I finally did it, my first instrument from scratch

[Matthew Orifice]

So after 30yrs of having the itch, and many false starts and rebuild of other things ( including mating a Fender Jazz neck to a cello body). i finally made my first stringed instrument from scratch and i'm blown away. i made a prototype stick dulcimer/strumstick thingie. Basically because it was a case of can i make this instrument sound more full than what's out there i kind of had to start from design and build on the cheap. poplar neck fretted with a modern Appalachian dulcimer scale ( major scale + the extra flat 7th fret) 25" sale, 1/8 birch top and back and basswood sides linings cut from some old plywood door panels. 3" body depth with an ergo style body ( it's shaped a bit like a shark fin) off centre sound hole 4 strings tuned Dadd. lots of trial and error and realizing i was trying to re-invent the wheel in construction method made her less than pretty but WOW did i get a sound. i had to share to people who'd "get it" and i will post pics as soon as i finish her up. i'm going to build a second one with more instrument quality wood and one with a harmonic minor scale to do some belly dance accompaniment .

[Neal Carey]

Pics?

[Bryan Bear]

Congrats! It is a great feeling isn't it. I totally understand the need to share this information with people who get it. Usually when you show an instrument to someone, they ask something like "Are you going to hang this on the wall?" Then follow that up with dubious looks when you tell them it is a real playable instrument.

[Matthew Orifice]

i want to clean it up a bit , it's not WELL made ( we proto-typed it without a mold or guide, but there WILL be pics), the shockler to me is still that it sounds fantastic, and the look on a couple friends faces when i played it for them. I'll prolly have pics Monday or Tuesday so i'll upload them then. I'll also try to get some audio of it

[Patrick Hanna]

Yo, Matthew, don't be shy. I can't speak for everyone, but I'm eager to see your prototype stick / strumstick thingie.
Now that's a concept that demands some pics. And, no, I'm NOT making fun of you. I REALLY do want to see it! You should have seen my first instrument about 35 years ago. A very crude mountain dulcimer that I gave to my cousin for a wedding present. When he and that wife later divorced, she smashed it. She probably did the visually artistic people a favor by removing it from view. But it really did play easy and sound good.

[Kevin Hoffman]

Congratulations. Bud I no that first one had me scracthin my head.it feels food huh. I made this outta stuff I had around the house.it changed about a job thousand time but sound rocks for some good ole dirty blues

[Matthew Orifice]

so here it is ( assuming i get this part right)

[Matthew Orifice]

i have to re-fabricate the tail piece, it WAS bocote glued to the top but the 4th string ripped it off, i figure i'll combine a small hinge with some more wood for it. what's there currently is a make shift mmake do bit of stainless wire holding it on so i could finish checking the things that may have seriously gone wrong

[Charlie Schultz]

Great job Matthew, interesting design. I'm always happy when my instruments don't fold in half after I string 'em up <g>.

[Steve Senseney]

Nice work. Not exactly like the instruments you see in the store!

[Patrick Hanna]

Hey, Matthew, Nothin' wrong with that. Pardon my ignorance, but how does one play such an instrument? Do you hold it like a guitar? Or on your lap like a mountain dulcimer? Looks like the concave curved side would rest very nicely on your thigh. And I think if you follow up with additional instruments made to this pattern, it'll be easy for you to make them look as pretty as you care to make them. Nice concept. I like it!

[Jon Whitney]

Congratulations, it looks fine and very interesting. Is that a round sound hole with some decoration near it, or is decoration part of the hole shape?

[Matthew Orifice]

i hold it like a guitar using the arc in the treble for folk style or the one near the tailpiece for a classical style, the sound hole is the circle and the little tribal shape not a big sound hole but man does it have a pretty big sound. most of the time i use the lowest two strings as a drone and the paired high for melody, but simple chords are pretty easy to do. we're planning on doing a couple more of these, one in minor and one in harmonic minor. i am also dying for a travel 6 string with this body style, it's crazily comfortable but that's what i was going for. i'll try to get a good recording of it ( the one from my phone sounded like crud) and post that. currently working on instrument #2 an 8 string acoustic lap steel in the shape of a toe pincher coffin.

[Bryan Bear]

Looks cool. My first was a long necked dulcimer (shaped kind of like a Martin backpacker). I couldn't decide if I should put the melody strings on the "floor" side of the neck (like a guitar) or the "driver's side" to keep it like a traditional dulcimer. I can't tell from the picture which way yours is.

[Matthew Orifice]

strings go high to low like a guitar so the melody strings are floor side, it's tuned Dadd with 11, 11, 14, 24 putting some bronze wounds on it as soon as they get here

[Matthew Orifice]

Bryan, that was my actual inspiration (one maker refers to it as a "strumstick") however the one's i have heard didn't have a sound i liked, so i decided to redesign

[Bryan Bear]

Mathew,

That is how I did mine too. I overbuilt my first. I could use it to fight off a grizzly bear and itwould still be playable. Next I built one with a wider body (9 or 9 1/2 inches) and heavier gauge strings. It sounded much better but not so much dulcimer sounding. Also with the heavier strings the tension really changed the feel.

[Matthew Orifice]

this one sounds a bit like a cross between a mando and a guitar, this week is crazy for me so i don't have time to set up a recording rig but after the weekend i will and i'll post some audio clips and link to them.

[Matthew Orifice]

as promised a link to a youtube of the stick, it's from a camera phone so it's a tad tinny but it gets the idea across http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1g7cuWvlb8

[Andrew Berry]

Nice video. That's a great smile on his face at the end of the song.