Forum Activity for @ken-longfield

You pull the top piece off. Pull it away by pulling toward the bent end which is where it attached to the instrument. You may need to turn it over and spray a little lubricant along the edges to help it out. It is meant to be tight so it does not fall off the instrument. That type of tail piece is typical of mandolins. If you need me to, I can run down to my shop and photograph one on a mandolin that I've had in for some work. I'll pull it off and show you what it looks. Let me know quickly as I'll be away Saturday and Sunday.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

I agree with @paul-rappell about " the possibility of the dog flying around the car in the event of a crash."  Unfortunately my Mouthymutt (malamute/husky) chewed right through a brand new harness the very 1st time, so I'm glad it's not a law here even though I'd love to do it.

He's in the narrow extended cab of our truck, a.k.a. The Fur Wagon.

Yep -- it's a kantele shape anyway, if unconventional in construction.  I'd guess a "student" model.

I would start with what Ken Longfield suggests.  To keep the strings from cutting into the edge of the top, I might use a thin (1/16" or 1/8") strip of wood about 1/4" wide, running across the junction of the top and back -- instead of a brass rod at the back edge as Ken suggests.  Use a very hard wood -- at least as hard as hard maple -- and make sure the grain runs the length of the strip.  The strip can be held in place with even rubber cement until at least a couple of strings are replaced, then string pressure will hold it.

What is that bridge made of?  Metal?

I would start by recording and removing the strings, as Ken says, then a soft cloth dampened with soap water to see if those white stains and assorted crud can be wiped away.  A few drops of WD-40 on each tuning pin near where they enter the wood might help things in that department.

The late Angus had a special harness that attached to a short belt that attached to the seatbelt. It's not just the dog escaping, it's the possibility of the dog flying around the car in the event of a crash.

Hi, @silverstrings!  Maybe this site is what you're looking for: 

https://blackmtninstruments.com/about/

No hinge, but it looks like a box lid around the edges. 

The work to do doesn't seem too bad. I'd try to clean the top, back, and sides before doing any sanding. Of course I would take all the strings off before doing this. Make sure you keep a list of the gauges of all the strings in order: from high to low or low to high whichever youosr prefer. After clean up you can decide whether you need to sand the finish and refinish the instrument. You will need to see if the bridge and need any work. Although it is hard for me to see, I would probably add a brass rod all the edge of Kantele just under the top edge along the side to keep the strings from eating into the top. Keep us posted on your progress.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Alright, here is the front and back...

Hoboy yeah...needs work

 20190816_132243_resized.jpg - 242KB

James,

That looks like a mandolin tailpiece to me.  If so, the pointed decorative end should lift up to reveal the string ends.  In other words, there should be a hinge on the other end of the tailpiece.  If it's tight, maybe dab a little WD-40 on it from a Q-tip.

My new strumstick has this tailpiece on it. How do these open? Seems like a friction fit, but it's really tight and I don't want to break anything.

 tailpiece2.jpg - 163KB

I have no idea who might have made your dulcimer, but the signature looks like it could either be "N. Mills" or "Neville".  Are there any dulcimer makers who fit either of those interpretations of the signature?   None come to mind. 

Like I said, swan head armchairs and rocking chairs were made long ago in the Victorian era mostly, but then there were also reproductions of them made later on like in the 1930s-70s.  The repros tend to be more simplified (less refined and less complex carving) as the original era antiques. Your dulcimer's headstock fits that style.  The later repros are now of course vintage 'antiques' themselves.

@robin-thompson"> @robin-thompson  said:

Lois, there is an element or two of this instrument which I've seen before-- the swan head being the more notable element.  I can't recall, though, when I saw some similar photos.  I'm hoping somebody knows who the maker was!

Hi Robin, you've been close enough to areas where the maker may have been.  Even if it proves to be recycled furniture as Strumelia suggests, it might lead to more information.

