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Comment by David McQueen on February 1, 2013 at 12:23am

I don't know if I will be doing a raquet build ... I would need to have some raquets first :-) .

I do know that I will be trying to build some boxes. I have been using boxes from a craft store here. Fairly nice in that the top and bottom were 1/8" plywood. But they have changed suppliers and there was not a box there that I would buy.

My tools are limited. I have an 8 1/4" portable table saw with a jig to cut my scarf joints, a small drill press, a reciprocating saw, chop saw and a belt sander. Up till now that has been pretty much it. I picked up an old black and decker band saw for $20.00. I just finished making a fence for it and a stop block assembly for the chop saw. All of the fretting, neck carving etc. has been done with hand tools.

I am going to try splined mitre joints on the boxes. I'll try laying out the tops and bottoms,like a real guitar with some 1/8" spruce or pine for the top and oak or maple formthe bottom of the box. We will see how it goes. I am probably at least a month to six weeks here before it is warm enough to do things. I miss the shop in the winter. It went up well above freezing for the last couple of days so I could get the fence and the stop block done. We are back into well below freezing now with snow squalls and streamers, so everyhing is on hold again.

Comment by Order99 on January 31, 2013 at 8:24pm

Glad you like it. The resonator I used on this was a Royal Dansk cookie tin lid, very well constructed and great tone. I recommend them.

The frame for this model was two tennis racquets joined by 1-1/2" pegs, then covered by four layers of maple veneer for the skin using the frame as the jig-after the skin was in place, 1/4" was shaved from the interior frame to lighten the chamber. The neck of the second racquet was cropped and used to lenghten the first with a simple mortise-and-tenon joint, then a 1/4" oak strip and another of poplar finished the fretboard. Front and back are 1/8" birch ply and a single piezo epoxied to the resonator roughly under the bridge let's me play with an amp.Fancy soundhole is just a woman's earring . :)

Lately i've tried sawing strips of leftover scraps (mostly cedar from small or damaged boxes) to 'build up' a chamber layer by layer on the back of the racquet. It takes a bit longer but I think i've got a more solid and resonant chamber when i'm done...i'll post one when i'm satisfied with it.

I'm looking forward to seeing your Racquet builds-since i'm limited by clumsy hands and no power tools, I can't wait to see what a decent builder can do with this idea!

Comment by David McQueen on January 28, 2013 at 3:02am

That is just elegant. I am going to do some "Sherwin-Williams" resophonics when it warms up here. I now have more incentive than ever. Thx for sharing.