Front Graduations Complete and F-holes Cut

Please share with your friends!

Cello Front Plate Graduation Completed

Smooth inside and out, and all thicknesses correct

It took me a couple of hours, I guess, to do the final graduation, planing and scraping the inside of the European Spruce  front cello plate to perfection (or nearly so). Here is the plate, with some pieces of willow lining stock across it, to form shadows so you can see the curves. The color is so neutral that without the shadows, the plate looks flat in photographs.

Completed graduation of cello front plate
Graduation complete!

The f-holes had been incised earlier, so all that was left to do is finish cutting them out. I used the f-hole cutter to cut the circular portions of each f-hole.

F-hole cutter in use
F-hole cutter in use
Finished result of f-hole cutter use
Finished result

Then I used a coping saw and a knife to complete the cutting. Each hole will still be refined and perfected, later, using a knife and a small file.

Cutting out the f-holes with a coping saw.
Cutting out the f-holes with a coping saw.

Finishing the F-hole shape with a knife.

Finishing the F-hole shape with a knife.

But the f-holes are essentially complete. the next step is to install the bass-bar.

Completed f-holes, ready for refinement.
Completed f-holes, ready for refinement.
If you found this post helpful, please share with your friends!