What's the difference between a fiddle and a violin, you can spill porter on a fiddle you can't on a violin.
The idea of spilling porter on a fiddle but not on a violin adds a charming and down-to-earth touch to the age-old debate.
Hello all...having just won an auction for a gorgeous psaltery,
I'm anxious for it to arrive. I'm not totally new at psaltery,
but didn't get a very long period to play mine before gifting it
to a grandaughter. If you play psaltery, I'd love to hear from you.
Pix to follow.
Thanks Ken...what you say sums up my thoughts as well.
I had no idea that cardboard dulcimers exist.
Don't think that would suit me at all.
What little I've played on this unit sounded good,
and after all, it has lasted 20+ years.
I'd hoped to return into the family of the maker.
Yep pretty basic instrument. Builder was probably one of the hundreds who were gonna make it big building dulcimers in the Dulcimer Revival... but didn't. No Internet footprint for Danmont Dulcimers. Trapezoid shape was fairly popular 20+ years ago. Nothing special. Sort of a wooden version of today's cardboard dulcimer. No frills, no "modern" 6+ fret, plywood top has a tear-outs on edges, straight stick fretboard/tuner head. At least the action doesn't look too high!. Nice beginner instrument for someone who wants to play Noter & drone style. Twenty years ago it would have sold for maybe $100-$150. If you can get $50 today that would be good, IMHO and buyer would have a wooden, not cardboard body dulcimer..
You've got a beauty! Regardless of what you do about the tuners, I hope you enjoy it. 
I have a nice chromatic but I seldom play it.It's too easy to make mistakes,laugh.
If you will excuse me for saying so, I think those pegs look like cheap banjo friction pegs, not worthy of such a fine instrument. The previous owner probably had tuning problems with the original wooden pegs, and had somebody replace them with these. There are nicer alternatives, including nice-fitting wooden replacements or quality mechanical tuners, such as Wittners or Perfection pegs.
That's a beautiful dulcimer and you got it for a very fair price. If your buyer's remorse is strong enough, just send the dulcimer to me and ease your discomfort. 
I can understand wanting the original tuners, if indeed it originally had tuning pegs. But the problem is that you don't have those tuning pegs, so replacing the mechanical tuners would represent another modification. And mechanical tuners are indeed much easier to use.
Perhaps @Dwain-Wilder of Bear Meadow would know what kind of tuners the 1975 Sunhearth originally had.
Hello,
I'm glad to be a new member of the group. Last week I saw a very nice Sunhearth dulcimer pop up on ebay, and I was able to grab it for $495. I great deal! It was #240, built 12/9/75. I've had a bit of buyers remorse, as I was really wanting an unmodified one, but right after I paid for it, the reality set in that it had mechanical tuners on it. I have since received it, and it is a beautiful instrument, but I have to wonder if it originally had wooden tuning pegs. I would like to hear from someone who knows Sunhearth dulcimers as to the originality of it, and if they were pegs, should I try to replace them. I must admit I would rather have the mechanical tuners, but I am a bit of a nut about keeping things original.
Thanks,
Curt DeBaun III
JAndy -- I avoid squeaking strings by using plain steel bass strings of a slightly smaller gauge than the recommended wound steel.
Somewhat off subject, but in the past couple of years, flatwound or squeakless stings have become availabe for the laarger diameters. I hifghly recommend them as they are squeakless..
If you want the exact gauges that Warren specifies for his instruments, as others have said go to Juststrings.com and order a 12 pack of each of the gauges:
Plain Steel Bulk Guitar Strings (juststrings.com)
At about $3 a dozen you'll have several years worth of strings for about $10...
One basic point in looking for strings. Until about 10 or 15 years ago, there were no "dulcimer strings." Ball end strings were part of the guitar string rack while loop end strings were banjo strings. Either will be more than long enough.
Just avoid violin, mandolin, and ukulele strings or you will end up with something too short.
I hypothesize that many of the early builders bought banjo strings from mail order vendors like Sears. Some would have purchased rolls of piano wire and put their own loops on it, but a roll of piano wire is pretty long and might be a lifetime supply.
GreatLakes 73, the others have given you the advice I would have given. Unless you have a Folkcraft or McSpadden who market specific strings for their instruments, dulcimer players should buy individual strings and make up their own sets. I'm surprised how often in doing repairs and I need to restring someone's dulcimer they are surprised to find that I don't have specific sets but rather have tubes of individual strings in various gauges. Many times they come back to buy strings from me even though I tell them they get the strings from JustStrings.com or from other vendors. Of course, that also means that they want me to change the strings for them. I hope you find what you need.
Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
Hi everyone, looking to buy some strings for my Warren May dulcimer, takes ball end. In his papers that came with the dulcimer he notes .012, .012, .014 and .022 for the string sizes. Most of the “sets” I’m seeing are different gauges or are loop end. I went to d’addario web site to look at just getting individual strings but the options were a bit overwhelming. Any suggestions?
Strings.com or Guitar Center. I go to Guitar Center for odd sizes, or when I run out of the proper string. They have a box of individual strings under the counter, in square paper envelopes, and can usually find me what I want.
