Archive of the Category 'Experimental'

Fun with Double Bookmatching

Saturday, day 12. April 2008

To the left you can see the beginning of my little experiment. I had a narrow yet thick chunk of Cocobolo left from cutting the sides to Arielle’s psaltery, and I was trying to see if I couldn’t find a use for it somehow.
One thing that struck me was that it had the most beautiful […]

Building, Experimental | 0 Comments »

How ’bout Blue?

Friday, day 8. February 2008

Well, maybe I get bored easily, but I always like to try new things. Here you see a Quilted Maple back of a psaltery that has been tinted blue. I think this one will definitely carry the “Atlantis” name-badge.
I’m not too big of a fan of the artificial look, but it was an interesting exercise. […]

Building, Experimental | 0 Comments »

Carbon Fiber Saddles

Thursday, day 31. January 2008

I was pleasantly surprised today at the performance of a new saddle material. As a matter of fact, I found it so superior to just about all other saddle options, that I’m thinking of phasing out nearly all other materials for saddles. (Except of course using an all-wood bridge with no saddle at all, which […]

Building, News, Experimental | 0 Comments »

Custom Turned Tuning Wrench

Monday, day 14. January 2008

About a week ago, the thought occurred to me that I could make my own tuning wrench handles. Since then, I’ve been itching to give it a go.
“But what kind of wood should I use for the handle?” I thought.
Well, I resolved that question by making my first tuning wrench handle out of something entirely […]

Building, Experimental | 3 Comments »

Crop Circle Rosette

Friday, day 14. December 2007

I’ve always been fascinated by the patterns of crop circles. I think that some of them are incredibly beautiful and complex patterns.
Naturally, I began to think of ways to somehow apply this to bowed psalteries. I just wanted to have a little fun with it. So, I inlaid a giant purpleheart disc in the middle […]

Building, Experimental | 0 Comments »

A Psaltery’s Weight

Wednesday, day 12. December 2007

So, what does all of this stuff weigh??? Here’s some of my own measurements, to help you get a perspective on things:

60 tuning/hitch pins - 1 pound, 1.4 ounces
30 wound strings - roughly 2.5 ounces
Bridge - between .5 and .9 ounces depending on the wood used
Saddle - .1 to .3 ounces

So, you can clearly […]

How-To, Experimental | 0 Comments »