Day 59: Sharp Key Top Covers

I was able to get enough quarter sawn red oak cut last night to, I believe, cover all of the sharp key tops. As you will recall, I'm building this instrument in the Craftsman/Arts & Crafts/Mission style using quarter sawn oak when and where appropriate. This is one of those places where and when it's appropriate. It also obviates the need for me to use bone, as is the custom these days, especially since ivory imports to the U.S. have been curtailed.

As with the arcades on the front of the naturals, I cut my own quarter sawn oak pieces for the sharp covers. Rather than purchase the wood from a specialty, exotic woods store for $9/board ft. or more, I simply used some red oak I purchased from Lowe's. The piece is flat sawn, yet, as a consequence, the sides are nicely quarter sawn and cost me a fraction of what I would pay for wood from a place like Woodrafters or Gilmer Wood Company. I think the entire board cost me something like $12 for a 3/4" x 6" x 8' piece, rather than $36 elsewhere.

The laminates are only 1/16" thick, so cutting them on a full-sized table saw is a bit tricky. The key is to set the feather board (the blue thing in the photo above) at 1/16" from the saw blade and move the rip fence closer to the blade as I cut the slices from the board, and to also use the zero clearance insert (the red thing in the photo above). Easy peasy, but still a little scary given the small tolerances. I'm thankful every time I use the table saw for my GRR-Ripper from MicroJig (the yellow thing in the photo above). Safety first at Tortuga Ancient Instruments!

I mentioned in an earlier post that I was putting together a custom miter box that would allow me to use one of my smaller pull saws to cut the natural key tops. The plastic miter box was okay, but it required me to use a saw that was pretty rough on the laminate cuts as I trimmed them down. With this new box, I can get finer cuts that will sand nicely and create a final product of higher quality.

The next step is to cut the remaining natural key tops using the new miter box so I can get this keyboard wrapped up - it's been six months already!!

Until next time...

Day 58: Preparing the Sharps

I was able to complete the buffing of the final sharps last night. I did this while sitting on the couch watching My Big, Fat Greek Wedding. I've decided to start using Windex as a fix-all in the shop. In fact, along with the buffing, I took the protective tape off of the sharp tops and keysticks using Windex.

Yes, I'm kidding.

As you can see, they're ready for the quarter sawn red oak tops. I will be cutting these tiny laminates on the table saw using a feather board, a shimmed zero-clearance throat (more on this later) and a heap of patience; they must be no more than 1/16" thick and are astonishingly small in general. It should prove to be another interesting experience, indeed.

I continue to glue up the natural key top tails and I've started the construction of a little miter box that I can use for slicing and dicing the smaller pieces required by future keyboard work. I'm not completely done with the natural key top heads because I decided to cut three of them off for a variety of screwup-related reasons. I'll get at these this weekend once I can get back into the shop and  the miter box is completed (personal reasons prevent it at this time).

Until next time...

Day 57: Happy Birthday to Me!

Yes, yesterday, November 11 - Veteran's Day - was my birthday. Frankly, I've stopped counting and/or acknowledging how many years I've been on the planet, so it's a bigger deal to friends and family than it is to me. More importantly, I was able to spend some time in the shop last night and finished gluing up all of the natural key top heads and even started a few tails.

It's coming along slowly but surely. Because of this, I've decided to name my company Tortuga Ancient Instruments. Regardless of my speed, I'm happy with my progress so far, including the two naturals I've filed and sanded (they're the ones with the tails glued on in the photo above); this bodes well for the remaining keys. I'm planning to get more of the tails glued up tonight so I can start filing and sanding in earnest. I also nearly have the buffing of the sharps completed - just four more to go and I'm there.

Until next time...

P.S. Watch for a new project on the horizon - a Baroque guitar modeled on an instrument that may have been owned by Marie Antoinette. Apparently, she let them eat cake AND play guitar. There is no historical evidence, though, that she let them do both at the same time.

Project Update: The Next Time Around...

I know it's a little early in the project to be reflecting, yet I've been at it since May, so I figured I'm due. Granted, I don't work on the instrument every day, but I have put in quite a few hours and made some interesting choices that I will definitely change on the next one.

First, I would take the jointing of the keyboard blank more seriously. This blank is the large piece that is the result of gluing together five pieces of poplar and from which I cut all keysticks, both naturals and sharps, using the band saw. The next time around, I will use a jig similar to the one I use to glue up guitar tops and backs; it simultaneously pulls the sides together while applying pressure to the top, creating a nice glue joint and completely flat end product.

Second, I would make darned sure the natural key top laminates were exactly 1/8" (3mm) thick. As I'm gluing them to the keysticks and sanding them, I'm finding some disconcerting variations that could have been avoided simply by remaining attentive to the rip cuts.

Third, in alignment with my second point, I will make adjustments to my table saw so the glue line rip blade works without a hitch. Because my zero-clearance throat plate (the plate through which the blade pokes its ugly head) was a little low, the key top wood dropped down during the cut, resulting in blade marks and uneven cuts, which I had to sand off. I would also not cut the sharps on the band saw because the blade left cut marks that were a pain to sand off - and you know how much I love sanding.

Fourth, I would use the same supplier for all parts I cannot manufacture myself. Now, this one was unavoidable given the fact that Lutz Bugart, owner and operator of The Instrument Workshop, passed away. This forced me to order additional balance and back rail guide pins from Hubbard Harpsichords, resulting in minute differences in pin sizes. This will in no way affect how the instrument plays, it would just be nice to have everything be a uniform size.

Fifth, I will build a custom miter box to accommodate a saw with finer teeth to cut the natural key tops to size. The current miter kit I used is designed for household/building projects, not for cutting fine wood at small tolerances. My miter box will be much smaller and allow me to use one of my nice pull saws to get the finest cut possible.

