French Bass full restoration

[Arnold Schnitzer]

Originally Posted by wayne holmes

I would be interested in hearing how others protect the top from being damaged while doing the graduation or while removing a bar- As I think I mentioned before-I tape the entire finish side of the top with a layer of painters tape and then on top of that a layer of duct tape-then clamp the top at each end in a mould made with plaster for the particular top that I am working on.
It is easy to cause a crack when the wood is only a few MMs thick and some of it is old, dry and even a little brittle.

I simply suspend the top upside-down in a perimeter frame. No tape, no "protection" whatsoever. I've yet to crack a top working this way. Sharp tools require no bearing down onto the surface. Of course, if you are working on an old bass with existing cracks, they need to first be adequately glued up, otherwise you could re-open them.