Slight bow in back of dulcimer.
So, full steam ahead! Congratulations on building your first dulcimer. You'll get lots of ideas for future ones now.
I added kerfing to make the joints stronger & as I said earlier, I love the vibrato achieved by gently rocking the dulcimer from side to side when playing.
I play slow fingerpicking ballads mostly.
I'd thought about forming a bowed back by making it from 2 pieces & shaping the braces, but in the end decided not to change too much from the original design as it's my first build - I expected some kind of learning curve!
I just need to sand, finish & put the tuners etc on, and decide whether to fit the LR Baggs pick up.
Since the fretboard is level I do not see a problem with playing it on your lap. As long as the glue joints are solid I do not see a problem with it coming apart. Some dulcimer builders put a curve on the bottom intentionally.
Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
Some builders actually build-in a bowed back -- the idea that the curve acts as a kind of projector for the sound.
Joolsy,
You could try sanding the back flat if the bow is minor, or you could glue 3 feet on the back like they did in the old days.
Hi all.
I recently finished my walnut fokcraft teardrop dulcimer kit & have noticed a slight side to side rocking motion when placed on a flat surface. I think this may have happened because when I glued the sides to the back, they may not have been perfectly at 90 degrees, so when the fretboard/top was clamped on, it caused a slight width ways bow in the back. I'm wondering if it may eventually cause any problems later on, i.e. delaminnation or cause the neck to bow.
Other than the slight side to side rocking, I've checked the fretboard & with straight edge & winding sticks & it's all good.
Thanks for reading, any thoughts?