Hmmm.  Wonder who is knowledgeable about wood?  We recently lost our local Native American flute maker, Don Hayes.  He really knew his woods.  I'll ask his widow if their son, who took the woodshop tools & wood, could tell me.  I look at it and it doesn't look as refined as those chairs, but it's an idea.  His finish is definitely more "rustic", especially on the back. 

Showed it just now to my husband and he dared to want to improve that finish!  NO!

That woodburned signature looks to me like it ends in "...ville."

~wow~

OK, let me see if I can address ALL of this! ~L~ Dang people! This has got to be about the friendliest group in Dodge!

Oh yes, I have seen Kantele' that are the size of the one in the photo. Is drooling allowed?

Full sized pics, I will work on that. File size kept being far too large.

Exactly why the name of this thread has the question mark. Maybe even a lap harp? Regardless, it is a sweet sounding instrument when it playing condition.

Oh, I know about the wind!

Good thoughts on the tuning key. I have also thought the same about the pegs. But then, removing them and knocking down the rust with some steel wool might render something of a "patina like" looking result.

Sanding it is. That are a few seriously nasty looking dings that the moisture and iron technique are not going to touch. But then, if the patina for the pegs work out, the coloring in the dinged area might lend a bit of "old" to the appearance.

Ooooh! PUNS! hehehee...be careful there. I too have been known to PUNish...

I just gotta add, about tuning wrenches:

Having used both the T shaped cheaper ones and the L shaped slightly more expensive ones... I urge people to get an L wrench-  you get way more control for fine tuning the zither pins- the fulcrum range is much wider. Truly, it's like twice as easy to fine tune by very small increments, and also the L wrench is much much easier on the hands.  It's almost like the difference in ease between plain wood tunings pegs that are sticky, and simple geared machine pegs.  My advice is to pay the extra couple of bucks and get an L wrench... it'll make your life easier!    ;D

Assuming a standard size guitar with around a 25" VSL, the bass "E" string is anywhere from 0.046 to 0.056. The Blue Lion bass dulcimer I play in our dulcimer group has a 27.5 inch VSL. The string gauges are 0,024, 0.028, 0.032, 0.052. All of them are bronze wound. In a set of medium guitar strings, the 4th string (D) is usually around 0.035. If you use that as your "melody" string, you can size the middle and bass appropriately.

Hope this helps.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Thanks, Ken, for that explanation of the string anchor photo. I must have been tired last night as I looked at it. I could not figure out why there would be vertical grain wood in the "nut" by the anchor pins. Now I see that is the top and the strings anchor on the side of the instrument. Duh. I just couldn't see that when I first looked at it.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

@ Skip
Don't know, haven't received it yet. I would imagine regular guitar tuning.

Tuning Key -- You can use a clock key for those wind-up clocks; they come in a variety of sizes.  You can use an L-shaped autoharp tuning wrench -- $15-20.  Or you can get a 1/4" T-handle Tap Wrench from on-line sources ($3.99 Amazon) or a good hardware store for under $10.  You want one that goes from 0 to 1/4", not one that goes from 1/4" up.

Strings -- if that is indeed how the strings are anchored you're going to need "ball-end" strings, not "loop-end"

I see what KenL means about the string anchor photo.  The anchors appear to be on the rear side of the instrument and the strings are going over the edge of the top -- is that correct?    I've never seen Baltic Psaltery that did not use a steel string bar on the rear deck to hold the tail ends of the strings  -- as you can see in my photo below.  

That is certainly a VERY uncommon way to build a kantele.  You may not -- in fact -- have a kantele, but rather some other form of zither/psaltery.  Can we see some less close-up photos of the instrument, please?  Say a quarter of the instrument in each photo. and then frame-filling pix of the top and back so we can see the whole instrument

Oh yeah, interstate ... 70 mph, head out, ears sound like plastic tarp!

