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The Bass Bar is in place and trimmed. The F-holes have been refined, somewhat, and the edge-work is begun.
Bass-bar was #1 on the list!
I installed the bass-bar first thing this morning (chalk-fit to the inside of the plate in the exact location it was to be glued, then glued with hot hide glue).
Then, while the glue was drying, I went and did other things. Swept up the shop, changed the tires on my car (snow tires have to be off this weekend), and designed some display stands for the upcoming show at Marylhurst University. I had intended to begin the graduations on the one-piece cello back plate today, but after I did the tires, I was pretty worn-out, and hurting, so I decided it was time for a break, and, since the glue was dry, time to trim the bar.
Bass Bar in the rough
Here’s what the bass-bar looked like in the rough, when I took the clamps off:
Bass Bar Trimmed and finished:
And here is what it looked like after planing it to the shape I wanted it to be:
Edge-work and final prep for finishing
Although you probably really can’t tell in the photos, I have also scraped the entire plate, inside and out, under low-angle light, to get every dip and hump as smooth as can be.
Also, I began the edge-work; I first planed a small (3mm) bevel all the way around the inside edge, then rounded it with a file, to establish the inside curve of the edge. The outside will be treated the same way, after the plate is installed on the garland. It is much easier to manipulate the plate by itself, instead of the whole cello, so I want to do as much as I can before it is assembled.
I also spent time refining the f-holes; smoothing the inner edges, matching bass to treble shape, etc. That, too, is much easier before the plate is assembled with the garland.
Tomorrow I will try to graduate the back plate.
Gotta do taxes, too, though. (Hooray for Turbotax!)