Veneering
The function of the tools I use and how they work are explained here. Specific tools used are noted in bold.
The main arch and based are veneered in East Indian Rosewood. Veneer is thin slices of wood. The process of making veneer is fascinating; watch this video for an overview.
Because of the delicate nature of the veneer, and that the bending ply faces of the main arch have a coarse grain, the arch face veneer is first glued to a thin piece of MDF. The MDF is then glued to the arch. This MDF provides a smooth and solid substrate for the veneer, and bonds over any gaps in the ply grain.
To give extra strength on the edges, three pieces of veneer are layered forming a sandwich, with the inner pieces’ grain running perpendicular to the face pieces’ grain. These sandwiches are cut into segments, and the segments are glued with clamps to the edges of the arch. The base is veneered in a similar fashion.
A very fined tooth handsaw in used to cut the veneer. The pieces are is cut oversize. After applying the veneer, the excess is trimmed off with a flush cut bit in the trim router.
