Search found 673 matches
- Wed Jan 17, 2024 10:14 pm
- Forum: Tools and Jigs
- Topic: Cordless setup?
- Replies: 4
- Views: 996
Re: Cordless setup?
I'm not the right one to ask, since I rarely use any power tools at all for building instruments (short of occasionally a band saw and drill press). But I live on a farm, and portable battery tools are not an option out here. Too many tasks in the fields and not close to AC power! The newer generati...
- Wed Jan 17, 2024 2:24 pm
- Forum: Other Stringed Instruments
- Topic: fret spacing on a French instrument
- Replies: 2
- Views: 450
Re: fret spacing on a French instrument
The fret spacing is identical to most hummels, dulcimers, etc. You can use any available online fret spacing calculator, but just omit the 1st, 3rd, 6th, 8th and 11th notes in each octave. In other words, exactly the same spacing as any guitar, with a few frets missing. It looks like that particular...
- Fri Jan 05, 2024 11:25 pm
- Forum: Wind, Percussion, and Miscellaneous and Experimental Instruments
- Topic: Huge Gourd - need suggestions!
- Replies: 4
- Views: 12700
Re: Huge Gourd - need suggestions!
Guitars generally have necks that attach at just one end of the box. In through-neck instruments, the neck goes all the way through the box and attaches to both sides, kind of like your dulcimer neck on the uke body. A kora is a stringed instrument from Mali. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kora_(inst...
- Fri Jan 05, 2024 3:25 pm
- Forum: Wind, Percussion, and Miscellaneous and Experimental Instruments
- Topic: Huge Gourd - need suggestions!
- Replies: 4
- Views: 12700
Re: Huge Gourd - need suggestions!
With a through-neck, you can easily make a gourd banjo, mandolin, kora, or any number of other instruments, with the bottom of the gourd replacing the sound box. If you hadn't cut it in half, you could have made a shakere, which is kind of a big rattle with a loose woven mesh with beads at the junct...
- Fri Jan 05, 2024 3:21 pm
- Forum: Flat-Top Acoustic Guitars and Bass Guitars
- Topic: Guild 12 strings
- Replies: 8
- Views: 15972
Re: Guild 12 strings
I can't help much about the construction details, but I have owned a Guild 12-string for probably 40+ years, and it has held up great. Still like new! Back in the day they were really well regarded.
- Thu Jan 04, 2024 2:53 pm
- Forum: Wood and Materials Q&A
- Topic: Mini tuners
- Replies: 5
- Views: 11405
Re: Mini tuners
I think I got the tuners for my octave mando many years back at Stew-Mac. They still sell all kinds of mando tuners, just not sure about the minis. Why do you want minis for an octave sized instrument?
- Thu Jan 04, 2024 2:47 pm
- Forum: Wind, Percussion, and Miscellaneous and Experimental Instruments
- Topic: Kalimba with uke resonator
- Replies: 17
- Views: 24518
Re: Kalimba with uke resonator
You can either make a YouTube/Vimeo/whatever video and post a link to it, or you can upload audio-only MP3s up to 200K. You can make MP3s with most simple recording programs. This is part of our FAQ on media uploading: https://www.mimf.com//phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=1656&sid=2c6d94f3375acd1eb4cd8418...
- Fri Dec 29, 2023 3:26 pm
- Forum: Other Stringed Instruments
- Topic: Appalachian Dulcimer with Drum Resonator
- Replies: 5
- Views: 5458
Re: Appalachian Dulcimer with Drum Resonator
We actually have a few discussions here about replacing a head, on both drums and banjos. Having done it, it is actually pretty easy. Soak the head in water for a couple hours to fully hydrate it, stretch and tack it onto the rim, and allow to dry. The skin will shrink considerably during drying and...
- Wed Dec 27, 2023 10:58 pm
- Forum: Wind, Percussion, and Miscellaneous and Experimental Instruments
- Topic: Kalimba with uke resonator
- Replies: 17
- Views: 24518
Re: Kalimba with uke resonator
Any string will resonate, if the same note is played anywhere near it. Composition makes no difference, except perhaps in loudness.
