Thank you!

There are so many processes to building that I enjoy, and finishing is definitely near the top of the list. For me, this is usually a four day process, where I do the coats of shellac one day, wait a day for that to live on the instrument, and then a day to varnish. I don't touch the instrument for at least a day after that. Of course, other parts of the machine get shellac during the building process.

This is taken right from Dwain Wilder's web site: http://www.bearmeadow.com/build/methods/finish/index.html . I apprenticed under Dwain and use the methods that he taught me and the same materials as well.

After the body, top, and fretboard are fabricated as sub-units, they are given three coats of "one-pound cut" shellac, and rubbed out with 320-grit sandpaper. This sizing has two purposes. First, it seals all the inside of the body and the ends of the fretboard. This stabilizes the wood, sealing it at the moisture content at that moment. Thus external changes in the surrounding air will have a much less impact on the wood, from then on. The wood will still give and take a little with temperature changes, but the moisture is locked out.

The second function that this shellac sizing performs is to seal the pores of the wood in preparation for the varnish. The shellac seal keeps the varnish from penetrating the wood too much. This is one of the primary reasons that Bear Meadow dulcimers are so powerful --the wood hasn't been soaked in varnish.

Five to nine wiped coats of Target Coating's Hybrid Alkyd waterborne varnish are applied. These go on very quickly, after one gets some practice. And each coat is ready for another wipe after 15 minutes.

By the time the last coat dries, the instrument is looking pretty nice. After rubbing out with 0000 steel wool, the final treatment is with a very high-carnuba wax. We use a floor wax called "TreWax" that comes in a nice reddish-brown. You don't want white or clear wax, as this will build up white in the pores of the wood. Of courser, the clear formulation is needed for spruce tops. Give the wax five minutes to dry, then buff vigoursly with pure cotton flannel.

I've yet to put on nine coats of varnish, but I have done eight several times.

Big smiles to you!