I use Just Strings.com. You can get individual strings there. Warren May will sell you a set I am sure. He is still making a few dulcimers at his shop at home.
Hi everyone, looking to buy some strings for my Warren May dulcimer, takes ball end. In his papers that came with the dulcimer he notes .012, .012, .014 and .022 for the string sizes. Most of the “sets” I’m seeing are different gauges or are loop end. I went to d’addario web site to look at just getting individual strings but the options were a bit overwhelming. Any suggestions?
Strumelia:
Hi Mike, I moved this discussion to the forum about specific instrument makers and questions, so people could find it better.
Sorry though i have not heard of Danmont Dulcimers. Perhaps someone else here will have and can respond.
Thank you Strumelia for the proper posting category.
I'm not familiar with the format, first time here.
I will, as Ken suggested, take some pix and edit this post.
My focus is to locate the maker, or someone who has knowledge of same.
Would like very much to get this instrument into the hands of anyone who has
considerable interest in owning it. It's not about money, but rather sentimentality.
I am very much saddened by this news. Rest In Peace Rob.
Great thread!
I'd like to bring up two other points that may not have been mentioned yet-
1) I see a lot of beginner dulcimer players struggle with making chords- having a hard time both making the reaches and also with weak fingers and hands that don't effectively fret. If you have this problem, be sure to check the ANGLE of your fingers as you fret . Many beginners fret with their hands horizontally held low- like a pianist or like someone typing on a computer keyboard. As any violin teacher will tell you, it's important to raise your hands up in an arch so that your fingers come down onto the strings from straight above and you use the tips of your fingers to fret effectively. The mountain dulcimer makes this super easy because it lies flat and we fret it from above already. Fingers and hands held low/flat/sideways and fretting with the fat pad of the fingers make weak sounds and can't make stretches as easily. Read my blog post about " Lazy Fingers " and see if you can improve your hand/finger position and angle.
2) I hope that everyone who is having a hard time making chord stretches is actually utilizing their thumb and their pinky as well? I see some people playing chord style dulcimer using only two or three fingers of their left hand. That really limits the notes you can reach... similar to typing with two fingers.
Guitar, mandolin, and banjo players usually do not fret notes with their thumbs. But we mountain dulcimer players have a huge advantage there, because we don't need our thumbs to wrap around and hold up the neck of our instruments...instead our instrument lies right in our lap or on a table or stand and our entire left hand and all its 5 fingers are FREE to use in making chords and stretches. Take advantage of this gift and USE your pinky and thumb for fretting too! Do a few simple hand exercises every day to strengthen and stretch all your fingers- it works over time and really does make a difference. 
This makes me so sad…….
He was what makes the dulcimer community so wonderful! Prayers for his family and friends 🙏
Norma and I attended a good many sessions by or with Bob in the Morgantown-Fairmont-Fort New Salem, WV over the past eight or ten years. He was always good company.
We now remember not seeing him at dulcimer events over the past year or so.
We will miss him.
This is such sad news. Rob was a great friend to all members of FOTMD, and he liked to greet new members personally when they joined, with a welcoming comment on their page. He did this as a labor of love for many years.
Rob was a great teacher and encourager in music and song. He loved history and tradition and was a treasure trove of knowledge. We are indeed blessed that Rob posted 57 videos here in our videos section. I encourage everyone to listen to some of his songs and tunes .
I know he will be deeply missed by so many of us. Rest in peace Rob.
Very sad news. Thanks for letting us know, Ken. I just posted on the funeral home website and I encourage others to do so. I only knew Rob from FOTMD and YouTube, but I will miss our interactions greatly.
I offer my sympathies to Rob's family and friends.
Here is a link to the obituary for Rob Lackey. https://spicermullikin.com/robert-neil-lackey/ It is in the chat area, but I know some folks don't use that. Rob was one of our greeters here. He was a wonderful dulcimer player besides being an accomplished guitarist. He was very active in the mountain dulcimer and folk music communities around Fairmount, WV. He will be missed by family and friends.
Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
My deepest thanks to the folks who have again stepped up to help support this site. You know who you are. 
It's often the same ten or so members each year who show their generosity. If you regularly enjoy the resources here and have never donated before, if you are comfortably able to make a donation I would greatly appreciate it.
It costs about $75/month in server and software fees to keep FOTMD running. Making a donation is easy- just use the site's Home page Paypal Donation button and use a credit card to complete it (you don't need a paypal account to do this). Members who donate $35 or more will see a "Patron" label on their profile page.
Many Thanks to those who help out!
As I have noted before, there is still a culture of "cigar box" instrument makers, many of whom are now making instruments with electric pickups. I suspect that wood from shipping boxes for various imports was used because it was available in usable "thinnesses."
Nate said "I assume the original developers of dulcimers were very innovative folks who were applying the concepts of older zithers to the materials they had in the Appalachians. This makes it hard for me to tell the difference between deliberate choices made by the 'masters of old' and choices made purely out of necessity. It's hard for me to imagine that they would have used staple frets if they had access to fretwire."
You have to remember that those "innovative folks...applying the concepts of older zithers...": were not consciously doing anything.
