What I Did During My Summer Vacation

August 28, 2026August 28, 2026 ~ Doug ~ 2 Comments

Just a quick note to say I do indeed plan to keep this blog going, but I haven’t been up to anything dulcimer-related to share these past few months.

My old, familiar back issues slowed me down for a few months, but I was back in the shop working on a few dulcimers and began work on a prototype for a new model during May and early June. Then, while at a concert at an outdoor amphitheater, I took a tumble down some concrete steps. I don’t recommend you try this, especially the part where you come to a sudden stop at the end.

All things considered, I was remarkably lucky. About a third of my face had road rash, and I was very beat up, but there were no internal head or abdominal injuries.

I did, however, dislocate two fingers on my left hand and sprained the other fingers on both hands. My right hand is fine now, though my left hand will need more time to heal. Fortunately, my left hand is still able to play the dulcimer; it just isn’t very comfortable at the moment, but there is constant improvement as healing progresses, and I feel optimistic that all will be well. I also start hand therapy this week, and I look forward to that.

This experience has also shown me how much I depend on my non-dominant hand while handling tools, etc. Working at the bench requires more hand strength than playing the dulcimer, and my left hand isn’t quite there yet. This has meant taking a break from working on dulcimers, though I do hope to start easing back into working at the bench during the next few weeks. I miss it!

A poster of a workman showing his hands with the caption, "Your ten best tools—take care of them." No extras in stock."

Since starting this blog in 2017, I have posted almost entirely about music, lutherie, and related topics, but I may branch out a bit and share thoughts about things some readers may also find of interest.

Mainly, I just wanted folks who follow this blog to know I haven’t fallen off the planet.

I hope you are doing as well as possible, especially during the strange times we are living in.

The Lightbulb Goes On

May 3, 2026May 3, 2026 ~ Doug ~ 3 Comments

A dulcimer peghead ready to be glued to the dulcimer.

I’ve been using three tapered pegs as both a mechanical joint and decorative feature on dulcimer pegheads for a few years. The pegs alone would hold the peghead on very well, but the peghead is also fully glued to the support beneath it.

Until today, I glued on the peghead and added the tapered pegs once the glue had fully set. Due to the angles involved, this is one of the glue-ups that can get a little messy while holding the peghead in place with one hand and cleaning up glue squeeze-out with the other and avoiding letting the peghead slide out of place. I have gotten pretty good at peghead wrangling, but today, I had an “Aha!” moment.

I drilled 1/16″ holes where the pegs will go and used two 1/16″ bits as pins to hold the peghead in place, and the peghead happily stays exactly where it needs to be. Cleaning up glue is simple again, birds are singing in the trees, and all is well in my happy place.

I had hoped to be posting more regularly on this blog, and I still hope to do so. I began this blog in 2007, and sometimes I wonder if it has run its course. The primary obstacle to posting more is not having anything to say. That statement will amuse people who know me, but it does happen!

But I’m not giving up on this blog, and I will be posting as inspiration comes. I don’t want to create “content” just for the sake of creating content.

In the meantime, I often post photographs of what I’m working on via Instagram if you want to take a peek.

And thanks for continuing to follow this blog. Some of you have been with it since the beginning!

What’s On The Bench 11/11/2025

November 10, 2025November 12, 2025 ~ Doug ~ 2 Comments

On the bench is a prototype dulcimer waiting for a few days of scraping, filing, sanding, and detailing.

It looks very much like the dulcimers I have been making for several years, but there are some differences in both the design and methods of construction.

On this dulcimer, the soundboard is significantly thinner than I usually go with Adirondack spruce, and the bracing is different to accommodate this.

The fingerboard is built up in laminations to keep it stable. I have laminated the fingerboards using 2 pieces stacked, and if using ebony or another exotic wood for a fingerboard, a third layer. On this dulcimer, as on the last several dulcimers I have made, I’ve also laminated side pieces to the fingerboard. To my eye, it looks nicer, and it also adds stiffness and stability without adding any extra weight. The difference on this dulcimer is the fingerboard is less tall, which makes it weigh less, and my thought is it will provide stronger transmission of the vibration of the strings through the fretboard into the soundboard.

The back has a center reinforcement strip and two light cross braces rather than the 3 or more cross braces I usually use, and it is built to have more flex than usual. As per usual, I plane an arch in the back braces and force the back flat while it gets glued on to add strength.

