Actually, you can. And I did along the way . . .
As you can see by the photo on the left depicting four
different (original included) fretboards, this was somewhat of a hit or
miss prospect. I started out to make a walnut fretboard thinking that
would be kind of neat to have the wood match the new trim. But I had
two failed attempts at reproducing the original. One was the direct
result of trying to use a belt sander for a job that was "just too
small". That's sort of like using a sledge to drive a finish nail.
Then I made another walnut board, but afterall decided that either
rosewood or ebony would be more appropriate.
I have a small stockpile of Bolivian Rosewood (Pau Ferro, aka
Machaerium spp.) and read that it is supposed to make a very nice
fretboard, and as it turned out, it really did. After all the work
involved in cutting the billet, cutting the slots, sanding the radius
using a 12" radius sanding block, and finally installing the frets, it
was quite a lengthy project. I took the additional time to bind the
entire board with "ivroid" for a really finished look. I think it came
out rather well.
The next task, now that the body was ready, was to install the
fretboard, which after much trepidation, turned out to be pretty
simple. I, of course, used hide glue on the board. Before gluing it, I
inserted two very sharp pins that would dig into the neck from the
underside of the board so that the glue would not make the fretboard
"drift". The clamps were left on for 24 hours, and then it was left to
really dry for a few more days before scraping down the excess glue and
making sure that everything was even and smooth for final sanding
before applying the finish.
Fret leveling, crowning and polishing came next. Two passes
were necessary to get it just right as shown in the photos. I reapplied
clear sealer as some of it was stripped off from all the tape used in
the fretting process.
Finally, all of the tape was removed and the final 4 coats of
lacquer were applied to the neck and head of the instrument. Then the
balalaika had to sit for a week to cure before final buffing out of the
finish could be done. This is when patience is called for, because the
project is so close you just want to string it up and play it.
After approximately 10 days I did the final fitting of the
upper nut and the bridge, temporarily installed the tuners and strung
it up for the first time in over a year. The difference in the sound is
difficult to describe, but it is wonderful. After stringing it up I
took it upstairs to the empty living room where I'm putting the final
finish on the new hardwood floor in the living room, so it has a nice
'echo'. The sustain compared to the original is markedly better, given
that I don't recall there being all that much before. Perhaps the fact
that the braces had both come loose and the soundboard was split into
pieces was a contributing factor! I took all of the parts off and
commenced to do the final buffing and polishing.
After buffing, I reinstalled everything and strung it up
again. I even put the metal plate on the back of the headstock. But
there was one more thing that was bothering me. The tuners just sit
inside a cavity hollowed out of the back of the headstock and are not
'fixed' in place. They kept shifting down and applying a great deal of
pressure on the back plate. I had to figure out a way to fix them in
place but not permanently. The wood is too thin to use screws or metal
fasteners, so I cut a couple of small blocks of spruce that would fit
very tightly in between the tuners and force fit them in place with
some CA glue, clamped them down and they hold the tuner nicely in
place. After reinstalling the back plate, which now fit flush on the
back instead of being 'pressed', I could truly say it's done. But those
old tuners really had to go, see The
Search for new balalaika tuners below.
The only thing remaining was to do was to fix the old
vinly/fabric carrying case that came with the balalaika when I got it.
The zipper had broken many years ago and I took it to a local place
called the "Zipper Hospital" but they said it couldn't be fixed or
replaced. I bought a heavy duty zipper and was determined to do it
myself. I sat down with my 100-year old Singer sewing machine, and
although I'm no seamstress, I managed to install a zipper
satisfactorily in about 20 minutes. I then proceed to make a 'bag' to
cover the balalaika to protect it when it's on the stand or going into
the fabric case. I don't want to run the risk of scratching it.
Later on I also learned that it was possible to purchase a
much more substantial case, called the Balabag II,
from an "import" company called Imperskay Music
in New Jersey. Needless to say, I did! Although I hang on to the old
vinyl one, the new case is padded, has many pockets, straps, etc. It's
a major improvement.
The "Perestroika" project was ready to be unveiled. Ironically
enough the first person to see the completed balalaika outside of my
family was my friend who gave it to me in the first place. She
proceeded to tell my children the story of trying to carry back all of
this stuff from Moscow those many years ago. I hope that the resoration
is a fitting tribute to our friendship and a way of saying "spasibo" to
her. Be sure to click the pictures below for a better view.
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