tom1

Here are a few shots of the workshop. It is from here in Inverness that Thomas caries out the work of constructing his range of quality instruments. Situated in the city centre, it's a small affair allowing him to build around 100 instruments a year. The workshop has two rooms one for the wood working and a much smaller room for lacquer finishing.

Visiting the workshop can be done only through prior appointment. It is always a pleasure to have visitors in the workshop, although sometimes it can be difficult due to high levels of dust or lacquer fumes, making it pretty difficult to chat. So give us a call, we'll organise a time to suit, and we'd be delighted to meet you!

This is where it all starts. After formulating the initial design idea, technical drawings are produced using CAD. This modern advance has enormous benefits for any builder as it's clean, accurate and drawings can be reproduced time after time.

Following traditional methods timber for fronts are selected from split logs of spruce and cedar. Splitting with an axe will force the timber apart following the grain exactly along the entire length of the soundboard.

Back and ribs are quarter sawn then book matched into pairs ready to join the rest of the cutting list for assembly.

The soundboard is inlayed with an attractive herring bone design inlay, this binds the grain together, preventing any future splitting problems around the sound hole.

The fronts back & ribs, blocks and linings are then assembled in custom made forms. The edges are then bound with a line purfling and a hardwood edge.

The necks are individually hand carved before being dovetailed into the body. A box section adjustable truss rod is then fitted before gluing on the fingerboard.

Once the scraping, rubbing and sanding is complete a high gloss lacquer is applied and then hand finished.