Making Scrapers
Set up correctly, a scraper should be able to pull shavings just like a plane. If all you are getting is dust, something is wrong.
Purfling Machine: Eight Views
This is the tool I designed and built over 20 years ago for cutting purfling grooves.
Jeweler’s Saw Blades
In my quest for the perfect jeweler’s saw blade for sawing out f-holes, I once landed the world’s last supply of these antique blades, defunct blades from a closed hardware store, bought at a now-closed tool store in downtown Chicago. The brand is Gilbert, and I tracked them down to around 1890 or so. They’re …
How Not to Sharpen Files
Before “sharpening” on the left, after on the right. I guess this wasn’t such a hot idea! There is a simple shop method for sharpening files that’s mentioned in more or less detail all over the web. It’s done by dipping the files in acid for an hour or more, which supposedly etches away metal, …
Gouges
Over at the Maestronet forum I posted this photo of the collection of gouges I use, and I’m going to repost here what I wrote there. It’s easy to want to buy everything, but then you have to keep it all sharp. Here’s the list of what I regularly use: From the left: 30mm #7 …
Arching, Revealed
Over the last few years I’ve been messing with a contractor’s laser level to show violin arching more clearly. It’s a variation of the maker’s idea of using a ruler and light to cast a shadow on the arch while shaping it, as pictured above, and initially I used a series of photos, and then went …