For questions related to the act of constructing your own instruments.
Questions tagged [instrument-making]
12 questions
28
votes
15 answers
What modern innovations have been/are being made for the piano?
The piano underwent major changes between its invention ca. 1700 through the late 1800s: the double escapement, the iron frame, cross-stringing, among others. But the piano reached a mature state by the late 1800s and is largely unchanged since ...…
Aaron
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11
votes
2 answers
How do I know where to place holes on an instrument?
I've been trying to build a double reeded instrument out of plastic straws. I've run into a problem though, when I place fingering holes, the instrument doesn't seem to follow the $$f=/frac{nv}{4L}$$ formula. Is there a formula that would allow me…
tox123
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10
votes
5 answers
Building an electric guitar from scratch
I want to make an electric guitar by myself from scratch. How can I do this?
davs
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7
votes
2 answers
How many tone holes are there actually in different orchestral woodwind instruments?
I'm trying to make my own bamboo flute or perhaps "saxophone" of sorts, and before wasting any material I want to have the right construction plans.
I've seen some examples of simple types of bamboo flutes, but they usually seem to be built for one…
TLSO
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6
votes
1 answer
Sound changes: Putting curves or bends into a straight horn
I have some straight bell horns that are 26" and 29". They are powered by air compression tanks and have a very deep tone. I'm curious as to how bends in the horn would change it. Would they then need to be shorter? Will air pressure need to be…
lookifyouwant
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6
votes
1 answer
What are the technical measures of a tenor recorder?
A friend wants to make a tenor recorder from scratch (he is already a gaita maker), and asked me for the technical measures to do it, I searched through the web but couldn't found any complete reference on how to do it, its measures, etc.
So, what…
Diosney
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5
votes
1 answer
Why do classical guitars necks meet the body at fret 12th and steel strings at fret 14th?
Is there a reason for this? What exactly is the reasoning behind it?
Neil Meyer
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4
votes
1 answer
Is a wind-string instrument (such as the one I will explain) acoustically possible?
I've always had this concept of an instrument, but I am wondering if such an instrument is even acoustically possible.
The instrument is a tube, like most other woodwinds, but inside of the tube is a string that is stretched along the length of the…
Sam
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4
votes
4 answers
Cajon - What thickness Plywood should I use for the playing surface?
A standard Cajon is not easily available in my locality. So I have started building my own, using plywood.
For the playing surface, the minimum thickness of plywood available is 4mm. Is it good sounding for the Cajon? Is there any alternative to…
afelixj
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3
votes
2 answers
Wooden Saxophone Project
So my friend was planning on making an all wooden saxophone. I thought it was a pretty good idea but had some doubts in it like the piston valves and such. I saw this being a problem because of the springs. My friend suggested just making air-holes…
Joseph Casey
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1
vote
3 answers
Could one make a piano with all notes placed on narrow white keys?
This piano would include every note normally on a piano, just without any visual distinction between the accidentals and naturals. The keys would be narrower than normal white keys, but, I think, not as narrow as black keys. Has this been done?…
Jonathan
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0
votes
1 answer
How do you ream a conical bore when making a woodwind instrument?
There isn't a lot of documentation on how reaming woodwind instruments works, and how you do it. Is there a specific method to making a smooth conical bore, like in that of an oboe? I've seen people use D-bits, but I don't understand how you can…
Noah
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