fitting the bridge

I had bought an ebony bridge to replace the one that came with the kit. A good tight fit of the bridge against the contour of the mandolin top is critical for extracting maximum sound. I used a piece of sandpaper on the top and ran the bridge across it to develop the right contour. In order to help the bridge stay upright during the sanding, and not lean over, I created a simple "wagon" jig as you can see in the photos. The bottom part of the bridge screws into the jig and then you have a much wider base to run along the top. Again - this was home made. Better jigs are available through StewMac but I had to slow down the acquisition of specialized tools, at least temporarily. There is also some degree of satisfaction in making your own tools, so I was not exactly heartbroken either. By the way, the black block in the back of the jig is a piece of closed-cell foam that I stole from my kayak outfitting materials. It cuts easily, stiff enough, and glues very well. It would have been better to have a small wheel there, but this was ok.

The photos show the jig but also show the beginning of the sanding, where it's quite clear that only a small part of the bridge is coming in contact with the top. The sanding is done when you can see a full mark on the sandpaper, or when your own mark on the bridge is sanded off.