Trimming
There are several ways to glue key coverings onto the keystick. Perhaps the easiest and most efficient method is to glue a sheet of the preferred wood
(in our case, ebony) in position on the keyboard blank before the keys are cut apart. Once the keys are cut apart, the key coverings have already been
installed and fit the width of the individual keys perfectly. The downside of this method should be obvious. Any waviness when the keys are cut apart
appear in the key covering. Sanding or
trimming out the imperfections reduces the space between the keys and the overall width of the keys which is unacceptable. While many builders use
this method, it has proven difficult for me and I avoid it.
A second method involves gluing individual, but over-sized, key coverings onto the keysticks. These are then trimmed to the proper width. This allows
the key covering to hide any waviness in the keystick, but is very messy, especially with ebony, where the black sanding dust will stain the sides of the
keystick. This staining is very difficult to remove, and can result in a less than professional aesthetic.
Still another method, which I use and will describe in the following pages, involves fitting each key covering to its keystick before
it's glued on. This allows for an exact fit of key cover to keystick while eliminating the staining that can occur with method #2. To be sure, this method is a bit
slower, but we're after quality, not speed!
First, an ebony head is placed on top of a key and both are turned sideways on a level surface so the amount of overhang can be seen, as shown in the
photograph on the right.