Hello from the frigid north!

[zac_in_ak]

Hi All

I live in Anchorage Alaska USA its not that cold yet only 40-50s. I am a wanna be luthier and have almost no experience in woodworking but have been learning along the way. I have lots of fun trying to build ukuleles..so far one down and on number 2 both from kits. I hope to learn enough to try my hand at scratch building soon! I love hand tools and simpler and safer alternatives to modern machinery( small kids and building on a kitchen counter in my apt).

[les88]

Hi zac_in_ak
We have a TV show down here "The Ice Road" with that amount of cold you have it is properly your main street
Show us some pics of your results
Where I live it only goes to -8 or -10 but still too cold for me to work in the workshop
les

[zac_in_ak]

Thank fully I live further south but my friend works up there and he says when it gets really cold (-100) they just try to keep equipment from freezing solid it normaly only gets down to -20 or so most of the time its warmer but sometimes it can get colder. Once it was past -50 and people had to get heaters and put them under there cars to thaw the oil!

[Shutterbug]

Hi zac_in_ak,

I visited Anchorage back in 1974. I got talking to a weathered old lady in the street dressed head to foot in Buckskins. She lived up in the hills somewhere and came in to town once a month to get provisions. I bet it's not like that anymore.

I went to a cafe to have something to eat, and after looking at the menu the waitress came over. I said to her, "What's Halibut?" She looked at me like I was a Martian.

Mike

[zac_in_ak]

Hi zac_in_ak,

I visited Anchorage back in 1974. I got talking to a weathered old lady in the street dressed head to foot in Buckskins. She lived up in the hills somewhere and came in to town once a month to get provisions. I bet it's not like that anymore.

I went to a cafe to have something to eat, and after looking at the menu the waitress came over. I said to her, "What's Halibut?" She looked at me like I was a Martian.

Mike

Occasionally you do see people like that but its more like the big family loading flats and flats of stuff from costco for shipment to their village.

[Ed Reiss]

Hi Zac....

Welcome to the forum! Not into making musical instruments, woodturning is my thing. Lived in Berea, Ky for ten years and met up with a few craftsmen that made dulcimers, Warren May being one of them...more often than not you could find Warren and his wife, Frankie plucking out a tune when stopping in to visit them in their shop. Good musicians those two!

My son spent some time stationed at Elmendorf, he said he loved being there what with the wilderness just 10 minutes out of town.

I think you should get some good info from the guys and gals on the group...a bunch of great folks. Best of luck with your luthier work.

Cheers, Ed

[joe greiner]

Welcome aboard, zac_in_ak. I reckon you already know that the Musical Instruments forum has tonnes of info about building your own, and this is the best woodworking site in the world. Don't hesitate to post pictures and descriptions of your work. Our Gang is good for praise and some joshing too.

I lived in Anchorage for most of 1985, and loved every minute of it. My principal duty was project engineering for the Eklutna Water Project. Just about every weekend, I hiked in the mountains East of town. Altogether, I took 52 rolls of film (real film, not digital of course), with several stereo pairs.

Is the dentist, Dr. Paine, still on Minnesota Drive (I think)? Probably not, I guess. Really, mates; I have a digital re-photo around here someplace, but can't find it now, of course.

Alaska is truly a different planet. Winter days, went to work pre-dawn and returned to apartment post-dusk. Summertime, the fourth-of-July fireworks were held around 2am 5 July to achieve dark-enough sky, and still not very dark. I have a picture of High Noon over Leningrad (now St Petersburg) taken looking North from Anchorage around midnight 21 June - could almost read a newspaper by natural light. 'Twas actually 2am IIRC, because the whole state was on Juneau time.

Cheers,
Joe