My latest project isn’t quite a bowed psaltery, but it’s rather an edge sander… which will help me make more psalteries. 
Below are some pictures of the progress so far.
 Idler roller |
 Partially assembled |
 Drive roller (unmounted) |
 Springs/tension piece |
All this is via plans from PlansNow.com. So far, I’d highly recommend buying these plans: everything seems to be solid and well-designed.
 Chechen body |
 Pre-drilled 3/8" hole |
Above are two pictures of a custom T-handle tuning wrench that I’m working on. The body is made of Chechen, with narrow bands of Cocobolo on each side, and endcaps made of Olive. You may also notice that the 3/8″ hole for the shaft is offset for an asymmetrical wrench.
Upon closer look at the pictures above, with the great color and grain patterning, you may see why Chechen is quickly becoming one of favorite woods!
I can make custom tuning wrenches to match the woods on existing instruments, or I can make one with of the woods/shape of your choosing. See my sub-site at Archimedes’ Workshop for more information.
 |
 |
Here’s two pictures of a custom psaltery that I’ve just completed. Check out the curly Honduran Mahogany on the back: very nice. It sounds nice as well.
This is the finished product of the psaltery that I mentioned in an earlier post.
Pictured above/left is my latest creation for rosette designs. I’ll have to give God the credit for this one: I was just sitting in bed one morning, and literally out of the blue an idea hit me for a new rosette design. I thought, “wow, that would probably work out great!” Thank you, Lord.
Anyhow, what it is is a 3D funnel shaped design that is inlaid flush with the soundboard and sinks about halfway into the psaltery’s body. As for the actual technique used, it is very similar to that of turning a segmented bowl, only on a smaller scale, and without a bottom. The woods used were Hard Maple and Purpleheart.
Now, I know it sort of ruins the effect and the mystique if I show how it’s done, but oh well… Here are some shots of the progress of the rosette as it was being made:
 Gluing the blank |
 Resawed into layers |
 Reglued, mounted, and turned |
Inlaid into soundboard |
 |
 |
 |
 |
As I mentioned in an earlier post, once a year I try to make an extra-fancy psaltery that I term a “phantasy” psaltery. The pictures above show the finished product for 2009.
Some points of interest would include the Star-of-David rosette, and also the Macassar Ebony back/sides. I was fortunate enough to find a piece of this rare wood that was large enough to be made into a psaltery.
Actually, the board I found was large enough to be made into two psalteries. So if you were interested in a custom order, I have the second set available for use on a personalized psaltery in the Treasure Trove.
The “Phantasy” psaltery is currently listed on the Psalteries for Sale page.
To the left is a custom psaltery that I’m currently working on. Upon closer look, you can see all of the details of the grain on the Honduran Mahogany top.
There’s also an inlaid 10mm banding as the rosette, and inlaid Paua and MOP dots for the C and F note markers. The binding is Padauk.
To the left is a custom psaltery that I’m working on. Beneath the Western Red Cedar top you can peer through and get a look at the curly Honduran Mahogany back, and maybe make out the label that is burnt into the inside:
Eric Meier
July 2009
#56
I’ve finally competed the 3 octave bowed psaltery. It’s nearly three feet long, almost a foot wide, and 3 inches tall. It’s quite a bit larger than my regular 2 1/2 octave psalteries. But, it can play notes a full octave lower than the standard model: down to G2!
You can take a listen in the sound clips page, about halfway down.
The psaltery has 3 embedded steel inserts in the back, and you can quickly attach the mounting plate via 3 thumbscrews. Then, the mounting plate has an additional threaded insert that allows it to be mounted onto a camera tripod. Otherwise, you can just remove the plate and play it without a tripod. It’s a bit of a reach to play the longest strings, but it’s not very heavy considering its size: it came out weighing under 5 pounds!
