Didge Making

[Scally]

One of the local didgeridoo players asked if I could make him some didgeridoos.

The idea was to use solid sticks and shape them to his liking.

This our first attempt.
The stick were cut in half on a bandsaw.

The centre hole was carved out with an arbortec. It went pretty quickly but it wasn't really uniform.

On the next stick I made up a base for the router with two dowels as guides. They should keep the router cut in the centre of the stick. Then the two halves should match up.

It was a bit tricky following the rough edges of the two halves but ended up with neat half-round channels.

Epoxy was used to glue the two halves back together.

After the glue dried, the mouthpiece was shaped inside and out.

A quick sound check......Not too bad.

Next is to shape the outside.

[Scally]

The first didge sound file.

[Sebastiaan56]

Is that you playing Scally? Ive always thought it the most amazingly expressive instrument. Well done, I like the character of the timber.

[Scally]

My playing is much more basic.

Terry is the player. He has worked out in the middle of Australia with the locals for several years and picked up some great techniques.

It is such a unique sound.
His idea is to find interesting sticks and make them into didgeridoos. This one was the trunk of a dead tree in my backyard.

I am having trouble with epoxy glue. It doesn't want to set properly with these timbers. PVAs are working better. Maybe they need that bit if give that is in the PVAs.

We shaped up a few smaller, hollow sticks the other day. Mainly shaping the mouthpiece and the opening. I sanded one to #500 and gave it a coat of Livos oil. It came up beautifully.
They sound OK but don't have the warmth of the larger ones that we made.

He is away getting more ideas so I expect we will have some new ideas to test shortly.
Probably some more sticks.

[HiString]

Scally,

What kind of epoxy is it and how old? Have you done a small test mix to check gel and set times etc?

:cool:

[artme]

Fantastic sound!!!:2tsup::2tsup::2tsup:

The Didgeridoo is one of the few instruments that grabs my attention and holds it. Love the sound.

[Scally]

It is West epoxy HiString and only a few months old.

I should do some tests because I have never had this problem before.

The last time I used it I was very precise with the ratios and used syringes - 5ml to 25ml so it would be exactly 1:5.


I added fibres and sawdust to the mix. Maybe I added too much.

[stevemc32]

G'day Scally,

I've been considering this method of didge making for some time but as yet have not given it a go. Your success has sent me out in the yard looking for something suitable. This is what I've found.

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Now, if you can spare a bit of time I've got a few questions.

Do these look suitable?

I cut them from a fallen tree that I guess has been on the ground for a few years. I've noticed that one of them has started to crack along the timber at the thinner end but I plan to cut this part off. Is there a way to ensure they don't start to crack along the entire length?

Finally, did you use a jig to run your didge through the bandsaw or just freehand?

Thanks for your help,
Steve.

[Scally]

Go for it Steve.

It was pretty much suck it and see for me.

I couldn't think of a jig to cut them in half so it was done freehand.

Your sticks look about 2m long. The one on the right looks a good thickness.
The other looks a bit thin but the bulge on the end it what they like to see,

I bought a hollow stick at the WWW show and it ended up with some cracks.
This must be pretty common.

If you can find smaller holes it would be no problem to fill them. Bigger cracks might be difficult.

Apparently it is a common practice these days to flood the inside with PVA to fill even fine cracks.
Pour glue in one end - rotate the stick to get all the surface covered, maybe block one end and sluish it around. Then drain the excess into a bucket.
It is difficult to blow and get a good sound if there are cracks or holes.

I have read that the flute makers do a similar thing except they use estapol or similar. This is to stop the wood getting wet with prolonged playing.

If you seal the inside then put a finish on the outside, I expect that cracking should be minimal.

See how you go.

[stevemc32]

Thanks Scally.

They're both about 2.4m long at this stage so if I cut them down to get a 2.5 inch mouthpiece I should get about 1.4m from the smaller one and over 1.8m from the bigger one. I doubt I've got enough air in me to keep a 1.8m didge running so I'll probably have to shorten it from the big end.

Thanks again for your help.

[Sebastiaan56]

I have read that the flute makers do a similar thing except they use estapol or similar. This is to stop the wood getting wet with prolonged playing.

Its actually for the reason you mentioned Scally, leaks = poor tone and tuning. On finer instruments wax or oil is impregnated to preserve the timber. The choice of timber is critical as cracks swell and... well you know what happens.