- Wed Dec 27, 2023 2:56 pm
- Forum: Wind, Percussion, and Miscellaneous and Experimental Instruments
- Topic: Kalimba with uke resonator
- Replies: 17
- Views: 24518
Re: Kalimba with uke resonator
Ukalimba with sympathetic resonators, the plucked version of a hurdy gurdy!
- Wed Dec 27, 2023 2:54 pm
- Forum: Other Stringed Instruments
- Topic: Appalachian Dulcimer with Drum Resonator
- Replies: 5
- Views: 5458
Re: Appalachian Dulcimer with Drum Resonator
Dulcidrum? Dulcirhan? There is a similar commercial instrument called the Banjomer, just with a smaller head:
https://www.juneappledulcimers.com/prod ... n-dulcimer
I play dulcimer myself, and am eager to hear how this turns out!
https://www.juneappledulcimers.com/prod ... n-dulcimer
I play dulcimer myself, and am eager to hear how this turns out!
- Tue Dec 26, 2023 3:06 pm
- Forum: Wind, Percussion, and Miscellaneous and Experimental Instruments
- Topic: Kalimba with uke resonator
- Replies: 17
- Views: 24518
Re: Kalimba with uke resonator
Welcome to the Forum, Teresa! Ukalimba has a nice ring to it. Looks great! If you look through our archives, we have all sorts of odd hybrid instruments here.
- Sat Dec 23, 2023 2:24 pm
- Forum: Other Stringed Instruments
- Topic: Renaissance mandore
- Replies: 3
- Views: 20973
Re: Renaissance mandore
Jo, the image you attached says it does not exist. Can you upload a new image directly?
- Fri Dec 15, 2023 1:58 pm
- Forum: Wood and Materials Q&A
- Topic: Tuning Machine Opinions
- Replies: 7
- Views: 23573
Re: Tuning Machine Opinions
The Wittner tuners from Germany are basically the same as PegHeds, but I believe they are 8:1 ratio. They also work great.
- Thu Nov 09, 2023 2:08 pm
- Forum: String Instrument Repair: Practical and Political Issues
- Topic: Uh-oh. Quick fix?
- Replies: 2
- Views: 8144
Re: Uh-oh. Quick fix?
The fret can be glued, at least temporarily. Stew-Mac sells a special tool to recrimp the tangs on a fret to make it hold better. That obviously won't do you any good in the short term, but you might be able to hold the tang in a vise sideways and dimple the tang with a punch and hammer to achieve a...
- Fri Nov 03, 2023 1:38 pm
- Forum: Jam Session
- Topic: Amy Hopkins needs our help after open heart surgery!
- Replies: 76
- Views: 169155
Re: Amy Hopkins needs our help after open heart surgery!
Amy is doing great! Just saw her last month at a jam. She is still repairing instruments by day and playing by night, crazy as ever and completely recovered from the surgery.
- Mon Oct 23, 2023 1:31 pm
- Forum: The "Reclaimed Materials" Challenge (closed)
- Topic: The "Reclaimed Materials" Challenge (closed) re opening
- Replies: 1
- Views: 11785
Re: The "Reclaimed Materials" Challenge (closed) re opening
This "Reclaimed Materials Challenge" thread was about a contest we held a few years ago, which only went for a very specific length of time. This specific discussion was only closed because the limited time nature of the competition, not because of lack of interest. If the topic interests ...
- Fri Oct 13, 2023 1:53 pm
- Forum: Other Stringed Instruments
- Topic: Making a simple lyre
- Replies: 6
- Views: 7225
Re: Making a simple lyre
Actually, not sure now. The finer threads will hold better, so it will probably be a little harder to turn, and therefore it will stay in tune better, but a quarter turn on either should change the pitch the same amount. With geared tuners, you definitely get finer pitch resolution, but I don't thin...
- Thu Oct 12, 2023 1:34 pm
- Forum: Other Stringed Instruments
- Topic: Making a simple lyre
- Replies: 6
- Views: 7225
Re: Making a simple lyre
The coarse threads should hold just fine, but the finer threads will make the instrument a lot easier to tune.
- Tue Oct 03, 2023 3:05 pm
- Forum: Wind, Percussion, and Miscellaneous and Experimental Instruments
- Topic: Sansula
- Replies: 10
- Views: 24618
Re: Sansula
That link does not appear to work, Allyson.