Forum Activity for @john-c-knopf

Look Who Came to Visit!!

General mountain dulcimer or music discussions

Patty,

Wait'll you find out where 'Uncle Eddie" will be living for a while...

(HINT: He didn't come back to Michigan).

Congratulations, Roberta!

I encountered a Musical Traditions cherry dulcimer while I was in college, and it looked and sounded just beautiful. I wasn't aware that there were any kits out there, but I would have snapped one up in a minute if I found one!

Good luck on your search. If there are any measured drawings of the parts, they could be reproduced fairly easily by a woodworker or luthier.

updated by @john-c-knopf: 02/12/16 05:57:26AM

wood dulcimer cases

General mountain dulcimer or music discussions

Burrell,

That's how I make wooden cases -- build the whole box, then slice off the lid. It'll fit perfectly every time.

I haven't made box joints at the corners, though that's the best way to fasten them.

I generally use either 3/8" solid poplar or 1/4"- 3/8" plywood for the edges, and 1/8" plywood for the top and bottom pieces.

I wrap the raw box piece exteriors with thin vinyl sheet goods, usually black, and glue/staple the edges all around.

Then the rigid-foam interior is added and cut to accommodate the instrument. The foam is then covered with Fun Fur or flannel material and trimmed. Sometimes I add a flap lid in one corner for an accessories area.

Then 3 or 4 small brass hinges are added, 2 draw catches and a handle.

Good Wood Gone Bad :(

General mountain dulcimer or music discussions

Hi, all.

I've been warming up to poplar (so to speak) in the past few months. I know it has some bad qualities and is considered a junk or secondary wood by cabinetmakers, but it can make a FINE sounding dulcimer!

Ask Robin Clark, Ken Hulme, Elaine King, Kevin Messenger or others on this site. I was surprised myself when I first heard the sound of the firstdulcimer I made from poplar. And the color variations are interesting.

I believe I got a Mcspadden Sweet Song?

Instruments- discuss specific features, luthiers, instrument problems & questions

Gentlemen:

Looks 99.9% like a McSpadden Sweet Song assembled kit to me. I've built a couple of them, and they look JUST like this one. (Of course, the fit and finish on mine were much better! ).

I'm also guilty of leaving string sets on too long.

Old strings stretch unevenly under stress, theypick upa coating of oxidation, and I'm sure do other undesirable things as well.

It's amazing how much better a dulcimer sounds when I replace its old rusty strings with bright new ones.

I too would like to read this paper, but I got a "file not found" message as well.