Bowed Keyboard #2: Wheelharp: my first attempt at trying to simulate bowed strings with a keyboard

After getting the frame built, it was time to do what I was afraid was going to be a nightmare…getting the plywood skin to bend around the frame without having a break in one of the inner plys. I didn’t use any fancy woods here- a $14 sheet of underlayment from the local lumberyard. I did take the time to go through the stack and find one that had no voids visible from the edge. Then it was off to a local mill to get one of the plys taken off with a large door sander. About 3 passes and it was done- I had a plywood wet noodle. When I got home it just about jumped on the frame itself, it went so easy-

In less than an hour, both tubes were all glued up to the frame. Isn’t it nice when you are expecting the worst, and somehow it falls into place like it was meant to be? Those moments don’t happen nearly enough, but I like ‘em!

I was starting to get excited now, I had most of the major pieces done, and it was time to get some finish on it and start putting things together to make some noise!

I didn’t get photos of the actual finishing process- it was a nerve wracking time. I used dye that I mixed under flourescent shop lights. It looked great on the wood…...under flourescent lights, that is. The morning after I sprayed all the color I took the pieces out under the sunlight and thought I would die! Have you seen the color orange on the barrels in a construction sight? These would’ve made good ones.

To make a long story short, I messed around with different colors of dye and was able to tone the orange down to a color I really wasn’t looking for to start with, but after a while , I couldn’t imagine any other color being more perfect. I got it standing on it’s own 4 feet, and the world was good again…

-- Jon