Stripped old finish
One thing  I know I need to do and I am stripping some others as well.

Fingerboard repaired, frets sealed and leveled ready for stain

A reddish brown fade will go better than maple with the mahogany resonator

All stained, and taking on clear finish

Polishing hardware.
Its not going to clean up alot, and the flange is galvanized.

I opted for calfskin, the other plastic head was not designed for use on this instrument, and fit poorly.
This looks, feels, and sounds correct.
 
 

Ready to attach resonator

Well.........one set of tuners has a bad gear on it, slips as soon as it tightens.
This stops progress until another set is located

I will finish it when tuners are found.