There is some sad news from New York. Legendary luthier Dennis Dorogi, 82, passed away Tuesday night at his home in Brocton. Here is a link to the funeral home in charge of the family arrangements:
http://themorsefuneralhome.com/obituaries/
I play with both possum board and a stand-up stand. If you play with a stand acoustically (not amped) you will want a board underneath, as the greater sound will head for the floor if you don't. If you're playing with a pickup I don't think it makes much, if any, difference.
My stand-up stand is a tall waiter's tray table, from a restaurant supply house for $28.
I am considering a couple of things at the same time.
Had thought about modifying a keyboard stand to make a stand to play lap dulcimer in standing. Will I need a board under the instrument like a possum board or just a support for the tail and head block?
In regard to a possum board for playing while sitting, is there an advantage to the board itself or will a frame like support with support at the head and tail blocks be as effective.
Need your thoughts from those who have tried different things.
Thanks
My first dulcimer was and is (I still play it) a Walnut Valley Wildwood Mountain model I ordered in late 1992 and received in Feb 1993. Lovely instrument with walnut back, cherry sides, walnut fretboard and spruce top. I did replace the tuning machines with geared tuners and added strap buttons. Still looks good other than some mild finish loss from playing it.
It came with a hard shell case with shaped mold for the instrument inside. I wish other builders offered the fitted case. I know Blue Lion does.
That happened to me once and the person was very apologetic and offered a refund immediately. I was told that the job of packing and shipping it had been given to someone she thought knew how to do it right and said they had definitely taken shortcuts (from my description), probably not realizing how disastrous that could be!
I hope your results are similar!
Wow that's a whole bunch of amazing produce, Ken! I bet you cook up a storm with all that.
My older daughter & her wife buy a farm share too, between Spring and Fall... since they live in an apt with no yard in a city. They really plow through those veggies...they have a juicer machine and they use it almost every day. They do grow a mini windowbox of herbs on their window railing in the Summer. 
A couple months ago we joined a year-round food co-op that offers a veggie box or produce box for $20 or a combo box for $25; plus lots of individual veggies and fruits for sale at way below local megamart prices (golden beets for 50¢ each vs megamart bundle of 3 for $4.49, and parsnips for 33¢ each instead of a bag of 3 for $3.99). We've found a combo box works just about right for us. There's no mandatory buy, and they have a number of pick-up points around the area.
This week we're getting:
5 Sweet Potatoes (pesticide free)
1 Sweet Onion
1 Red Onion (pesticide free)
2 Garlic Bundles
3 Bell Peppers (pesticide free,local)
3 Yellow Squash (local, organic)
4 Beefsteak Tomatoes (local, pesticide free)
3 Limes
8 Bananas
4 Sweet Oranges (pesticide free)
3 Avocados
2 Mangos
Mark & I have been enjoying the asparagus this spring from our little backyard patch. :)
I love garden fresh vegetables, so glad it's Spring!
Maria,
I replaced my tuners on the Walnut Valley with 5 star geared tuners. Now no problem keeping it in tune. It is an amazing instrument. I have several dulcimers, but doubt I would ever consider selling it.
Blessings to you.
Richard
No, it did not break. I've just never seen anything like the material before. I know someone else who has a dulcimer from the same year with the same nut and bridge. They are different-- her's is a 4-string, and mine is a 6-string. Thanks for the input. Linda
I agree with Ken. The nut/bridge on my backpacker (DF1) model looks to be made of delrin or a similar hard plastic material.
Did it break? Do you need to raise/lower the action? Black & white is probably some sort of phenolic/plastic.
Does anyone know the material of the nut and bridge of a 1994 The Dulcimer Factory mountain dulcimer? They are black on the outside and white on the inside. Thanks so much. Linda
Hearts of the Dulcimer Podcast - Episode 25
Aaron O'Rourke: Soulful Virtuosity
We feature the music and our conversation with Aaron O’Rourke, one of today’s most innovative dulcimer players and composers. At the age of 31, Aaron has already produced an amazing amount of work in solo and ensemble recording and instruction.
