Working Weekend

It is coming together, finally, and not without a battle.  Gluing the top and back is always a challenge with hot hide glue.  This was no exception.  The glue cooled too fast and when I released the clamps one edge didn’t hold, leaving a nasty quarter inch gap.  Of course the good thing about hide glue is that it is reversible.  I heated the joint with a heat gun, applied a little hot water, and inserted some fresh hide glue, re-clamping the whole thing for another couple of hours.  That did the trick and it looks good now.  There was a lot of detail work before gluing- drilling holes for the controls, routing recesses to accommodate the mounting threads.  Cutting the control access hole, making the control plate, making sure everything would fit together once glued.  I’ve put an initial coat of tung oil on it, and the grain looks good.  Trying to decide whether to stick with tung oil or to go with the hard nitrocellulose finish I’ve grown to love.  Regardless I’ll have to let it dry for a while before I do anything else.