I’ve gone back to a smaller peghead, similar to the size I used in the past, but the block the peghead is mounted to is more massive. I like the way it looks. The spacing of the tuning machines is asymmetric, which is what I typically do, but I modified the design so drilling a hole and adding another tuner to turn a 3-string into a 4-string is possible.

There are some other things. I’ve moved the zero fret slightly to adjust the intonation at the first fret because, due to the compromises of equal temperament, there are certain chords using the first fret that never sound quite right to my ear. The hitch pins for the strings will go on top of the fingerboard behind the bridge, like I used to do years ago. I think it adds a bit of tension, slight though it may be, on the soundboard that adds some power but without the shorter sustain that can happen with a floating tail.

My ability to work has been more limited lately; my back issues missed me and have come to visit, and the hope is to avoid another surgery. With this comes fatigue, and on some days when my body feels up to working, my mind is sometimes a little too foggy to do accurate work with sharp tools. I have learned, repeatedly, that when I decide to work on those days, I don’t do my best work and end up doing it over, so it is best to take a break.

I’m still coming to terms with these limitations, as I have for quite a few years. Generally, I’m okay with it, and I find that though I make fewer dulcimers than I once did, it is easier to enjoy the process of making the ones I do get to make!

It has been a long time since I have built one dulcimer at a time, and I enjoy working this way. I have usually started three dulcimers at once, gotten the woodworking done, and then gone back to working on each dulcimer individually. Once this prototype is completed, I might try working on two dulcimers rather than three.

I’m no longer taking advance orders, but I do have a waiting list, so if you are interested in having one of my dulcimers, please feel free to contact me about getting on the list. As dulcimers become available, I’ll contact whoever is first on the list, and if they aren’t interested, then the second person, etc.

I do this work because I love to do it, and I plan to do it for as long as I can!

News From The Workbench

August 12, 2025August 12, 2025 ~ Doug

There hasn’t been much news from the workbench lately, but I hope there will be more soon!

After completing three dulcimers a few months ago, I had to take a break from working in the shop on a regular basis due to some lower back issues that missed me and decided to come for a visit. I’ve been working with excellent physical therapists, and I am improving, so I am gently and cautiously getting back to the fun and adventure of making dulcimers!

In the photo is a dulcimer that came back for some repair a few weeks ago, and it was the perfect project to get my hands back in the game, requiring light work, much of which could be done seated.

I did work as I could here and there, so I started work on a few fretboards that are now ready for slotting and carving the strum hollow, joined some backs and soundboards and bent some sides, so I have most of the wood prepared for the next three or four dulcimers. I should be making some headway with the new batch fairly soon. How much and how often I can work is still unpredictable, but I’m thankful for as much as I can do.

As I am no longer taking custom orders, I’m trying to find the best way to make various options available, so I plan to build a variety of variations on the theme, and I can always add a few extra frets on request, set them up for different tunings, etc.

I am keeping a list of people who are interested in having one of my dulcimers, and as they become available, I will contact people in the order they asked to be on the list and give them the first look to see if I have made anything they would like before posting them for sale. If you would like to be on the list, please contact me.

That’s about it. After a long, very hot and humid day, there is now thunder, rain and a cool breeze. I am thankful for the small things, which are often much larger than they appear

The QuaranTune Summer Virtual Dulcimer Festival – June 5th – 8th, 2025

May 4, 2025May 5, 2025 ~ Doug

I’ve been invited to teach 4 Workshops during the online QuaranTune Summer Virtual Dulcimer Festival.

This virtual festival began during the COVID-19 Pandemic as a way for dulcimer instructors and students to connect during a time when many people who promote and produce festivals made the responsible and life-saving decision to cancel in-person events. The festival offers workshops with instructors from around the world, including places as exotic and mysterious as Michigan!

I’ll be offering four workshops geared to several levels of ability.

As usual for me, I’ll be focusing on sharing skills and techniques that help mountain dulcimer players find their own way to greater musical expression.

You can see what classes are being offered by both myself and all the other instructors, as well as information about the festival and how to register for classes, by following this link to the QuaranTune Virtual Dulcimer Festival Site.

I hope to see some of you there!

Preparing A Dulcimer Fingerboard For Fretting

April 6, 2025April 6, 2025 ~ Doug

Most dulcimer makers fret the fingerboard before gluing it to the soundboard, and then glue the soundboard to the rest of the dulcimer.