They were random, scattered individuals who heard and/or saw an instrument someone had -- who in turn had seen/heard someone else's instrument... back through time to the zitters which came over in the late 1500s/early 1600s. There probably were no Euro-trained luthiers among the Moravians, the builders to follow were trying to replicate instruments that had come from the old country. -- out of necessity. Staple frets of the early 19th century were the high-tech of the time. prior to that there were wood/bone/ivory inlaid frets or the tied gut frets of Lutes. Mushroom frets weren't invented until the mid 1800s in Europe.
Ken said:
.... There probably were no Euro-trained luthiers among the Moravians, the builders to follow were trying to replicate instruments that had come from the old country....
Nor among the Germans, Scots, Irish, etc. but it is almost certain that simple fiddles were being made and played. As I have noted before, there is still a culture of "cigar box" instrument makers, many of whom are now making instruments with electric pickups. I suspect that wood from shipping boxes for various imports was used because it was available in usable "thinnesses."
I can remember 75 years ago when "orange crates" were made of rather high quality stock about 1/4 inch thick. Cub Scout manuals provided plans for making stuff from such readily available recyclables."
Ken also said "prior to that there were wood/bone/ivory inlaid frets or the tied gut frets of Lutes. Mushroom frets weren't invented until the mid 1800s in Europe."
I can imagine using the wood from small boxes set in slots cut with a cross-cut or furniture maker's back saw as frets. I seem to recall that some match boxes had wood parts when I was a child, and you can produce small pieces of thin wood with a simple plane.
It's easy to envision hill folks as "having nothing," but the reality is that most communities had craftsmen capable of making windows and doors and their frames, country furniture, etc. as well as the occasional gift of extremely high quality. There would have been good quality saws, planes, knives, and chisels, in most of the smallest villages and on many farms.
Most hill folks went to the county, or township, seat to pay taxes, serve on juries, consult real estate lawyers, and so on. The men-folks served in the army. They didn't live in complete isolation and saw most of the "high tech" of the day.
While I have been part of a university community I have had neighbors who lived with more-or-less 1899 resources, so I have some first hand knowledge.
And we know that many of the earliest dulcimer vendors lived in towns.
Nate said "I assume the original developers of dulcimers were very innovative folks who were applying the concepts of older zithers to the materials they had in the Appalachians. This makes it hard for me to tell the difference between deliberate choices made by the 'masters of old' and choices made purely out of necessity. It's hard for me to imagine that they would have used staple frets if they had access to fretwire."
You have to remember that those "innovative folks...applying the concepts of older zithers...": were not consciously doing anything.
They were random, scattered individuals who heard and/or saw an instrument someone had -- who in turn had seen/heard someone else's instrument... back through time to the zitters which came over in the late 1500s/early 1600s. There probably were no Euro-trained luthiers among the Moravians, the builders to follow were trying to replicate instruments that had come from the old country. -- out of necessity. Staple frets of the early 19th century were the high-tech of the time. prior to that there were wood/bone/ivory inlaid frets or the tied gut frets of Lutes. Mushroom frets weren't invented until the mid 1800s in Europe.
It is interesting to think that at a time when European antecedents were 'traditional,' at one point the dulcimer was probably considered an innovative new thing. I wonder if there were once epinette players who saw new fancy zitters shaped like violins with heart shaped soundholes and looked down on them for not being traditional.
Your real question is too big for me to answer, but I'm sure some folks on here definitely could. If you havent already I recommend joining the Dulcimer History group
https://fotmd.com/ken-longfield/group/38/mountain-dulcimer-history-traditions
and the Dulcimer Ancestors group
https://fotmd.com/strumelia/group/14/dulcimer-ancestors
Imagining epinette players scoffing at the newfangled zitters brings a smile! If you have any more insights or fun anecdotes, feel free to share!
If you're lucky there is a dust/pressure/scratch some sort of mark on the surface of the fretboard. Otherwise measure from the inside edge of the nut to the top of the 7th fret and double that from the inside edge of the nut to the inside edge of where the nut is a good place to put the bridge to start. Position may need a bit of tweaking from there...
Thank you all for your guidance! Yes, I figured out you don’t remove all the strings at once once I realized the bridge has fallen off and was somewhere on the living room rug 😉. I need to take it in to a luthier here to get something addressed and he’s going to help me with replacing the bridge in the right spot. I think I saw a video on how to figure out where the bridge should be, but now I can’t locate it.
Welcome! Warren is a great resource and still building a few instruments a year at his home shop. He'll happily answer your questions.
I would leave his instrument tuned DAA or Ddd, and have your other instrument with the 6+ tunned to DAd since it was probably built with that tuning in mind.
A wipe down with a damp rag is the perfect cleaning process.
One thing to note is that when changing strings we almost never recommend stripping the instrument 'bare' as you called it. The reason is that if the instrument has no mark or slot where the bridge is supposed to go, it can be a real pain to get it back in the proper place so the instrument sounds correct -- the distance between nut and fret is critical to within a millimeter or so.... Better just to get in the habit of removing and replacing one string at a time.
Haven't heard of the maker, but a photo or two would help us ID the instrument.
