Setting Up Shop

Through good fortune and an acquaintance who has taken an interest in encouraging a new woodworker, I have a little bench!  Since my "woodshop" is also my apartment (how many girls can say they sleep with their tools?) I needed something small for now--mostly to protect the landlord's floor from dings & etc.

This small bench is just the size I wanted and measures 16d x 36w x 29t.  The laminated top is sturdy and will provide a good surface for clamping and gluing up.  I'm thinking about fitting a piece of plywood between the legs to make a shelf for storage and possibly the use of go-bars.  There is just enough space under that to make a "drawer" on casters where I could store my tools . . . instead of the pizza box.

I may post a picture of my old-tool collection in the next post where I hope to cover plans and layout.

Here's what I have collected so far for wood and my intention for each.
Maple : bridge, tailpiece, toe end and string nut
Alder: sides and neck
Walnut: I may or may not use this, but thought it might make nice tuning pegs for the melody strings.
Cherry: this will be for my keys and key box sides, and may become the back/bottom of the instrument's soundbox.

The cherry isn't quite wide enough to make a one-piece back, so I may rip it to book-match it and glue it up/plane it that way.

I "thunked" each piece and all are highly resonant.  All I'm missing is a piece for the soundboard.  I purchased these woods at Windsor Plywood, but they didn't have any redwood or spruce.  I was encouraged to check with our other local supplier, Johnson Madison, as they "might have some quarter-sawn redwood laying around".

The Project & Goals

The goal of this project is to build and learn to play a nyckelharpa, and in the process explore woodworking with hand tools.  I plan to post weekly, unless the project moves more quickly and I have more material to share.  I hope to complete the instrument by June, allowing extra time for gathering materials/ tools/ etc. and for picking the brains of local woodworkers on using hand tools and working wood.
 . . . learning to play? . . . well, we'll cross that bridge when we get there!

Because I tend to side-track and lose myself in every little distraction, I have taken the time to sit down and write an outline for this project; however, I'll keep the outline to myself so that readers who miss this first entry will think I'm wonderfully organised, on-top of things and dedicated to this blog (not just checking off a list of to-dos).

Initially I'll cover the whys, whatnots and what-the-hecks which will allow me to write something while I continue collecting materials so that when I'm ready to cut and carve I can dive right in.

In the meantime, where does a girl who is new to woodworking keep her growing collection of hand tools?

In an old pizza box.  Yup, it's true!