When i saw the pictures of this dulcimer, I immediately thought that the maker used the carved swan head arm from an antique chair for the head stock.  Such carved swan head chair arms were fairly popular both long ago and again in later reproductions of Victorian furniture. I suspect the swan head was recycled from an old discarded chair, the rest of the dulcimer having been built at a later time than when the chair was made.  In my eyes, the smooth stylized mahogany swan head doesn't really seem to match the whole rest of the instrument which is decidedly more rustic. Look at some of these vintage and antique chairs for typical carved swan head arms. One like this one could have easily been cut and adapted as a head stock.  I also think the 'wing' decorative element might have come from recycled furniture, and the fretbord may have been a mahogany piece from furniture as well.  I think whoever made the dulcimer was into using old furniture wood for thier projects.

Lois, there is an element or two of this instrument which I've seen before-- the swan head being the more notable element.  I can't recall, though, when I saw some similar photos.  I'm hoping somebody knows who the maker was! 

There are a whole spectrum of Baltic Winged Pslateries, each slightly different from the next.  The Kantele is arguably the most well known, because of it's connection to the Kalevala.  In Lithuania they're called Kankles; in Estonia,  Kannel; in Ltvia they are Kokles or Kandla; in parts of Russua they're called Kusle,a nd in other parts Gusli; and the Norse Sami call them Harpu.  I've built several over the years.  Some of the originals were backless, but the vast majority are "carved body" construction -- a 2" thick plank is hollowed out, and then a thin soundboard is inset into the top so there is a sound box.  The majority of them have a metal 'string bar' at the back and wooden peg or autoharp pins for tuning.  They can have as few as 5 strings or as many as 18.  

The photo below shows a Kiev style Gusli that I made for Lady Sally's daughter Holly who has a 17th century Kievan persona in the Society for Creative Anachronism.  6" wide, 1-1/2" deep.  

I am somewhat familiar with the Kantele as well as the Kalevala having graduated from Suomi (Finland) college.  I, too, would like to see a photos of the whole instrument front and back. Some things to consider are whether the tuners work smoothly. After 20 years some may be stuck in place or no longer hold when tuned to pitch. These are easily resolved problems. Make sure all the joints are secure. If not, you will need to glue them. Do you know who made your Kantele? If it has a finish on it, you can test to see what type of finish it is. If it is lacquer you should be able to put a new coat or two over it. It could be shellac. Or it could be some type of varnish. You may need to sand it down to bare wood, but I would avoid that if I could as I don't like sanding. If you like to sand, go for it. It looked like some of the dents could be raised using moisture and a hot iron. Looking back at your photos, I do not understand what is happening in the first photo with the string anchors. What are the strings going over in the photo? Also, if you want to you can replace the tuning pins with shiny new ones.

Just a few thoughts. I hope some of them are helpful.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Folks might be interested in the free pdf book Be Different: Play the Kantele by FOTMD member @Peter-W.  Peter makes and plays the instrument.  (And in the interests of full disclosure I should say he asked me to do some copyediting at the very end stages of the writing process.)

What's it's current tuning, bass to treble?

Ferrator, can you post here a photo or two of the entire instrument?  It's hard to tell anything from just a few closeups, without the 'big picture'.

A computer search on Kantele was eye-opening.  It reminds me of the zithers and toys that had diagrams you insert under the strings to play a song.  Being eager to make music simply, I've fallen for some of those & even created some diagrams of my own.  This shows there is a whole Finnish musical tradition without the cheat sheets that probably inspired the commercial American instruments .

I'm not "Finnished" with mine, but appreciate seeing a more musical and traditional version.  His tying it to the Finnish epic of the Kalevala adds to its appeal for me as a storyteller, especially in a state known for its Finnish residents.  The Folkcraft name convinced me to watch the video & I appreciated Ken Bloom's many ideas.  They fit much more than just the Kantele for those of us playing members of the zither family & that includes the dulcimer. 

Just wish he hadn't allowed his microphone to pick up wind noise.

Mine thinks "come" means stand there & wait for me to come to him!  I tend to use it when walking on our dirt roads & know a car is coming.  I've gotten very fast at shortening his extendable leash & coming.  Who trained who?

I love our truck's rear window over the truck bed, but learned to put a stick in the track so it only opens big enough to put his head out.  Nothing like being on the interstate & looking in your rearview mirror & your dog is past his chest trying to get out!!!

