Lute making FAQ 1: How the body is made

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Lauri Niskanen

7 жыл бұрын

A quick unedited vloggy video from the workshop of Lauri Niskanen. Shot on a monday with my phone.

Пікірлер: 59

@Vei2aC Күн бұрын

thank you ever so much, this didunt help me make a lute, but helped me to make the back of a hurdy gurdy, really appreciate your time Sir, top marks to you, this helped me ALOT, what a legend...

@YYShen 6 ай бұрын

Lauri great Fantastic video. Thanks a million

@nicklaskallman280 4 жыл бұрын

As a boatbuilder i think i could figure out how to make a lute. I would love to some day. Lutes have a lot in common with carvel planking boats.

@LaukkuBah 4 жыл бұрын

I've been thinking the same as I watch boat building videos on youtube

@hellomate639 Жыл бұрын

You guys should teach each other, make a video and film each one. "Boatbuilder learns to make boat shaped renaissance instrument" and "luthier learns to make boats." That kind of silly but ultra interesting stuff gets a lot of views because it's both interesting and has a sort od curiosity of "who will learn the other trade more easily?"

@jean-michelbessou3461 3 жыл бұрын

Thank you, and congratulations ! I am about to make a baroque lute, and I learned some things by wathing your beautiful video.

@BacheweyChomp5150 2 жыл бұрын

Very interesting! Thank you. I tried making a bowl years ago when David Van Edwards first published the online course, and I gave up during the bending phase. I wish I had kept to it. This video gives me inspiration to try again. Cheers!

@jameshegarty6242 7 жыл бұрын

Thanks! That was great. Very informative.

@TheSULTAN7777 5 жыл бұрын

thank you for sharing your knowledge.

@samirnassif907 7 жыл бұрын

thanks for giving us this nice tour. I am Samir a oud maker from Canada. I like your idea of the lathe sander, I will do it also. now I hand plane the ribs which can be a pain.

@LaukkuBah 7 жыл бұрын

Thanks. The lathe sander sure is a time saver, and works surprisingly fast - though I'd like to have a proper sanding machine wide enough for soundboards.

@khalidtarawneh2289 4 жыл бұрын

thnx for sharing. very informative DIY all the way

@fakes222 7 жыл бұрын

Thank you

@robinzonvstovay10 7 жыл бұрын

Thanks! Cool!

@Sihion 7 жыл бұрын

Thanks, this is really interesting

@KawauMusic 7 жыл бұрын

Very interesting.

@m.reichert9348 6 жыл бұрын

Hey Lauri, thank you for this video! I like your "hands on" approach:) I am planning to build a lute myself and have one question: does the grain orientation is important when cutting the ribs and if not, do you prefer a certain grain orientation?

@LaukkuBah 6 жыл бұрын

It is mostly a matter of looks, so you can saw the wood whichever way looks best. Just plane the wood on two sides first to see what it looks like. Radially sawn (or almost radially to avoid ray fleck pattern) wood is usually more stable and easier to bend as each part of the rib will be equally flexible, so it is generally preferred.

@basedmedic 7 жыл бұрын

Thanks for a great video as always. BTW: Have you ever looked into making ouds? And have you ever had any special lute request? Not sure if that is a clear question haha. E.g. The artist Josef Van Wizzem had a 24 string renaissance lute with electric input custom made.

@LaukkuBah 7 жыл бұрын

Chubby kid I don't really know much about ouds and can't play em. So by my reckoning I shouldn't be making them either. I don't remember any odd requests like that, if you don't consider lutes odd :)

@dakarimerrick5697 3 жыл бұрын

I realize I'm kinda randomly asking but do anybody know a good place to watch newly released movies online ?

@timaddison307 6 жыл бұрын

Cool guy

@ermisstrerath 5 ай бұрын

Question do you have the plans for the German six string lute?

@dennissiler6672 6 жыл бұрын

Lauri, I admire your work and enjoy your videos. I have been a guitar builder since 1980, and have carried out various repair and restoration work on most fretted stringed instruments, occasionally even a few lutes. Recently, however, I had a lute that came into my shop with the bridge off. Had it been a guitar that would have presented no challenge, since I have re-glued and replaced hundreds over the years, but of course, lutes have rosettes that prevent me from using my standard bridge clamps though the soundhole. I have rigged up a cradle for the body and plan to use my gobar deck to reglue the bridge, but am unsure about how to counteract soundboard deflection, and about how much clamping force to use for the job. Do you think my method is sound? If not, what is the standard practice for bridge re-glue on a lute (this one is 7 course). If so, do you have any words of wisdom for me before I get on with the repair? Thank you for your time, and please let me know if you do decide to make a building course for lutes.

@LaukkuBah 6 жыл бұрын

If the soundboard is absolutely flat, it's possible (sometimes) to just glue the bridge in place with very light pressure (a few go bars) using hide glue (if hide glue was used originally). But it's a lot safer to just take the soundboard of with an X-acto knife and a palette knife, and support the bridge area with a shaped piece of plywood. I always use go bars for this stuff, but I suppose some of those long guitar making clamps will then also work. But certainly test your cradle first without glue to see if that works, I'd try to find the minimum pressure needed to make the bridge sit flat. Also, if it's not too late yet, leave as much of the original soundboard that's stuck on the bottom of the bridge to get the most contact with the soundboard. I occasionally toy with the idea of a lute building course, but you might check out David Van Edwards' CD courses in the meanwhile.

