The gittern is now almost finished, and only the tied gut frets remain to be fitted. I strung it up at my intended pitch (d', g', d'' & g'') but this was just too much of a stretch for the top pair of strings (0.33 mm carbons) and so... 'twang' followed by a small amount of blood! I have now lowered the pitch by a third to b, e', b', e'' and await the arrival of some replacement top strings (0.37mm).
The tone is clear and bright, with good sustain, and a bit louder than I had expected. The volume increased noticably as I 'fitted' the bridge (reducing its mass by more than half). I made the bridge from Macassar ebony as I like the colour (it looks good with the rosewood, and doesn't really need any oil finish) but I wonder if sycamore, being less dense, would have made it even louder. If I'm feeling adventurous I might try and post up a short MP3 (when the new strings are here and the frets have been put in place.
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