Thread: Harp neck-joint

Hi.

Hope i can describe this....

I've built a couple of irish-style harps, which means that the pillar continues the flow of the neck. But on one of them, (with more than a tonne of pressure pulling down on one side) the neck is tilting over a little, and the joint has separated from the pillar on the opposite side by about 1-2mm. It throws out the intonation on the sharping levers, but it also just ain't acceptable.

The first time, the joint was done using 5 dowels. Second time, i went for a simple mortise & tenon. Both failed.

Some solve this by putting a metal plate on the outside over the joint. This stops the joint separating, but it usually looks like a repair on an old boot.

I'm thinking of using two metal tubes for 'dowels' inside, on the side that gives way - then running a bolt at 90 degrees from the outside, through the dowels, and further into the timber. This should anchor the 'dowels'. The only thing visible will be the holes for the narrow bolts, which i can plug.

Any problems with this idea? Better ideas?

Brett