On Tuesday I sanded the back of the resonator flat on the 12″ disc sander and then used the table router to put a 1/4″ radius on the corners.

On Thursday I drilled a 3/4 hole for the dowel stick using the Shopsmith.

I carved the hole out to a square shape using a 1/2″ chisel and a mallet, but I didn’t get any pictures of that.  On Friday I sanded the outside with the random orbit sander and the inside with the oscillating spindle sander.

I also used the Shopsmith to drill the endbolt hole which can be seen in this picture.  I use extra long 10-24 hanger bolts with a standard endbolt knob, or whatever that round part is properly called.  It’s a lot easier than making a square blind hole into the inside of the tailblock and using a normal length hanger bolt, and the end result is equally good, as far as I can tell.  This morning I hand sanded the rim, neck and armrest to 400 grit and right after lunch I put on the first coat of Tru Oil.

I’ll be getting it all put together on Tuesday or Wednesday if all goes according to plan, and I’ll post some pictures and a quick video of the completed banjo as soon as it’s all ready.