There is a good reason for this; it is much easier than fretting the fingerboard on the finished dulcimer, and many dulcimer makers get good results this way. I found I often get acceptable results when I’ve tried this, but sometimes, the fingerboard is no longer exactly as I want it to be. Wood tends to remember it was once a tree and likes to move a bit long after the end of its life, and by the time I have started putting finish on the dulcimer, anything that might move, has moved.

I only know of a few other dulcimer makers who fret after the dulcimer is assembled, and all have said they do it for the same reason; it assures the fretboard will be perfect and never just good enough.

Here are the tools I use when preparing a fingerboard; a straight edge, a level used as a sanding beam, a scraper, a square, a feeler gauge, and a four-sided sanding block with four different grits.

When checking the fingerboard on this dulcimer, everything was just as I like it from the get-go, and because I’m a vegetarian, I made a burnt offering of lentils and broccoli to the Dulcimer Gods to show my appreciation.

On this dulcimer, the fingerboard was close but not quite the way I want it to be, so I used a scraper to level a high spot and add some relief from around the 2nd fret to the 7th fret. I use approximately .002″ of relief so low action won’t cause buzzing and rattling of the strings against the frets in the lower positions. I check the work as I go with the straightedge and feeler gauge.

In a situation when things are just too wonky, I use the level as a sanding beam to assure a flat fingerboard from end-to-end before adding the relief.

The last step is to sand using all four grits on the four-sided sanding bock to even out any subtle irregularities left by the scraper and to prepare the fingerboard for finishing.

As a final step, I use the square to make sure the fingerboard is flat across its width. It almost always is, but I will always remember the one time I didn’t check before putting in the frets!

All this work is done before I apply the last coat of finish to the dulcimer, or if I’m feeling brave, before the last coat is rubbed out. This way, if I accidentally create a little scratch somewhere, I have not yet past the point of no return for making it go away.

Here’s the fingerboard after a light wipe down with oil. Next come the frets!

As I mentioned in another post, since starting this blog in 2007, some of the titles of my posts can be a bit repetitive, but my methods of work are always changing, so there is usually something new in the content, or at least I hope there is!

Thanks for stopping by and visiting. I tend to post photos of work in progress on Instagram more frequently than I do here.

I’m Still Here!

February 16, 2025February 16, 2025 ~ Doug ~ 6 Comments

It has been almost a year since I have written a blog post.

There are several reasons for this, one being it has been very easy to post photos of work in progress on Instagram, and the ease of doing so, as well as reaching a larger audience than this blog tends to reach, superseded writing blog posts.

Also, after 13 years of blogging, some of my posts began to seem repetitive, but I recently thought of how my methods of work continually evolve and change, so though the titles of some future posts may seem like reruns, the information shared in them will be new, fresh, and hopefully of use to others.

I have also long desired posting more about music, in part by sharing videos and recordings of myself. What had prevented this from happening was the learning curve for making decent videos, but doing so has recently become easier for me.

Perhaps the most important reason I have decided to revive my blog is that times have changed, the United States has changed, and the world is changing. Meta, the corporate entity that owns Instagram, Facebook, and Threads, as well as Alphabet Inc, which owns YouTube and Google among other holdings, have chosen to support and pander to our current Fascist government, a government that claims to defend free speech while also banning the sharing of information and erasing history that goes against its authoritarian, racist, nationalist, and homophobic agenda.

In light of this, I am wanting to avoid dependency on these corporations, but it will take time to find alternatives, and that begins with reinvigorating this website and blog.

In other news, I stopped taking custom orders a while ago but kept letting some slip through the net, but at this point, I am no longer taking any custom or advance orders. I can always add an extra fret or two to an existing dulcimer if someone desires, but I will be building the dulcimers I am inspired to build and will be offering dulcimers for sale as they are completed, or to whomever says “I want it!” first when I post photos of work in progress.

The three dulcimers in the photo are the latest I’m working on. One is already sold and another has a potential owner waiting to hear it after completion to see if it suits them.

On the drawing board are some radically different dulcimer designs that I have been wanting to get around to making for many years. Some of the features of these dulcimers will reference design elements of European instruments like the Citera, Epinette des Vosges, Langeleik, etc.

Thanks for following my blog, and I hope you enjoy the posts that are to come.

,