@dennissiler6672 6 жыл бұрын

Thank you for your sage advice and expert experience. The top is still quite flat, and the old bridge has no bits of spruce stuck to it, so I would guess this problem was due to shearing off of the old glue joint. Removal of the top would be quite involved, as this is an older inexpensive Aria lute and would involve also removing (and eventually replacing) a strip of bent wood wrapped around the soundboard edge which seems to be functioning like binding on a guitar. The old bridge was, fortunately, glued on with some sort of animal glue, most likely hide glue. I have had excellent results in the past using fish glue to replace old bridges on vintage guitars, so that is likely what I will use on the lute. I will let you know how it works out. Thank you again for your advice, and Merry Christmas.

@fredleber2432 4 жыл бұрын

Hello! Do you have to bevel the edges of the thin strips for them to join at the right angle to make the shape of the bowl? Or are they just square (90 degrees i mean) and the wood just bends enough against the form? Thanks!!

@LaukkuBah 4 жыл бұрын

The thin filet strips between the ribs are right angled. All the necessary angle is created on the ribs with the upturned plane. The width of the filet strip is removed from the rib.

@fredleber2432 4 жыл бұрын

@@LaukkuBah so when you are running your strip across the handplane you hold the strip at a slight angle?

@LaukkuBah 4 жыл бұрын

@@fredleber2432 I hold the bent rib flat on the plane, which creates the correct angle automatically.

@fredleber2432 4 жыл бұрын

@@LaukkuBah Ah I'm not sure I understand... Sorry! How could the ribs contour to the form if the angles are all 90 degrees on the edges? I can't imagine how it wouldnt just go straight out rather than around the form. help :(

@abdumushuk2219 Жыл бұрын

@@fredleber2432 agreed. there has to be a slight angle (approx. 7-8 degrees) off 90 degree to form a bowl.

@adriano4316 3 жыл бұрын

Hello there, i know that this is an old video, but i got a request from a friend to make this stuff, and i want to know how do you get those thin thin strip of wood ? do you buy it or you just plane it down to that size ? Thank for the answer, if i get an answer :D

@LaukkuBah 3 жыл бұрын

Resaw on the bandsaw, then plane or sand with a drum sander. If you need plans check out my lute designer on my webpage niskanenlutes.com

@saleho5 4 жыл бұрын

great work pro..i want to ask about how depth of the lute bowel??I mean the maximum depth

@LaukkuBah 4 жыл бұрын

17 cm on some large theorbos, anything deeper gets unfomfortable to hold and play. Usually the depth is less than half of the width of the bowl.

@saleho5 4 жыл бұрын

@@LaukkuBah in arabic oud the depth is between 18 or 19 ..i was thinking that the lute depth is remarkable low..but as you say both are nearly same

@jorge.rubiales 7 жыл бұрын

Great video! What material do you use for your forms? Looks like some sort of cork...

@LaukkuBah 7 жыл бұрын

For my newer forms I've been using plywood frames with foam insulation, the kind that you spray out of a bottle. Quite sturdy actually and it's easy to make each rib edge accurate this way, as there's a piece of plywood to define each rib joint.

@jorge.rubiales 7 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the answer, looks great!

@Ybw200owns 7 жыл бұрын

that was fast, already has Mattias's band saw built. how long did it take?

@Ybw200owns 7 жыл бұрын

or is that based on his older smaller saws?

@LaukkuBah 7 жыл бұрын

It's the old version. Just looks big because of my miniature workshop.

@Ybw200owns 7 жыл бұрын

awesome, i'm just watching any videos about classical guitar and lute making, was cool to see a Mattias piece. i'm sure he would be proud to see it being used for this kind of thing

@hesgoneman 6 жыл бұрын

thanks, enjoyed that and very informative.

@dr.maryrossalbanese6623 Жыл бұрын

Hello! Can you make me a Vulcan Lute? I want to buy one.

@burakburak8638 2 жыл бұрын

Hi! How did you shaped the stryfoam? Which tools did you used when shaping the stryfoam?

@LaukkuBah 2 жыл бұрын

Saw, rasp, sandpaper... But I no longer use this kind of mold, I just make skeleton molds these days

@burakburak8638 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks @@LaukkuBah. Why did you give up using stryfoam molds?

@LaukkuBah 2 жыл бұрын

@@burakburak8638 the combination of perfect rib templates and mold geometry from my Lute Designer website means I don't need to try to match my ribs to a mold by hand

@burakburak8638 2 жыл бұрын

Thank you very much

@twokool4skool129 Жыл бұрын

Those molds look like they're foam with wooden rims. Why the foam instead of the more conventionally thick ribs or solid type molds?

@LaukkuBah Жыл бұрын

This way to make a mold allowed me to design the wooden parts on the computer, cut them very accurately and have them support the ribs along their whole length. I've stopped using this type of mold though, I now use whalebone style molds which can also be very accurately designed and built, along with very accurate rib templates, which completely eliminates the shaping of ribs during bending. Everybody can do the same, since I have published my Lute Designer web app on my website. It can calculate patterns for molds and ribs for any lute.

@nicholaspearson4246 7 жыл бұрын

Hi Lauri. Are you in Finland? Have you made 13 course baroque lutes

@LaukkuBah 7 жыл бұрын

Yeah. I've made the Hoffmann model with the bass-rider style extension and with the swan-neck style. Mostly people seem to want 11c's.

@nicholaspearson4246 7 жыл бұрын

You've heard the lute played by Robert Barto and made by Andrew Rutherford (examples on youtube.) It has the most amazing tonality. I'm wondering what in the construction of the lute would account for that. Any idea?

@LaukkuBah 7 жыл бұрын

Nicholas Pearson If I knew, my instruments would be a lot more expensive ;) Well first of all you need a great soundboard piece, then it needs to be thicknessed properly, and finally the bars must be the correct size, and all this depends on the soundboard's characteristics. In practice this means opening the soundboard for adjustment and closing it for testing a few times, and getting the bars close to begin with, and some luck too.