Australian/New Zealand Luthiers Forum

Well worth the wait, I'd say. Very nice indeed.

If you rub some ointment on the bridge those spots will clear up in no time.

A Greek flamenco guitar maker. Globalisation at its best.
Miguel

Allan, I think you did read too much into what was probably just an offhand comment. I think this could be a really good thread and perhaps a whole section of the forum itself - sort of like Gallery for workshops. Your workshop is definitely huge, no getting around that, but it's come at a cost that...

I also bought a TCT tipped blade after seeing Allen's bandsaw at work. A huge improvement in ease of cutting, smoothness of cut surface etc. Operator still needs an upgrade but well worth the extra cost.
Miguel

Actually Allen, some of us have to work until afternoon tea time to afford one of your special ukes. However, we are investing in a lot more than pieces of wood, metal and bone. We are investing in unique objects of beauty that sound bl@@dy marvellous. There are many of us who can appreciate such th...

Bought some Carbatec LHG once and used it on a structural joint. Epic fail. Don't know whether it was the poor quality of the glue or just simply its inability to set hard enough. Never again

Yes, those Taswegians make a damned fine beer. I admit I should have done better but I compensated by eating more than my share of pizza.
Put on a kilo during that course according to the bathroom scales. Does Jenny Craig run a uke making course?
Miguel

The "lady from NZ" has visited Cairns and is now the proud owner of Ukezilla. It is truly an amazingly beautiful instrument and draws praise from everyone who sees it. This is of course good for me too. Happy wife, happy life. Not only does Allen make a damned fine ukulele, he is also an accomplishe...

Have just finished the course and am now the proud owner of a Brazillian mahogany pineapple uke. It's a really good instrument. An equivalent instrument in a shop with a recognised brand would sell for an amount far in excess of the cost of the course. Allen and Micheal were brilliant instructors an...

Speaking of Laurie Williams .....
Kathryn Ryan interviewed him on Radio NZ last Monday just after 10am. Very interesting. Well worth listening to.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/progr ... n/20120625

It's a shame that MacPherson envelope themselves in such hyperbole; their guitars actually sound really good. (IMHO).
Go to their website, download some of their free music and listen for yourselves.
http://mcphersonguitars.com/music/

The "lady from NZ" will absolutely love it. So far I've managed to keep it a surprise. Don't know how she missed the deposit on the Mastercard bill but she did.
Fantastic work, Allen. It's a masterpiece. Looking forward to seeing you at the Uke Fest.
Miguel

A true craftsman would have aligned all the slots in the same direction.

BBK. Also very impressed with Brent at ASW. Stunning bearclaw sitka uke tops. They just need sanding and they'd be ready to frame and hang on the wall.
Allen. Pictures of the bass uke pls. Saw the rosette but very keen to see the rest. Tx

Many thanks for your posts. I think blackwood is a very strong possibility. I've never seen blackwood with quite that shade of mahogany red before but many of the other characteristics are a close match with another piece I've got stored away for a special occasion. There certainly is a wealth of br...

Well, that conundrum seems to have been solved. Here's a new one. This a piece of salvaged wood which was originally part of a heavy door frame - maybe 40 years old. The colour is somewhere in the middle of the red photos of the sides and the brown of the end grain shot. No appreciable smell when cu...

Thought I'd leave it. That way if it sounds rubbish, at least it will be a conversation piece.

I was given a bottle of rather nice port for my birthday recently. Unfortunately, it didn't last long. However, it came in a very nicely made pine box with the maker's brand burnt into it. I have no idea what type of pine it is but I did note that it was rather nicely quarter sawn and when joined ha...

Many thanks to all learned contributors. WAY more information than I expected but seeming to confirm my suspicions. Also thanks to Kim for the valuable tips about avoiding chainsaw accidents. I've decided to remove the chainsaw from my workshop altogether even though it means it will now take me a b...

Now that some time has elapsed since the first post, has anyone had a chance to use the 7.9mm go bars in a build? I had a look at them in K Mart and they felt a bit too rigid. I'm by no means an expert in this area but my research suggests that a diameter of about 5mm is the norm for fibreglass go-b...

I made a drum sander with mdf discs and originally glued paper backed 80 grit sandpaper to the drum with contact cement. Worked really well until the paper needed replacing. It was an absolutely horrendous job peeling off the old stuff which I had to spread over several days as frustration levels so...

Maybe a bit late for some people who have used this as inspiration to build a similar machine but ... When I built my one, I used about circles of customwood (MDF) cut on the sawbench with a jig, drilled to thread onto the shaft. The outside circles were pinned through the shaft to ensure no slippag...

Thanks for sharing the "learning experiences" with us. I consistently amaze myself with my uncanny ability to find new ways of doing things wrong. I then spend vast amounts of time trying to fix them when I should probably use the mistakes as firewood. I admire your courage in throwing what you're n...

Your instruments are stunning and a real inspiration to us beginners. One day when I grow up I hope to make ukuleles almost as pretty as yours. As part of the growing up process, I'm struggling to get a good with pore filling. I've tried Timbermate but the results have been pretty awful. I've had be...