloration so back into the tent with fresh ammonia it went. It will be interesting to see the change tomorrow!

More Soon!!!

Edited by - Dan Knowles on 01/03/2016 17:25:39

rudy - Posted - 01/03/2016:  17:40:50

Dan, Just as an F.Y.I. there was a story that ran a few years back in Fine Woodworking (issue 127, 1997) by Kevin Rodel who specializes in doing fumed oak Arts and Crafts furniture.  There was a detailed explanation of his process with photos of his fuming tent.  I'm not sure what your concentration is, but he obtained his Ammonia from a supplier who handles chemicals sold to printing shops for doing blueprint work.  If I'm remembering the details correctly I believe he used 17% concentration.

Edited by - rudy on 01/03/2016 17:50:04

DEmery - Posted - 01/03/2016:  18:01:54

Dan..., I will check back in tomorrow to see how it comes out. Will the final finish coat have any color in it..., or will it be clear and be used to pull out the grain? We discussed a slight crack to the finish to replicate aging? Don't know how that all works but I assume the finish will not be high gloss? Neck is oil. Right? David E.

rubicon - Posted - 01/03/2016:  18:24:06

This guitar is sick ! Wow ! The wood coloration as assembled combined with the fuming well .... it is gonna be special !!!!

Dan Knowles - Posted - 01/03/2016:  21:19:50

Randy,

Thanks, that will be great for next time. This concentration is maybe 5-8%, takes a little longer and I certainly feel more in control. 

David,

The guitar will have at least tomorrow, maybe the next day. I'm very happy with how it is coloring. Yes the lacquer will be some what amber tinted, that is the nature of nitro. Usually I use a couple of thin coats of shellac as a first coat and they have a slight ambering effect also. I am still planning on checking and aging the lacquer. It should finish out  bright, but a nice aged shine. Yes the back of the neck will be oil and the peghead face lacquer.

Rubicon,

Thanks... I hope the guitar doesn't mind being sick!

Bufo Bill - Posted - 01/05/2016:  14:28:34

The White Oak is indeed sick. It is also "badass" and quite probably "boss". Popular culture tells me these terms are all positive, and they are intended to be so in this instance. 

However, to my much less "hip" ears, I must admit that it sounds more like a negative description of the side effects of a combination of cheap beer and a New Year's Eve celebration gone bad. 

All the best from Bill. :D

rubicon - Posted - 01/05/2016:  15:16:57

Was havin a little fun with a play on words being the. "" fumes "" made it sick.... thought you'd like that

Dan Knowles - Posted - 01/05/2016:  19:19:12

Fellas,

I got'ja!​

Dan Knowles - Posted - 01/05/2016:  19:33:00

TUESDAY

Fumin's done, all done and the 000's all out!

Fact this is how it looked this morning...

I wanted the top to look a little more aged. I'm not sure why. After all it was milled by Martin back in 1959. 

Still I wished for a bit more aged color. So I treated it with Potassium Dichromate. 

No this is not something you want to do at home.

This is some bad, bad stuff! It can make you sicker than you will ever wish to be!

I used it today with latex gloves and a respirator and I think that is a minimum.

Here it's being applied...

Here it is after about 5 or 6 hours. It takes this stuff a while to mature. It's too bad this camera (or camera operator) can't catch the fullness of these colors...

Just before I let the shop at 6:30 I made these next two photos. I rubbed alcohol onto the surface to give a feel of how it will look with finish on it...

More soon!!!

rubicon - Posted - 01/05/2016:  20:38:18

The guitar is coming along very nice Dan will the sides get the same finish  treatment as the top ??

Edited by - rubicon on 01/05/2016 20:46:20

DEmery - Posted - 01/06/2016:  06:12:30

Dan the result is beautiful. If the camera doesn't catch the color in the wood..., it sure exceeds my expectations. But...., you have done that for me many times. This is our 6th project...I believe. David E.   

Dan Knowles - Posted - 01/06/2016:  19:08:58

Rubicon,

Thanks!

David,

Thank you! I think you are correct about the 6 projects. I do appreciate it too!

Dan Knowles - Posted - 01/06/2016:  20:15:25

WEDNESDAY

Today at last I was able to use it...

My Christmas present from my in-laws. It is a Knew-Concepts jewelers saw.

This thing is the cats meow! It is made from titanium and is feather light. But the coolest thing about this saw is the way it tensions the blade with a cam (that purple red loop up near the top of the saw). No more fighting & fooling when loading the blades. Stick 'um in, tie 'um down, flick that cam lever and ready to go!

I tried something today. It didn't work real well. Here goes...

Using my I printed my inkjet printer I printed my pattern on a piece of wax paper and then rubbed it onto my pearl piece....That worked great...

Here is the pattern printed on a piece of tracing paper (I wanted you to be able to see it)...

Here I'm rubbing the wax paper to transfer the image... This worked great...

Then I went to cutting. so far so good. But being unable to keep my fingers off of the pearl (while cutting), I smudged the image rendering the pearl unusable for further cutting. There must be something in that Idea that I'm missing...

So it was back to glue and paper....

It worked great just like it always does. Still I wish the other would have worked...

