Today's task is to mount levers on this harp. Being a tedious task, I am taking a break after having worked on it last night and started on it again at 7:30 am. The process went like this:
We finish dinner and Rick motions for us to head down to the shop
Rick places harp on its side on the table and shows me how to lay out levers on tool stand (notice the levers in the top right)
Then Rick demonstrates how to check the placement of the levers with the tuner (notice the tuner in the middle of the tool bench), mark the placement of the levers with the awl, drill holes with the power drill, reset the levers, check the placement again, and sets me to work.
Its slow going and takes me a couple hours to complete the first octave.
In the meantime, Rick is working with a friend of his, making a Gothic style harp Rick developed--the first they've ever done.
I go upstairs for a drink, as I'm getting more and more tired, and Rick suggests we stop and continue at 6 am. ( I'm thinking: Dude, you're crazy. But then again, --you--are-- the Master Harp Builder, I want to learn your curious harp constructing ways, so 6 it is).
At 7 am, Bridget, Rick's 7 year old daughter comes into my room, crawls into the other side of the bed, and tells me its time to get up. Usually Bridgy or their 18 year old daughter will arouse me from my dreams. With early morning seminary a daily habit in this family, the first are up by 5:30 am at this house (early morning seminary meant 7:00 am in my hometown!)
Getting out of bed and putting on my work clothes, I go down to the workshop and Rick supervises while I put on some more levers. He gave me some good tips for making the process more accurate and streamlined, and then left for work. At 9, I had finished my second octave and went upstairs for a breakfast break (And in true procrastinating fashion, I decided to make our St. Patricks Day dessert (Kiwi-Lime Frappe) and make a blog entry before going back down...
And now I have no excuse. Back to mounting levers.
I may have to resort to some positive, affirmative mantra to get me through the upper octaves
Mounting levers makes me happy, mounting levers makes me happy....
3 comments:
Hope you are wearing green today of all days to be working in Sligo harp shop...... otherwise consider yourself "cyber pinched" leprechaun style. (Yes I DID have to look that one up.....)
Happy St. Patrick Day......
Lots of love your way.
Hey Jazzy it looks like you are doing fine work on those levers!
Happy St. Patrick's day!
Uncle Doug
HAHAHA at least you look really cute mounting those levers! You are doing cool stuff, even if it is extremely tedious. Way to mount those levers. Did you ever get a whole harp's levers mounted? Getting 6 or 7 of them will be a great feat indeed. Last night we were at Dennis and Jo's and I was admiring Dennis's woodwork (some serving spoons, boxes, vases, etc) and thought of you out there in Rick's wood shop. I think I would like to spend some time in a shop in the future.
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