The first step in building the new board is somewhat like building a house. You need to start with the foundation. The foundation of the soundboard are the ribs. Ribs are selected from my stock and are placed on top of the old board to insure that each rough rib is of sufficient length. After noting proper grain orientation, the ribs are cut to the proper length, adding about and inch which will be removed later. The sides of the ribs are then planed to the proper width dimension, and the sides are sealed with schellac. After the schellac has dried, the ribs are fit into the piano. At this time they are cut to the proper length and angle to fit snugly in the notch that is cut into the rim shelf of the piano. Next a crown is cut into the rib to match the desired crown on the finished board. Following the crowning of the ribs, they are planed to the proper thickness. The final step is to cut and sand the reliefs on the ends of the ribs. More finish work will be done on the ribs after they are glued to the new soundboard....but that's a couple work weeks away.
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