More Soon!!!

Will1717 - Posted - 01/06/2016:  20:30:07

Dan: Your missing the CNC router part! Doesn't smug at all.

Bill 

tylerandal - Posted - 01/06/2016:  22:01:09

what if, after you printed on the pearl, you just put a couple pieces of clear scotch tape over it?

tylerandal - Posted - 01/06/2016:  22:01:37

Also... I'm liking that new saw :)

Dave1climber - Posted - 01/07/2016:  08:14:34

Dan

Just send all of your inlay cutting to Bill, problem solved!  

Steven M - Posted - 01/07/2016:  13:10:10

Couldn't you have scored the outline in the MOP and then filled with ink and rubbed off excess. That way the ink would remain in the etched outline.

Dan Knowles - Posted - 01/07/2016:  18:25:57

Bill,

You mean you didn't notice my CNC?!?!?!? Look close in foto #1 

Tyler,

I never thought of that. I was hoping somebody might think outside the box on this one!

Dave,

That's true too! 

Steven,

Thanks! I've never thought of that before, I'll have to give that one some thought and maybe a try too!

ClayTech - Posted - 01/07/2016:  18:31:44

A little clear acrylic sealer would probably keep it from smudging. Beautiful work on the guitar!

Dan Knowles - Posted - 01/07/2016:  19:04:15

Neil,

Thanks! That's another great idea!

Dan Knowles - Posted - 01/07/2016:  19:04:38

THURSDAY

Today I worked like crazy doing mostly repairs. 2 setups & 3 major neck issues.

It kept me busy all day!

It was funny because when I took a look at the photos I found that even though I thought I was shooting pictures all day, I was only shooting now and then. Sadly I missed a lot of the good stuff. Still what remains might just be somewhat interesting.

First out gluing in the neck on a old Kay archtop. This is almost the last step in this ones neck reset...

They get bigger as we go folks!

This Martin HD-28's finish on the back of the neck started to fail. My client wants it stripped of and finished with oil. Here it is ready for stripping....

On with cloth saturated with acetone. This softens the finish in a jiffy!

Softened and starting to scrape the old finish off...

Sanding...

First coat of oil (this was after staining)...

(Bigger did he say?)

This mid fifty's Kay upright bass has been the victim of an interesting repair....

The neck heel had been cracked then repaired with glue and a lag screw. The lag screw was hidden under a big lump of wood putty. First the putty comes out...

Then out with the lag screw...

Not only was the lag screw attempted to be hid by  wood putty but  they also attempted to disguise the the crack in the same manner. So not only did the old glue have to be removed, but the putty too!

I did get the joint cleaned and the neck glued back in... I just didn't shoot a photo...

*********

I did make one of this the final project of the day... a inlay for a Nashville friend of mine. I didn't care for the way it was working out yesterday so I re-cut it  (using new pearl) tonight just before I came home....

*****

Back a few months ago I was asked if I'd develop a lower priced banjo. I thought I might try. This particular banjo is the result of this attempt. It is listed in the BHO classifieds as of tonight. Here is a link to that add: banjohangout.org/classified/55580

And here are a few photos...

Enjoy...

    

More Soon!!!

rudy - Posted - 01/07/2016:  20:15:35

Hi Dan,

I did find reference to the white oak fuming process; it turns out that the ammonia used by some of the furniture makers is actually 28%.  Yeow!

The inkjet transfer to pearl would need to be hit lightly with a shot of spray lacquer to keep the lines intact while cutting.

Coincidentally I just re-necked an old Kay arch top body as an octave mandolin.  It belonged to my dad and I've been carrying it around for 45 years after breaking the head stock off it when I was a teen. When I played my friend's new Weber Octar I instantly realized what the old Kay really wanted to be.  It turned out to be sick, bada** AND boss!

Almost pulled the trigger on the deeper version of the Knew Concepts saw, but it would only encourage me to want to do more inlay work, which is something I enjoy less and less as I get older.

Dan Knowles - Posted - 01/08/2016:  06:20:27

Randy,

Thanks for the advice on spaying a spot of lacquer on the pearl. I figure that that method will come in handy for transferring inkjet patterns to a lot of other materials too.

Congrats on the re-purposing of the old Kay! I've got a Recording King archtop that I've thought might make a nice mando-cello... you've'e got me thinking.... and that is more than dangerous! 

Yep that Knew-Conceps is BADA** & BOSS 2!!!

rudy - Posted - 01/08/2016:  06:42:03

quote:

---

Originally posted by Dan Knowles

Randy,

Thanks for the advice on spaying a spot of lacquer on the pearl. I figure that that method will come in handy for transferring inkjet patterns to a lot of other materials too.

Congrats on the re-purposing of the old Kay! I've got a Recording King archtop that I've thought might make a nice mando-cello... you've'e got me thinking.... and that is more than dangerous! 

Yep that Knew-Conceps is BADA** & BOSS 2!!!

---

Here's the results in video form; details HERE if you wish to see how this one was done.

Dan Knowles - Posted - 01/10/2016:  17:31:04

Randy

That's great! I really like that low tuned mandolin's tone.