Done!

[maarten]

Thanks for all the help, can't wait to test it. I'm waiting for my MC cartridge to arrive..

Still can choose between 1:20 without load resistors, 1:10 or 1:20 with load resistors, different earth connections.. curious about which combination will work best sonically!

For wood finish I'm actually French polishing, got amber Shellac and making my own French polish.

[Doc B.]

French polish is a ton of work but the result can be stunning. A trick I learned was to apply 5 minute clear epoxy to the wood as a grain filler, using a razor blade to squeegee it on. Sand that lightly and you have a nice smooth, clear finish to start applying the French polish to. This video looks to be an example of that.

https://youtu.be/n76ioyfU0Xg?si=N8l1NlvykI3vtrjA

[maarten]

Thanks, I hadn't seen these video series before even though I've checked quite a number of resources.

This is great apt stuff, watched all 4 videos and the techniques will translate well to the base.

I think I will want to stain it a bit to get a more amber color, and I'm not sure yet what product to use there that is not too oily.

Secondly, I was also wondering if I could somehow sand the top steel base (not using a drill and brush, but manually) to get it to shine a bit more or whether that's impossible at this stage.

[Doc B.]

You can use aniline dye powder in the shellac to tone it.

The top panel is aluminum, not steel. It is possible to polish it. Standard procedure is to take it down with progressively finer grades of sandpaper and then polishing with progressively finer polishing compounds.

[hmbscott]

French polish is a ton of work but the result can be stunning. A trick I learned was to apply 5 minute clear epoxy to the wood as a grain filler, using a razor blade to squeegee it on. Sand that lightly and you have a nice smooth, clear finish to start applying the French polish to. This video looks to be an example of that.

https://youtu.be/n76ioyfU0Xg?si=N8l1NlvykI3vtrjA

That's an awesome series, thanks for posting.