Building Double-Backed Dulcimers

Had several instruments with double backs this week, so I snapped a few pictures. The first thing we do is build the instrument with just one back. If it is a heavy wood, I will really thin it down a lot to give the instrument a little more sound. One of the instruments with a double back I made this week was curly maple, and rather than our typical 1/8" for the back, I thinned the back down to 3/32".

We tape a spacer jig to the inner back to help make sure that all of the spacer blocks are properly aligned. Each of the blocks is about an inch long, and after trimming, will end up around 1/8" wide.

Spacer jig with spacer blocks taped to the inner back of a double-backed dulcimer

In this photo, Jim is gluing blocks to the instrument. Each block was cut and sanded to follow the curve of the instrument, then touched up with sand paper to make sure there aren't any burrs.

Jim gluing spacer blocks to a double-backed dulcimer

After the blocks are glued, we remove the spacer jig and glue the outer back on. This is a perfect example of why you always need more clamps.

Double-backed dulcimer covered in orange spring clamps while the outer back glues up

A couple of weeks ago I talked about our shaper. We used that tool on some Padauk wood, and you can see the results... a nice rich reddish orange pile of chips.

Pile of reddish orange padauk chips on the shop floor

A variety of the cases we make. Three different sizes of ukulele case and one of our dulcimer cases.

Three ukulele cases in different sizes and a Folkcraft dulcimer case

My wife and I made a trip to the lumber mill last weekend to look for "special" wood. Looking for pieces with a lot of character to make distinctive instruments. Indiana is one of the top states for producing walnut, cherry and oak, which is mostly what you'll find in local lumber yards, but this rack happened to be padauk - an African hardwood.

Rack of padauk lumber at the lumber mill

This is one of the boards I brought back from the lumber yard. It is a piece of Eastern Red Cedar (aromatic cedar) that I will use for a soundboard. I picked this board out because I love the coloration with the mix of red and white, but the knot positions are perfect for upper and lower natural tone holes! If anyone wants to reserve this for an instrument, let us know quickly. Otherwise, I'll use it myself! I haven't sliced this board yet, but when I do, you'll see the other half of the soundboard as a mirror of the first.

Dulcimer template on an Eastern red cedar board with knots placed for upper and lower tone holes

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