DIY Network

Handmade Mandolin, Part 4: Riser Block From "Handmade Music" episode DHMM-105

Lynn Dudenbostel dry-fits the mandolin's body as he adds creates riser block.

In this segment, Lynn comes one step closer to completion of the mandolin's body by creating and installing the riser block. Later in the segment, bluegrass band Kentucky Thunder demonstrates exactly what a Dudenbostel mandolin can sound like at a full gallop.

Materials:

Maple stock
Tortoise-colored plastic (available from luthier supply-shops)
Drum sander
Band saw
Instrument maker's glue
Straight-edge
Carpenter's pencil
Safety glasses or goggles

Safety Alert: Always wear safety goggles or safety glasses when
working with wood, power-tools, saws, drills, routers, etc.

advertisement

Riser Block

• Thus far in the process, Lynn Dudenbostel has built the mandolin's body. The body's major components are the top (complete with tone bars), the maple back, and rim assembly -- which consists of a maple rim, head-block, tail-block and point-blocks. The internal blocks help the instrument hold its shape and are made of mahogany. With just a few more enhancements, he will be finished with this first major step of construction.

• Lynn adds a riser block to the top of the rim (figures A and B). Eventually the riser will hold the mandolin's neck. Because the neck will slope back, away from the top, the riser block has to slope down at the same angle. In this case the angle is about five and a half degrees. The riser block will also eventually have a dovetail cut into it, so Lynn uses maple for added strength.

  Figure A

  Figure B

  
  
  
• Also, for decorative purposes Lynn trims the tips of the point blocks. He replaces the wood with tortoise-colored celluloid plastic and shapes it using a drum sander (figure C). This is strictly a decorative touch and it's also in keeping with the tradition of F-5 mandolins (figure D).

  Figure C

  Figure D

  
  

  Figure E

  
  
• With the rim essentially complete, Lynn positions the top temporarily in place. Using the top as a guide, he glues the riser block to the mahogany head block (figure E).

• After the hide-glue dries, Lynn uses a template to mark the dovetail into the riser block. Later he can cut the dovetail with a band saw and create the joint that will eventually accept the mandolin's neck.
  

  Kentucky Thunder in a full-tilt bluegrass workout.

  
  

Despite what his family may think of the sound of Lynn's instruments, the members of Kentucky Thunder have no problem at all with it. Andy Leftwich and his band-mates treated viewers to a sample of what a Dudenbostel mandolin can sound like in as part of a first-rate bluegrass ensemble.

In the episode that follows, the mandolin's back and the sides are ready to be joined to form the finished body.

RESOURCES :

Stewart MacDonald's Luthier Supply Shop
Website: www.stewmac.com

Luthier's Mercantile International, Inc.
Website: www.lmii.com

Pioneer Valley Luthier Supply Company
Website: www.pioneervalleyluthier.com

Kentucky Thunder
For more information on the band that appeared in DIY's Handmade Music, Kentucky Thunder -- and to hear streaming audio and download samples of their music -- visit the website for Skaggs Family Records, www.skaggsfamilyrecords.com.

GUESTS :

Lynn Dudenbostel, Luthier
Dudenbostel Stringed Instruments
Knoxville, TN