Peter Coombe Mandolins and Guitars

Peter Coombe Luthier – maker of fine hand made mandolins, mandolas, octave mandolins, tenor guitars, and steel string and classical guitars

Source: Peter Coombe Mandolins and Guitars

Hand made mandolins, mandolas and guitars, made in Bega NSW, Australia.

There are some really handy sequences of photos describing his processes for building mandolins (NOTE: his specialty is Archtop Oval (Celtic) Mandos!!!). He uses dovetail joints for the neck, and generally builds carved archtop instruments.

Note that he is a fan of Target Coatings EM2000, but he uses a brushed technique rather than spray. He does say that it has a shelf life of only about 12 months:

• “Like all oil varnishes it will go off if exposed to oxygen.”
• “It is not a pore filling finish.  You will need to pore fill woods with pores prior to using EM2000.  EM2000 gives best results on well prepared surfaces that are completely flat and smooth.” (He uses Aqua Coat Clear Filler)
• “It will not “pop” the grain well if applied direct to bare wood.  It needs to be applied on top of shellac or some other material that pops the grain.”

For his brush technique, he dilutes with ‘up to’ 20% water.