I tend to work on a few things at the same time. Sometimes, a project gets on the back burner and languishes for weeks/months...
Lately, I have been trying to catch up with them and finish some.
These two stick dulcimers came to life because one of my clients at work wants to build a guitar. I persuaded him to try something simpler first, which he agreed to, so as I'd never built a musical instrument before, I thought it better to have a practice run first, built a simple banjo first, and these two stick dulcimer followed, as being more complex that the banjo and having all the techniques needed before trying for a guitar.
I am very pleased with them, they produce surprisingly loud sounds for such small sound boxes. They are going to my daughters.
Thebamboo hiking stick was languishing in a corner of the workshop. I have given them hand sewn vegtan leather handles which have been saturated with hot bees wax.
The bamboo stick is a now varnished 4ft5", 1 1/4" diameter pole I found in a garden centre, with a rubber walking stick bung at one end, and, at present, a cork at the other. I quite like the cork, but it's a bit small, so I am thinking of carving a simple wooden bung for it out of a branch of some sort.
The other is a 4ft, 1" piece of Hard Maple left over from the necks of the dulcimers, rounded and with a plumbing copper cap, it will have a rubber stick bung as well, and the top is also a copper cap.
They are both getting a leather wrist strap.
The knife is a follow on from my 2 1/2 hours friction folder. It took a bit longer though! Forged blade, 4 1/2", 1 1/2" wide, overall it's 9" long, with a old piece of weathered Oak for a handle, darkended a bit with a blow torch. It has a 1/2 tang blade, the rivets I used are a couple of nails and cut square washers. As I have not used any glue, there are some slight gaps between the tang and the wood handle as well as a few cracks and I am going to dip the handle in hot beeswax to see if that will fill'em all up!
The sheath is also made and wet molded and will receive the beeswax treatment when dry.
Thanks for looking...
Lately, I have been trying to catch up with them and finish some.These two stick dulcimers came to life because one of my clients at work wants to build a guitar. I persuaded him to try something simpler first, which he agreed to, so as I'd never built a musical instrument before, I thought it better to have a practice run first, built a simple banjo first, and these two stick dulcimer followed, as being more complex that the banjo and having all the techniques needed before trying for a guitar.
I am very pleased with them, they produce surprisingly loud sounds for such small sound boxes. They are going to my daughters.
Thebamboo hiking stick was languishing in a corner of the workshop. I have given them hand sewn vegtan leather handles which have been saturated with hot bees wax.
The bamboo stick is a now varnished 4ft5", 1 1/4" diameter pole I found in a garden centre, with a rubber walking stick bung at one end, and, at present, a cork at the other. I quite like the cork, but it's a bit small, so I am thinking of carving a simple wooden bung for it out of a branch of some sort.
The other is a 4ft, 1" piece of Hard Maple left over from the necks of the dulcimers, rounded and with a plumbing copper cap, it will have a rubber stick bung as well, and the top is also a copper cap.
They are both getting a leather wrist strap.
The knife is a follow on from my 2 1/2 hours friction folder. It took a bit longer though! Forged blade, 4 1/2", 1 1/2" wide, overall it's 9" long, with a old piece of weathered Oak for a handle, darkended a bit with a blow torch. It has a 1/2 tang blade, the rivets I used are a couple of nails and cut square washers. As I have not used any glue, there are some slight gaps between the tang and the wood handle as well as a few cracks and I am going to dip the handle in hot beeswax to see if that will fill'em all up!
The sheath is also made and wet molded and will receive the beeswax treatment when dry.
Thanks for looking...
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