I think this is an interesting discussion, though I am also somewhat irked by it, for reasons which will become apparent. As with all discussions, if it's not of interest to you, there's the "next" button. There is so much to say, I'm just going to skip to the high points, stopping briefly to thank Arle and Barbara for their posts. The reason, dear people, that I become annoyed with the discussion is that it starts to stray into saying that all this tooling and hoarded wood and shop buildings and expertise and time that Cali and I have invested in this instrument were unnecessary. After 200 instruments, I am still learning how to build them better. If one can truly achieve the same result with a few weekends twiddling about with an old guitar and some Baltic Birch ply, the implication is that either I've wasted the last 20 years going in the wrong directions, or that I'm a ham-handed numbskull, or that I'm a pretentious snob. I have a certain amount of emotional investment in the instrument, so I'm not very happy with any of these conclusions. Perhaps I'm being too sensitive and reading too much into what is actually being said. On Wed, 26 Oct 2011, Steven Tucker wrote:
then my total cash outlay for a Chinook-like hurdy gurdy would be around $300
Is that including the strings? Good gut strings are quite expensive.
or less -- even accounting for precision bushings and a shaft from McMaster Carr and a AA spruce top from Luthier's Mercantile.
Please let me know what McMaster-Carr part numbers you were looking at. I must have missed that section of the catalog.
I would contend that all you need is a bow saw with a thin blade and a thick blade, a luthier's knife (made from an old file), a steel scraper, a drill, and possibly a wood carvers gouge. (Assuming you buy the shaft, bushings, and top wood). [...]
Let's include a pencil. That being all you need, I suggest that you embark upon your project forthwith. I notice that you don't have a vise, or a sharpening stone, or any measuring devices, or a straight edge, so I await the results of your labors. Doing my best to remain polite, Alden Alden F.M. Hackmann [email protected] "Beati illi qui in circulum circumeunt, fient enim magnae rotae." -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "hurdygurdy" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/hurdygurdy The rules of posting, courtesy, and other list information may be found at http://hurdygurdy.com/mailinglist/index.htm. To reduce spam, posts from new subscribers are held pending approval by the webmaster.
