From the first time a saw a Sam Maloof music stand I knew I wanted to build one. The odd thing about my desire to recreate this piece is that I have no ties to music. As a craftsman I was immediately drawn to the adjustment mechanisms not only for their functional component but more so for the aesthetics. I have always had an appreciation for machinery and mechanical parts.

The material I used is Claro Walnut (figured), Gaboon Ebony, and Bubinga; the ebony sides are reinforced with copper wire. When designing this piece I took some liberties in changing the original design. Living in the southwest I rarely get to build 18th century style furniture so I designed the base using cabriole legs and arris feet. The legs are connected to the center post using tapered sliding dovetails.

The adjustment mechanisms are made out of Gaboon Ebony which machines relatively well. I used the Beall threading system, which creates a much cleaner threat then other I’ve used. The one challenge I faced was tapping the ebony. Since ebony is a very dense wood the tap would cause the wood to split. To prevent splitting the tap hole was drilled 1/32″ larger then the recommend size, the wood was lubricated with mineral spirits, and the tap was backed out after advancing it 1/4 turn into the wood. The end result was a very precise fit.

The entire piece was sanded up to 400 grit and finished with Maloof’s branded finish. Four coats of the Poly/Oil blend and two coats of the Wax/Oil blend. I really like this finish and wanted to use an oil finish to help highlight the figure in the walnut. The problem is that reactive finishes don’t typically work well with ebony. My understanding is that the oils naturally found in ebony prevent the chemical reaction that hardens the oil from taking place; leaving you with a gummy mess. After applying the Maloof finish to a few test pieces they dried and hardened quite well, so I was able to use his finish with success.

Overall I’m pretty happy with the way this piece turned out.

Launch Gallery