Day 34: I am My Mom and Dad.

Tonight was a great night. We got back from Latham, NY, and I was just done with people. I needed some me time. So I went for a walk. I needed to get some stuff from CVS, and there are a handful of restaurants near there. On the way I saw this really neat pediment thing on a house. It was beautifully carved.

I ended up at a place where I could get a turkey burger. They were really chintzy with the fries, so I had to order more. I like processed potatoes with my burgers, thank you . The pickle was good!

We were back in the shop today, and boy was I productive!

I started out by taking a survey of my fretboard. One of the reasons that Dwain consistently makes high-quality instruments is that he makes all of his processes consistent and quantifiable. In this way he can always refer back to the data of any given instrument. This process really works, as I'll show below.

Then I got to make my tail block. Since this is a student model there is no fancy scroll carving on the block. But there is some fancy carving. So I got to take this cube of black walnut and turn it into one of the main components of the dulcimer.

There are a number of steps to get the cube into the shape that is necessary. As with all of the processes that I'm learning, I've been taking pretty good notes about the order of each operation. My 3D training is vital for this, and I have no problems seeing in my mind's eye the objects finished, even early in the process.

There are different tail blocks for each series of machines, but the process of making a tail block for each is essentially the same. We've decided that I'll make a total of four instruments under Dwain's supervision, and they will range from the simplest, which is the one I'm doing now, to the most sophisticated. So I'll get to experience making the tail blocks for the entire line of instruments. There are a total of 7.

One of the things that I was most nervous about learning to do was to carve by hand using chisels and gouges. I've had limited experience with them, so I had no idea if I'd be able to work them. But so far so good!

I was carving on my block, copying what Dwain did. He would carve one side to show me what should happen and in what order. When he was checking my work at one point he couldn't tell the difference between his work and mine without close scrutiny. But there is a difference, and I have a ways to go to get to his level. But I'm generally good at physical stuff, and I am good with 3D. So I'm well on my way!

I just kept at it, and I finally got to the point where I cannot do anything else on the tail block until I get work done on the rest of the instrument.

Then we had a snack of cantaloupe and cheese.

The next part of building the instrument was to figure out what the musicality of the machine is going to be. Since my voice is a baritone and the teardrop tends to be both high in the tenor range and have bass without much of a baritone sound I decided that I would like to make the target for this machine a baritone. And this is where documentation comes in to play.

Dwain keeps a book, The Tomb of Tonewoods, it should be called--I'll name mine that. In this book there is the following information for each machine that he builds:
Date the tonewood is chosen.
Serial and model number--1-1for my first.
Description of the back--baritone/tenor, slight ring/ grain wavy w/ row of knots.
Description of the top--bass/ tenor, slight ring, unison w/ back, grain is tight and uniform.
And then there is an evaluation of the instrument once it is finished.

In this way Dwain can track what certain woods will do when paired. He says he doesn't know why it happens, but the combinations that are in the book do show some consistency.

I made my selection according to the sound I was looking for in the models that are similar to mine. This was not an easy task for me to grasp. Dwain explained in clear language what I was to do, but I didn't have a reference for what he was saying. So the task was too conceptual for me to get. But once I started using the technique that he showed me on the wood I began to get the idea. And the more I practiced the more I got it. So now I've got it. But because I struggled so much with the task and the concepts of bass, baritone, and tenor my homework is to listen to acapella groups sing.

Once my boards were chosen I had to plane off the oxidation and plane the wood. But I didn't get to do much of this because we ran out of time. I'll pick up here tomorrow.

When we were at Sunhearth a couple of weeks ago Dwain got a plane from the woman who now runs it. It was broken, dull, and damaged from disuse. But Dwain took it apart and fixed the wooden part. He planed the foot down. And then he sharpened the blade, which was tough because it was pitted in some areas. But he got the thing going, and it works just great!

I want to thank everyone who reads my blog and comments or sends me notes. Blogging is tough, but consider it part of my homework for my studies because I get to review and reinforce what I'm learning and doing. And a big thank you to those of you in the dulcimer world who are cheering me on and looking forward to my machines. I really feel like I'm in the right place doing the right thing.

Oh, and I looked at my hands when I was working today and I saw my father's hands. I am my father and mother and more. Scary wonderful!