[Scally]

Yes Seb this timber is tricky stuff.
A mate is trying to carve a djembe from a Camphor Laurel log. Too much hard work for me. He never has any skin left on his knuckles.
He brought it to me for advice on how to stop it cracking. He waxed the end grain and the cracks closed up in a few days.

How are you going with your ticks Steve?

I don't think the length matters as far as playing goes. The main think is that the timber is sealed so no air escapes.
My mates says that he can tell if air is escaping as soon as he starts playing.

I'd keep the big end if I wanted to shorten the didge. That's the bit they really like.

[stevemc32]

I've had a go at the smaller stick and only just got some beeswax onto the mouthpiece today.

It looks fantastic. :D

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I'm a little disappointed in the sound though, there are quite a few cracks in it so I'm guessing I've got a leak or two somewhere. I didn't pay too much attention to the parting line so that could be causing a few leaks as well.

I might try filling all the external cracks with wax and see if that makes a bit of a difference.

I ended up chipping out the inside of each piece with an old chisel as I didn't have a decent sized cove bit and the sanding disc on the angle grinder wasn't good for much but starting fires... :rolleyes: Might have to look into one of those arbortec blades if I go ahead with the next one.

[Scally]

It looks pretty cool. You wont see one like that in a shop.

You are keen using a chisel.
Even using the big arbortec cutter it was steady work.
The router does a nice neat job but I still use the arbortec to do the ends. It is good for shaping the outside quickly too.

I made a couple of thin didges and I didn't like the sound much either. The fat ones have a much better sound.
I put a heavy coat of glue on the inside when I was gluing the two halves back together to try to seal any leaks. It didn't get them all.
Their were a couple of cracks and knots that I filled from the outside.
The problem is the small cracks that you can't see.

I guess that is why they flood the inside so the glue gets all over the inside surface.

My glue-line is pretty obvious. It would be good if you could split the stick in half. Then you should get a near-invisible join. I think you would stuff a lot of sticks unless you had a good straight grain.

[Zarguld]

do you think that this router bit is large enough to make a nice line in each half of the log before gluing them back together?:2tsup:

[InkSpot]

For many years I have tried to hollow out various aged hardwood sticks with a variety of drills, short, long, slow speed, high speed, etc. etc. But in the end could not keep the drill bits centred and only 1 four footer came out ok. I am told it can be done on a specially set up wood lathe by rolling the wood and keeping the drill-bit fixed but have never tried this and the stick must be faily straight for this as well. Have since made didges by cutting suitable sticks in half and gluing them together with PVC glue which works very well. Tried PVC glue mixed with sawdust but did not get any good results. A few things to remember, the size of the hole in the didge combined with the length of the didge will give it the tone B,C,D etc. That is calculated with the formula related to the speed of sound travelling through the didge when you play it. The didge must not have any cracks in it whatsoever because even the smallest hairline will make it more difficult to play and affects the sound. With Australian hardwoods that is not so easy as they crack easily and the ageing process is difficult and lengthy. Woollybut seems to be very popular but I have tried a variety of hard woods and they all work; I prefer ironbark If you are lucky you can get a few sticks dried commercially and then hollow them but that is not cheap. There used to be a timberplace near Riverview close to Ipswich where that could be done but that was a few years ago.You can find this information and lots more on the internet and it will take some time to gather it all together from the various sources but you will be surprised how much is available once you start to search. I never knew there were so many didgeridoo enthusiasts all over the world with a didge club in Alaska as well ! The purists prefer the Australian Eucalypt hardwood above all else since this seems to give the best internal vibrations and therefore the best sound. I am thinking of buying two halves commercial hardwood and shaping that into a 1.2 mtr with a big bell shape at the bottom end for a nice sound. Picked up from the flute builders that the internal sides must be as smooth as possible and will do that this time as well. This is a bit of a challenge and we shall see what comes out of it in the end. All the best.

[ptaplin]

Hi,
There a guy in the UK called Ant Scott that makes split Didjes and they sound and play fantastic. (I know, I have a few) his website is http://www.thenattyshed.co.uk/ (http://www.thenattyshed.co.uk/).
In the past he has always been very helpful with advice and how to make them etc.
Cheers,
Phil.