My childhood dog one time jumped out on a busy road when he saw something he wanted.  Fortunately other cars missed him.  Don't believe dogs won't find a way out, it can happen incredibly fast.

I have had this for many years. When I got it, it was labelled as a Kantele. But now, after a lot of researching, i came to have my doubts since the back is enclosed. Doubts until I saw this:

As you can see, she needs a bit of love given to her...

But I have had her since she was playable and the tone was wonderful. After 20 some odd years for the wood to dry and settle even more, I suspect the tone is going to be even better.

There are 15 strings, but I have a place to go to that I can get individual strings, when the time comes. But now, time for some other things, like getting a tuning key. That and a nice sanding down to smooth things out and get rid of the blemishing.

I have originally been thinking of a black finish along the lines of the East German zithers of the late 50's and early 60's. But on further consideration, something natural seems a better choice. Thoughts?

This also leaves me wondering just  what finish to use. Again, thoughts please?

I am no rookie when it comes to wood and working with it. Many moons ago, I was a cabinetmaker building specialized bookcases (specialized to fit a certain size of books). But this is a LONG ways from the kind of finishing that would be given to a fine instrument. I have already ruined a guitar with (I spit) polyurethane once. Long ago, but never forgotten.

This is something that is going to span some time, I know this and look forward to bringing  this instrument back to health and play-ability. Labor of true love here!

Any ideas?

Suggestions?

Things  TO  do?

Things to  AVOID  like the plague?

 20190815_120714-s.jpg - 140KB

P.S. I find that "+" symbol step that I need to remember.

Thank you both!  I posted this unsuccessfully on the former site and thought it was worth trying again.  (It also gave me a procedure for a fellow member who has had trouble posting photos here.)  I love the instrument & its uniqueness, so I decided to post it both ways.  Guess I'm 2 for 2.

I posted these 6 photos on my page of an unusual dulcimer possibly made by a builder in Indiana.  It was suggested I also post them here.  The builder's logo/signature are woodburned into it and should help.

 Swan Dulci Logo.jpg - 100KB

Appropriate string gauges are a function of the VSL and the open notes that you want to tune the string to.  Use the Strothers String Calculator as a start point:  http://strothers.com/string_choice.html

Plug the VSL and your desired open notes into the calculator and use those gauges.  You can go a gauge higher without any problem as the calculator tends to give light values.

I've been saving up ripe tomatillos from my garden for the past 10 days, and had a giant bowl of them ready for today.  I made my first green sauce!

After husking and washing the tomatillos, I cut them all in half, then quartered two onions and halved a large red italian pepper (also from my garden) and tossed all with a little olive oil and salt and black pepper.  (I can't eat too hot spicy so I didn't use jalapeno hot type peppers. Mild hot is ok for me though.)
I spread everything out on a big broiling pan in one layer and roasted it in a 425 oven about 20 minutes til everything was soft and a bit of charring of the tops. That was more than enough cooking. Removed some of the liquid with a turkey baster, because there was really way too much liquid. 

Spooned it all into the food processor and buzzed it just enough to to chop up the bigger onion/pepper pieces.  The resulting chunky sauce all filled a 2 quart pyrex pitcher.  I add a tablespoon or two of hot cilantro chutney, stirred that in, and then ladled into canning jars to keep in the refrigerator.  Recipes say it should be good for like 6 or 8 weeks... plenty of time for us to eat it all up!  It is reeeeally yummy!

There are way more green tomatillos still out there that are not ripe yet.  I think the next batch would be accumulated and ready in a couple weeks.  At that time I might make another batch but actually 'can' it with a hot water bath and seals so I can store it on a shelf for longer time, maybe give a few jars as Christmas presents.

As an experiment, I will be turning a inexpensive acoustic guitar into a bass/baritone strumstick.

3 strings, heavier gauges.

What should I use? Obviously regular bass guitar strings will be too heavy, should I just use the 3 lowest strings from the guitar, or should I go up a little from standard guitar strings? 

These scruffy little pooches are so cute!!