Enter Sandman

Spent this afternoon sanding the body - had no idea how well it'd go, but in the end I had a pretty successful day. The Bosch sander is really good, and with careful use of the vacuum cleaner there wasn't too much dust flying around. The results also came out as well as I could've expected; it'll need to be sanded down by hand after I'm done but the exposed wood so far is fairly smooth, not too much in the way of unintended contours left by the sanding.

I've managed to do the whole of the back (started there in case I made a mess of it!) and about half of the front. Here are some during/after pics, starting with before - with appropriate kit:

During 1 - the back part done, and a pause for lunch:

During 2 - the back completely done, including the rib-cut:

After 1 - the front half-done:

After 2 - close-up of the rib cut (another clear view of the plywood) and of some of the grain in the back.

Need to get a new dust filter for the sander, and then I should be able to get the rest of the front and all the edges done in one more session. Not sure I'll be able to do the insides of the horns with the Bosch, but if I have to do a little by hand then so be it. But I'm very happy with how it's gone so far!