Listen to the episode, see photos, videos, and more: http://dulcimuse.com/podcast/resource/025.html
Here is the information my friend provided:
"Bruce Henry was an industrial arts teacher. He made dulcimers on the side. His wife Lucy and he played at local historic and town festivals in the noter style. She taugh music in schools. Her main instrument...flute. They live in Montgomery which is over the river and mountain south of Williamsport. I presume they are both alive, but would be in their late 70s or somewhere in their 80s. I do not know if Bruce still makes instruments. I have found that his instruments nearly always need fret work to play well. The fret arrangement was in the traditional 7 fret to an octave. DAA or GCC tuning. He never placed a 6 1/2 fret on his instruments. I'd recommend keeping it that way and use the instrument for traditional noter style playing.
Just Google and find:
C. Bruce Henry, 85, of Montgomery, died Thursday, Aug. 8, 2013"
Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
Well, that confirms it. The Henry I am thinking of is from Montgomery. He was not a prolific maker and sold at craft festivals in the areas around Muncy. Lewisburg, and Danville. I need to check with a friend of mine who knew him to see what he can tell me. I'll let you know what I find out.
Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
Could it possibly be that the "Penna" simply meant Pennsylvania? I vaguely think in the olden days people might have sometimes written 'Penna' as a shorthand for that state...but maybe I'm remembering it wrong. Maybe your dulcimer maker was named CB Henry?
Actually, yes people sometimes do use "Penna." short for PA, see here:
http://englishplus.com/grammar/00000057.htm
I just now received a refund check for my sent-back dulcimer. The builder did find the issue, albeit, twas an odd issue he could fix by changing out bridges, and did so on several others he found with the same issue. They refunded my money minus the shipping.
I realize I'm going to be a play it before I pay it kind of consumer from this point forward.....when the instrument is over $400.
I've had a McSpadden 28.5 and currently have 2 McSpadden 26s. I have very small hands and find the 26 inch scale much easier to play. I can't tell a lot of difference in the sound. My 26" walnut with a redwood top has a very warm sound and the sustain seems to be fine. I personally wouldn't have one over 27".
Well, I pretty much finished planting the veggie garden today. Looks like our cold snap is over, weather getting warm and normal for the next week or two.
All the beds are forked and hoed. I don't mulch the beds, but i do keep them fluffy. The earthworms do much of the work.
Planted in 12 tomato plants, some green bush beans, got all my lettuces and onions and a few cabbages in too. Some coriander and sage. They didn't have the type of cucumbers I wanted- guess I'll buy a packet of seeds for those. I have other lettuce/mesclun seed which i'll continue to plant at intervals. Skipping the zucc & summer squash this yer- the plants get so big and messy and are so cheap to buy anyway... unlike greens and tomatoes which are expensive.
It's pretty easy to adjust that string height by sanding a tiny bit off the bottom of the bridge (and maybe the nut) Start a new General thread about that, and we'll talk you through the process.
The only one I own is the Pacific Rim Project; I was gifted a copy by Robert Force a couple years back when he came to the Mount Dora festival here in FL.
Thank you Jan for your input, and I was really happy to see the response from Mark.
That must have been awesome to have Bill for a week-long class!
Sounds awesome!!!
Mark! Thank you so much for responding to this! I hope all is well with Bill and his family. It makes me very sad to know that he has stopped playing and stopped building dulcimers. I only ever had the privilege of meeting Bill the one weekend at the KADC retreat. He is a truly a wonderful person, and sooooo talented. The dulcimer I have is beautiful and has such a wonderful sound. One of the fun moments (one of many) from that weekend was when Bill played and sang "The Preacher and the Bear".
When you see him again - please tell him I said hi. He won't know who I am, but he made such an impact on me....I was pretty new to the dulcimer, and he showed me what the dulcimer community is all about!
Thank you again! And sorry for rambling.......
I'm very fond of dulcimers with a shorter VSL (no longer than 26.5 if possible). The ease of making the chords has really improved my playing over the past few years!
It would be my privilege to get to meet Mr Taylor!
Mark, I'm so glad you saw this question and responded to it, knowing what a great friend Bill is to you. I was waiting to see if anyone was going to respond and if there was no response, I was going to suggest they contact you--I knew you'd know!
I had Bill for a week-long class at Dulcimerville (I think), held in Black Mountain, NC and my friends and I still talk about what a great class that was. He was a great instructor, luthier, and is, as you relate so well, continues to be a kind, wonderful man. Thank you for writing this message!
What will you do now? 
