Forum Activity for @joe-robison

Susie,  I had the same problem 4 or 5 years ago when I wanted something small and portable that I could take to a park or reunion.  I found a cheap battery or plugin  at Guitar Center.  I think it is a practice amp .  It is called a MicroSpider Line 6.  It runs on 6 C batteries or a transformer you can plug in.  It handles a mic and an electric instrument at the same time and works well for my purposes.  Sound quality is not super as per its small size but at less than $100 I use it when I need more volume.

Most of my dulcimers have a 28 1/2 inch vsl but sometimes on smaller ones  I use 25.  When I do, I find that C tuning sounds better.

Looks to me like part of the problem is in the design of the pegbox.  If you are a novice woodworker, you might want to get a luthier to do this.  The sides of the box where the strings rub and bend need to be thinned down so the strings run straight and do not rub the sides. This can be done with wood files or a Dremel tool but should be done by someone who is experienced at such things.  The end of the fretboard past the nut also needs to be beveled so the strings don't touch.  This can also be done with files or Dremel tools.

I very carefully scored each side of the fret with the point of a small knife.  Then I scraped each fret very lightly with the blade and finally rubbed each with a scotch bright pad.  I then freshened up the fretboard with walnut oil or mineral oil.  I don't remember which.

This has nothing to do with recording but a few years ago I bought a McSpadden that played well for a while .  It developed an odd sound similar to what you describe.  Upon close examination, I found that lacquer on the frets was the culprit.  After carefully removing the lacquer from the frets it plays well again.  It seems that pressing on the strings broke up some of the lacquer causing a slight buzz.  For this reason I always use an oil finish on my fretboards.

Just a note in reference to using soap on screws.  I am 78 years old and have my grandfather's hammer.  In the end of the hickory handle is a hole filled with beeswax.  To drive a nail in hardwood or to lube screw threads, simply twist the end of what you are driving into the wax and work away.  Soap works OK but will cause steel screws to rust.  Candle wax works well also.

I like the video on floating bridges.  It validates what I have learned having made eighty some dulcimers.  I started making them with fixed bridges until I discovered the advantages of the movable bridge.  Now I make all with movable.  So as to not lose sight of bridge placement, I cut a slot with a fretsaw exactly where the unison string point is and tap the base end toward the tailpiece until it is in tune.  If the bridge comes loose when changing strings, I just line up the high point on the bridge with the sawcut and tap the other end until the base string is in tune.  Works for me.  To another point, I do not cut notches in my bridges.  I use the hardest wood I can find and the strings will mark where they go by pressing slightly into the wood.

In case the fretboard has a different finish than the rest of the instrument, I would use walnut oil from the salad oil shelf of your supermarket.  I do not varnish or lacquer my fretboards. I use only walnut oil as it is a drying oil similar to tung oil and does not build up on wood if applied and wiped with a dry cloth.  However, it might build up on your strings so I am careful not to get it on strings.   I use baby oil on strings and to freshen up fretboards.  Baby oil will not dry and must be wiped clean.  I understand that it is mostly mineral oil with fragrance added.  Just a note about drying oils.  All excess oil should be wiped off or you will end up with a sticky residue.

I keep two colors of high quality wax on hand for use on my dulcimers.  One is dark brown  and one is neutral.  I put a coat on all of my new builds and use it to freshen up older instruments.  A good choice that is easy to get is shoe wax in a matching color.

When I first started playing dulcimers about 7 years ago, I ran across a mail order catalog from "Movie and Music Greats". They had a CD titled " Nashville Dulcimers". It's my all time favorite dulcimer CD. It features 28 pieces of dulcimer music in DAD and I used it to learn to play. I still play it a lot and sometimes I will keep some on hand for people who buy dulcimers from me. You can get it at their online catalog at www.MovieAndMusicGreats.com .

Early on as a builder, I made a rather large teardrop. I had trouble keeping it stable on my lap due to the narrow end at the scroll. Another thing that I couldn't figure out was that it did not have the volume that my hourglass models had even though they had about the same size sound box. I have since heard others played that have good volume. I may try another sometime to compare results. Maybe my inexperience then had a lot to do with it. The quality of sound was very good in my opinion but just didn't have what some refer to as punch. Anyhow, since then I have stuck to hourglass shapes.

I have an old dulcimer made by Dixon . I believe it was made in the UK. It appears to be of rosewood with a spruce top. The model no is DU200 and it has a fancy inlay down the center of the back. VSL is 26 1/2. Can anyone tell me anything about it? Age and value?

Dusty Turtle, I tried the 1 1/2 fret on one some time ago. After not being used to it, it seemed to get in my way when I didn't need it so I took it out. It was nice when I did need it though.

Dusty Turtle said:

Joe, you can't " move " the fret because then it wouldn't work for music traditionally played on the dulcimer. You would still need the third scale position (F#) and it wouldn't be there. But you could add a 1-1/2 fret to get F natural on a string tuned to D. That 1-1/2 fret is getting pretty popular partly for that reason.

Edit: Woops! I just realized that Skip already responded with a comment on the 1-1/2 fret. Please excuse the duplication.

