The times., 1898-06-26
Making Musical Instruments.

From the Kansas City starr
Guitars and mandoIins made here in
Kansas city by a musical firm are sold
all over the United States. The wood is
bought in New York and New Orleans,
where it has been imported and is ship
ped here and here it is turned into mu-
sicaI instruments. The processes OF man
ufacture are interesting.
Bales and piles of fine wood are heaped
about the floor of the manufacturing
building. This wood comes from the saw
mills especially cut TO suit the purposes
of the manufacturer. The birch comes in
bales one euth of an inch thick. 1t is
mostly imported from South America Eb
ony. mahogany and poplar are cut up into
smaller strips.
The first step in the manufacture Of a
guitar is the shaping of the sides
These may be made from birch, poplar.
mahogany oak. bird 's-eye maple or rose
wood. determined chiefly by the grade of
ins .rument desired. Birch is the poorest
and rosewood the best of woods. Two
pieces Of wood. each about two feet long
and one-tenth of an inch thick, are cut
and trimmed and then bent in irons heat
ed by gas When they have acquired the
proper shape hey are joined together.
end to end with blocks and glue They
are then hung up to dry, and are not TAX
en- down for six months.
The next process is the making of the
backs and sounding boards. These are of
thin strips of spruce. There are two quail
tiles of spruce the American and the i'm
ported Norwegian; the latter is much
the better because of its whiteneSS. the
fineness of the grain and its qualities Of
tone The tops and backs are shaped and
F,yl
away in the drying-room, where they
stay three months in a temperature of
140 degrees. BY that time they are pretty
we'll seasoned. When the tops and backs
are ready and the sides have acquired
their permanent shape, they are glued
together into what is called he box
Not nail is used in the whole instru-
ment. The rough edges are then taken
off by machinery. and the sides of the
instrument smOothed with a great re-
volving cylinder covered with sand-pa-
per.
A different workman next takes the in
strument and inserts the neck Necks
are nearly all made of mahogany though
butternut is used for the cheaper inStru-
ments. The necks are shaped wedge-like
at the bottom and glued and jOinted so
they cannot come out. The tingerboards
of ebony wood, dark. heavy wood that
ests of Brazil. are then glued on. After
this the instrument must be shaped and
trimmed again. Then. if it be of the bet
ter grade, the back is inlaid with oak
and stained white holly woods
1t is next sent up stairs where the fin
ishers are at work There it is stained
and polished the keys are set in the necl,
and the steel threads inserted. The lat
ter is the most difficult process of all.
since the slightest mistake in measuring
off the spaces between threads will spoil
the instrument.
The guitar is now gone over very care
fully It is stained again. rubbed and
polished. Fancy inlaid work is added 10
the sides and top. Finally it is wired
and tested and then turned out a finish
ed product.
The making of the mandolin is much
like that of the guitar. The principal diff
ference lies in the construction of the
shell. The shells are msGe on heavy iron
frames. Rosewood or cheaper woods in
little strips are bent lenSthwise along the
frames one by one and glued and fasten-
ed to one another with iron clamps. II
takes from eight to forty-two pieces to
make a shell and the work is very tedi-
GUS After the shell IS SNAPPED on the
| frame it is laid away for three months
| before it is removed. The mandolin is
| then built up after the plan of the gui-
| tar