Finally, I will build the next instrument using metric measurements. Having used only the metric system while earning my BA and MA degrees in anthropology/archaeology, I became quite accustomed to the system and now value the smaller increments that are, frankly, easier to calculate in my noggin when in the throes of working the wood. Base 10 is not a bad thing at all.

Regardless of all of these changes I would make, things are going quite well with the build. I continue to make mistakes nearly every day, but I'm noting them here and filing them away for later reference. I'm also experiencing some great successes; those get filed away, too.

Until next time...

Day 56: From Chaos Comes Order

I glued one of the key top tails to a keystick last night and it looks pretty darned good.

So good, in fact, that I started gluing up the remaining key top heads in anticipation of notching and sanding them as I prepare for the tail glue up step.

I know it looks chaotic, but, in my defense, I'm using just about every clamp I own, which include all shapes and sizes. And, yes, it's true: you can never have too many clamps. Frankly, I'd just like about two dozen more clamps like the little one in the first photo above. They're small and cheap and work great for these key glue ups. Finally, something from Harbor Freight worked out!

I'll be notching and sanding the key top heads before proceeding with the gluing of all of the tails. That way, I'm not endangering the tails as I use the new razor knife -- yes, I decided to go ahead and make the minuscule notch at the second score line using it -- and the file to round off the heads. It turns out I was making the notches too deep - they only need to be about 1/32" deep to help protect the score line from the rigors of the file.

As I've described in a previous post, sanding can be a bit of a challenge for me because 1) I don't like it very much and 2) my hands always hurt from the Carpal Tunnel Syndrome surgery I had a few years ago (I'm a Data Scientist in my day job - CTS is an occupational hazard). My solution for the sharps is to sand no more than three or four at a sitting and putter around on other things between sessions. As I glued up the key tops, I was able to finish buffing up 10 of the sharps. There are only 21, so I'm getting there...slowly but surely...like the tortuga.

Until next time...

Day 55: Fixing the Fixes

It's been an eventful few days this week. First, I was able to get the sharps buffed and ready for prime time. I ended up using a Heavy Duty Scotchbrite pad I had laying around for eventual use on the many hand plane renovation projects that exist only in my mind at this time. All of the keys I worked on buffed up nicely and are just about completed - the only thing left is to top them with a thin veneer of quarter sawn red oak.

After posting about my challenges with the naturals, Andrew Nolan was kind enough to suggest I simply use a file to round them off. As I did this, I realized I had made the notches a little too deep, but they're going to stay for now. I had to band saw off the two I had ruined and I'm just too tired and, frankly, impatient, to do that again. Besides, it's only a couple of keys at the high end of the keyboard. If I decide they're nagging at me too much later, I can always replace them.

As you can see, the natural looks pretty good, but the notches are a little too deep. I won't tell if you don't.

On a completely unrelated note, Andrew was also kind enough to remind me that the mask in a photo I had posted of myself was completely ineffective against most, if not all, airborne particles. Based on his comment, I went ahead and purchased a 3M 6300 HEPA-filtered mask off of eBay. It was only $15 and will probably end up extending my life given how much dust and aerosolized paint I've produced these last few months.

Now, I feel safe and snug as a bug in a rug. Or a gas mask. Either one. Yes, my hair gets crazier with every bad selfie I take. Just wait a couple more months.

Until next time...

Project Update: Seeing with New Eyes...Again

When I started this project blog, I was determined to include everything, including my mistakes - warts and all. Well, this is a wart part. I've been struggling with cutting a notch near the second score mark on the natural keys because the African blackwood I'm using is as hard as stone. The photo below illustrates the notches I'm talking about.

Photo courtesy of The Harpsichord Project E-book 3.1 by Ernest Miller.

The notches are really designed to protect the demarcation point between the second score line and the sanding I will do to round off the edges of the keys. I will eventually use a thin strip of sandpaper to round off the edges and the notches will keep my sanding accurate. The photo below illustrates this nicely.

Photo courtesy of The Harpsichord Project E-book 3.1 by Ernest Miller.

I started notching with a knock-off X-Acto knife I purchased on eBay and I ended up breaking two of the knives that came in the three-pack. The first blade went flying past my head and the second almost cut my hand. I then decided to purchase a good, quality razor knife from Woodcrafters here in my beloved Portland. The handle is just the right size, the blades are tempered steel and the craftsmanship is outstanding.

I then proceeded to cut the notches - and also cut right through the end of the keys, taking the scored parts right off. And I also almost took off part of my thumb. Not dangerous, frustrating or in any way devastating at all. Now, I will have to plane off the two key tops I destroyed and start over with them. I'm not looking forward to that process, but it's just wood. I'll get it.

As you may know, I keep a Facebook project page that has sparked the interest of Australian harpsichord builder, Andrew Nolan. He asks me clarifying questions and makes salient suggestions on the page from time to time. Recently, he reminded me that the mask I was using for sanding paint and wood was completely ineffective against airborne particles of pretty much any kind. I bought a nice HEPA filtered mask on eBay for $15 at his suggestion.

I asked him about my notching dilemma and he said he simply puts the keys in a small miter box and uses a file with a flat side (the one against the score side) to round the key tops - you know, like they did 600 years ago. Similar to my own miter box solution for cutting the natural key tops, this one was staring me in the face and way too simple for me to come up with on my own. Clearly, I need to keep the KISS method in mind as I proceed.

The end result of all of this will look very much like the keys on the left in the photo below.

Photo courtesy of The Harpsichord Project E-book 3.1 by Ernest Miller.

Now that I have a simple solution to what seemed an nearly insurmountable problem, I can proceed once again with abandon.

Until next time...