Joe Robison said:

Thanks to Skip, Ken and Linda for their replies. I think it's a little more clear now. What happens if you move the fret to produce F instead of F#? Probably a dumb question. Could this be why some of the old dulcimers don't play well with other instruments?

Thanks to Skip, Ken and Linda for their replies. I think it's a little more clear now. What happens if you move the fret to produce F instead of F#? Probably a dumb question. Could this be why some of the old dulcimers don't play well with other instruments?

Ken, I tune DAdd. Melody to d, middle to A and base to D. Are you sure that there is an A# in this tuning? Using my electronic tuner, I cannot find one. However I do find a C#. I understand the difference between diatonic and chromatic and have built both using fret spacings that someone else has figured out. I just didn't understand why the sharps occurred when some books say otherwise.

Ken Longfield said:

Hi, Joe. When the melody string is tuned to "d" and the melody string is tuned to "A" and the bass string is tuned to "D," you have the dulcimer tuned to the key of D. This key has two sharps in the scale, A# and F#. On a diatonic fret board those sharps will occur at the proper place in the scale. If the book was written for the CGG, there would be no sharps or flats because then you are tuned to the key of C. A diatonic fret board is defined by the spacing of the frets: long, long, short, long, long, long, short. When the 6 1/2 fret is added you are beginning to move toward a chromatic scale which is all short giving a full twelve not scale while the diatonic is only 7 notes. I think part of the confusing comes from trying to explain that the dulcimer is a simple instrument to play. I hope this helps.

Ken

"the dulcimer sings a sweet song."

I've been playing and making MD's for about 6 years but don't know much about technical music. From what reading I have done, I read that on the diatonic fretboard there are no sharps or flats. However, in more than one teaching book I find that there is F#. Also on all my dulcimers there is F#. My question is . Why do some books say there are none when there is.

I use baby oil. Put a dab on your finger and rub the strings then wipe with a soft cloth. No oxide and strings stay slick.

Cindy Stammich said:

Nell, I thought I would add that Dr. Duck's Ax Wax is a little costly ( about $ 16 including shipping ) but it lasts a long time. I only use a few drops each time. It cleans and conditions the strings. Also, my fingers slide much easier up and down the fretboard with this great stuff. Again, just my 2 cents

I use 11's for melody , a 13 and a 24. I have also used three 12's and a 24 or 22. I prefer the 11's. and 13.

I had this problem as well as pick noise when using an amp or mic. I switched to nylon picks. They are not as hard. I either use a .5 or a .73 Jim Dunlap. The .73 will give a little more control and volume. The nylon helped solve both problems.

As a retired ind arts teacher of 38 years , it makes me feel good to hear that there is still support for hands on classes in our schools. Kids learn more in those classes than just hand skills.

Robin Thompson said:

That is a neat picture, Bob-- your fat- waisted dulcimers are beauties!
I am glad I was required to take wood shop & industrial arts, art, and cooking & sewing in Junior High School.

Rob, I would go to my local guitar shop and see if they have a piece of fretwire slightly higher than I am using.

I use the same size for the zero as all the rest and level them all.

Four or five years ago while browsing in a music shop that had lots of dulcimers, I saw one that had deep scollops between the frets. It was old , well made, showed lots of wear and as I recall, priced at $750. I'm wondering if anyone has has seen anything like this. Was it a common practice or just someone experimenting. The deep scollops would allow the pulling of strings to pick up notes not on a diatonic fretboard I suspect.

I have a shaker pegboard that has 16 pegs , It is mounted next to the ceiling and out of the direct sun. It works great and I can see all of my instruments. I have used other storage methods and they are either out of sight or in the way of other activities. Instruments are out of reach of children and can't be bumped , sat on, or tripped over. Also easy to select what you want to play. I use rawhide bootstring for straps which easily hang on the pegs. Pegs are 3" Shaker.

My computer skills don't allow me to send a picture but I had a caller inquiring about my dulcimers the other day that asked me if I had any with butterfly sound holes. I didn't but a few days later discovered my wife had some butterfly magnets on the fridge. They were just the right size for the large holes and my wife found a greeting card with a smaller one for the other hole. I have them cut for a dulcimer in progress and like them very much. I probably will use them again.

Barbara, I put in a 1 1/2 fret in one of my dulcimers and had the same problem you have. I took it out because it was so distracting. I think that because many people are changing dulcimers that eventually they will not be Appalachian Dulcimers. Don't get me wrong. New ideas can evolve into new things but many of these changes may have been tried in the past and forgotten as not practical. My point is that some modern dulcimers sound more like guitars, mandolins or banjos than dulcimers.

Barbara Maas said:

I had a 1 1/2 fret installed recently and I'm getting thrown seeing it when I play and it makes me hesitate when finding frets 2 & 3. I know I'll get used to it eventually but, for now, it's really throwing me off. Until I can wrap my eyes/mind around this new addition, I'd like to put a few fret markers in place. Can anyone suggest something temporary that I can use to do that without damaging my fretboard? Thanks for any suggestions.