On drums...

Had these Phonic Plus shells minus-ed a little.
I used the iron on PVAc method, as Rob (HiHat) from the SonorMuseum forum did with his SClassix kit.
Some of you may remember me buying this veneer 4yrs ago, I took it to a Pro who couldn't do it, so I finally attempted it myself. Very happy with the results, enjoy.

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Jeff
Gots ta luv da Beech
Australia

Those look freakin' gorgeous!

- D.

Wow!.

Those look nice.

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Cliff

River City Trio

What if we did all have the same opinions?

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Goki - short from Goran

Let the good drums roll!!!

Fantastic job, Jeff! Those are going to be beautiful.

Do you have a finish in mind? In my opinion, make your own shellac from flakes. I'd use an amber or garnet - love the redder hues on ebony - that will add some color to the light tan and give it a little depth of character. You probably know all this, but shellac can be applied by hand without worrying about dust, and can be built to the level of finish you want very quickly - assuming a traditional Sonor low gloss look.

Interesting that the iron on glue method is the same approach to veneering that is centuries old, using hide glue.

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Gregory

Thanks for the nice comments guys.
Gregory, I was going to ask your advice on the best way to finish.
Doe's Shellac require extensive upkeep like Beeswax doe's?

I like the idea of the Shellac, I'll do a bit of reading.
Cheers,

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Jeff
Gots ta luv da Beech
Australia

Reading up is a good idea, Jeff. There's more to it than I know. It is an ancient product that does not require maintenance like a wax finish. It is easily repairable, builds very slowly, and dries immediately. Learning how to wipe it on takes a bit of knowledge and practice (eg, don't go over the same spot too soon), but as long as you are not trying to build a glossy closed pore finish, the skill level required is not that high. I love using the stuff and the way it looks.

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Gregory

Gregory, there is also the issue of gaps in the vertical joins. They vary in size, as I found the sheets shrank a little, but some edge grains more than others. And as this was my first attempt, I got to know what I was doing as I went on.
When I used to work in Joinery, I would make some dust from the timber, mix it with the glue, or spread glue into the gap and rub the dust into the glue.
Someone else suggested I use water based colored caulking. Not sure.
Any suggestions?

Cheers

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Jeff
Gots ta luv da Beech
Australia

If I were going to have an open pore finish, then I would tape those edges very close to the splits and fill them with any kind of wood dough, whether home-made of not. The tape is so that the dough does not fill the pores, so careful taping is in order.

Plastic wood dough works well, and does not shrink once it has dried. I would use a dark dough rather than a light-colored one, since the dark will not distract from the overall design, but light stripes will. As I'm sure you know, the less fussing you do with those areas in terms of trying to camouflage them, the better they will look.

What caused the shrinkage? Does the glue have water in it? You did use veneer tape to join your work before applying? Etc.

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Gregory

Thanks for the advice, Gregory.


Yes, the glue is water based. The glue needed to be Polyvinyl Acetate as opposed to Polyvinyl Alcohol. Most glues with hardener or waterproofing are not appropriate.
Polyvinyl Acetate is a thermoplastic adhesive, I suppose Hide glue must be, too.
Not sure if it was the heat of the iron, or glue, or what exactly shrank the sheets, but it was happening visually whilst I was applying heat.
I do believe once the joins settled they have gone back to pretty much as they originally were, and I'm possibly blaming shrinkage for gaps left by my lack of patience and extra attention to detail.
Thanks for your advice, Gregory, I'll keep putting up updates for those interested.

Cheers

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Jeff
Gots ta luv da Beech
Australia