Preparing for the last (ever) launch of a Space Shuttle:
Dawn breaks at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center with the shuttle Atlantis at Launch Pad 39A.
The space agency is nearing the sunset of its 30-year space shuttle program.
Photo: NASA — Caption: Associated Press
Makes you feel kinda small don’t it 
To scale, the size of the Earth compared to the Sun.
Size of the Sun compared to a few other stars that only appear as twinkling pinpricks of light in the black night sky.
For astronomy buffs —
Dying Star’s Last Breath Frozen in Hubble
The Hubble Space Telescope captured this striking image of the curious planetary nebula NGC 6210,
which is located about 6,500 light-years away in the constellation of Hercules. Photo Credit: ESA/Hubble and NASA
For more cool pictures of nebulas (that would be nebulae, for you English majors), click on —
This is the view from my balcony in Thailand… My own little slice of paradise while I sit and scalp the day away…
:42::50:
Well, now you’ve done it… I’ve gone from Dr Jekyll to Mr Jealousy
Beautiful TD !!
Thanks! I just wish I could make a living by building and selling things like that! Maybe someday 
WOW! Did you build that?! I am honestly very impressed! Well done!
yep, I built it. I didn’t like the finish that I put on it at first. So I stripped it down to bare wood and put new varnish on it. It looks much better now. I should have taken a ‘before’ picture. Now I’d like to sell it for enough $ to buy the wood to make another. I just like building things. A guy I know analyzed the sound frequencies of 5 real Stradivari’s and compared mine to it and the peak frequencies are a close match. I’m no Strad not by a long shot but it does sound pretty good!
Why did you opt for varnish instead of a traditional french polish?
Just curious.
Hi MT
Some violin makers have used shellac / french polish but most including the old Cremona masters used a linseed oil based varnish so that’s what I used. I also used artists oil paints thinned down quite a bit to get a transparent glaze for the shading. (not as transparent as I would have liked). Also for the shading I applied the glaze with my fingers patting it on. You can get a smooth airbrush like transition from darker areas to the lighter areas like that. And then a final few coats of uncolored varnish. Finished off with a rub of pumice and then tripoli.
On my next one I would like to use homemade varnish. One recipe I have calls for the use of nitric acid so I need to get some of that. Recently I cooked down some venice turpentine and the resin has chatoyance and brings out the grain in the wood and has a nice red brown color but needs oil mixed in to turn it into varnish.
If you know much about wood finishing maybe we can share some ideas. I’m trying to think up a good ground layer / sealer that would really make the curly maple grain pop out without soaking much into the wood which would deaden the sound.
violin building is sort of like forex trading. Everyone is searching for the holy grail. In this case it’s the fabled Cremona finish and sound. I haven’t seen a Strad in person but they are described as reflective sparkly wood with a golden undertone and a very transparent dichroic varnish.
Sorry to butt into the violin conversation…
Here’s a link to NASA tv, currently broadcasting round-the-clock live feeds from Mission Control in Houston, and from Shuttle Atlantis.
Atlantis is scheduled to land at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 5:56am EDT (09:56 GMT) tomorrow (Thursday, July 21) on its 200th orbit. You can watch the landing here:
I wish I had made a trip down to watch a launch but I never did. Here’s a picture from an airline passenger. This pic isn’t of the last launch but I like the view!
Been doing finishes of one kind or the other for the last 25+ years, so if you ever have a question, feel free:D
Built a few stringed instruments myself, they however are of the electric variety. They finish out with lacquer, and automotive paints mostly.
But I do play with oils, shellacs, varnishes, and pretty much all other varieties of finishes for furniture repair and such. Refinished or repaired about everything on the planet but an airplane:D
One quick note. To get that nice little fade in around the edge, try a product called “Transtint”. It’s water soluble, but also mixes with about every vehicle under the sun. I’ve used it in water, shellac, varnish, lacquer, and epoxy. You could do a light wash, then layer another layer of varnish, then another layer of color, and so on. It would darken the color without actually blocking the view of the wood.
Here’s a link to the product.
Also, remember a little of this stuff goes a LONG LONG way. Best used in moderation:D
Transtint Dyes and Stains: $14.35 Each
Another thought would be to use shellac to darken around the outside, then layer your varnish over it.
Shellac comes in a ton of color grades, just add alcohol.
These guys have “ye olde world” supplies. Everything from hide glue to genuine earth pigments. Here’s the shellac color varietals:
Sinopia Pigments and Materials - Shellac in Flakes
As for having a nice glow underneath, I guess it would depend on what the final finish would be. I’ve seen some absolutely gorgeous finishes that started with wax rubbed into the grain, then shellacked.
After the shellac, you can swap out to whatever final finish you choose. Shellac is a great isolator.
Hit me up anytime bro!
Gorgeous job!
Sad to see the end of it actually.
Kinda a pride thing to watch those antiquated overpriced experiments taking off.
Hopefully all goes well with the landing tomorrow.
We have generally cloudless nights here, and when there’s a space shuttle up, NASA has a place to tell you when it’s in your zone. Usually when the landing is in Cape Canaveral, the orbital path towards the landing time puts it in the visibility range for us as long as the timing is right.
Seen a shuttle several time, and the space station too.
It’s pretty cool to see:)
When one door closes, another one opens as they say… NASA - How We’ll Get Back to the Moon
Won’t be long before there’ll be another antiquated overpriced experiments taking off to watch again…lol.
Thanks for the links MT I did use amber shellac as a ground layer / sealer on this one under the varnish.
As for the next step to the moon… I wish I had been born 200 or 300 years from now. People will probably be going to the moon or mars for vacations by then.
Clint… sorry just can’t help it. One more fiddle picture. This is the ‘Lady Blunt’ named for a former owner, made by old Tony S. Way back about 300 years ago.
recently sold at auction, final hammer price…
Fifteen MILLION Dollars!
Dang it, I got outbid! LOL
