Oudstring13 - 1-1-2011 at 11:42 AM
Hi Fellahs,
While restringing my Oud I notice ridges in the soundboard. (Fretboard)
These ridges are obviously contributing to the buzzing in this area.
Am I squeezing to hard and how do I fix it, please???
Thanx
OS13
Dr. Oud - 1-2-2011 at 10:20 AM
1. The soundboard is where the bridge and sound holes are, also called the face, belly, ...
2. An oud has no frets, so we call the top surface of the neck the fingerboard. This is where the strings are depressed to make the notes. Wear under
the wound strings is normal, more so if the fingerboard is not hard enough to resist wear.
3. You can try to fill the grooves (ridges are above the surface) under the wound strings with hardened epoxy (glass filled, liquid steel or JB weld).
Another filler is slow setting cyanoacrilyte (crazy glue) mixed with some wood dust to match your fingerboard. Any other glue is too soft and will be
gouged out when you press the strings down.
4. If the fingerboard is thick enough, you can sand it down to remove the grooves, but use a flat sanding block as long as the fingerboard or you
might sand a cup into the fingerboard. This will cause strings to buzz or rattle.
5. If it is too thin to sand,replace the fingerboard.