From DADs To RUDs - We've Got You Covered!
Good Morning, Y'all, and Happy Friday!
We've been super busy in the shop this week. Cheyenne finished hand sanding (a long, tedious, and surprisingly exacting process) four instruments this week. Plus, he did repairs on several customer instruments. Including two (two!) more Homer Ledford dulcimers. That brings us to five Ledford dulcimers so far this year. Usually a "repair" on a Ledford dulcimer involves gluing all the parts back together, then sanding and refinishing. (Evidently, Mr. Ledford's instruments are famous for spontaneous disassembly). Not enough glue seems to be the consensus on "why."
I heard Elon Musk talking about one of his SpaceX rockets blowing up. He called the explosion a "RUD." Which is aerospace/spacecraft/rocket lingo for "Rapid Unscheduled Disassembly."
Here's a RUD from SpaceX. When asked about failures like this, Mr. Musk is pragmatic - "Nobody was hurt. We learned a lot." It's a working strategy - test to find weaknesses, then design improvements to eliminate the weaknesses.
I'd definitely recommend that you avoid having RUD's with your dulcimers. But if you do experience a RUD, we can definitely fix it for you. Modern dulcimers (ours, and other builders) are generally made with a wood glue that's quite strong, which seems to hold up well over time. Early Folkcraft, and early FolkRoots dulcimers aren't yet having RUD issues, even though plenty of them are 50+ years old already.
The most common repair we do on our instruments (other than regular maintenance items - string changes, and fret dressing) is reattaching a broken-off head. Since a scroll head, or a flat head, is attached to a dulcimer's body with glue and a bolt, it is the weakest part of an instrument's construction. A broken-off head is designed like the bumper of a car - it takes a jolt so that the rest of the instrument (or the passenger of an auto) survives the impact with minimal to no damage.
And with (almost) all of this week's repairs out of the way, here's what I have on my "to do" list:
One wall of the Folkcraft showroom in Woodburn, Indiana, displaying various dulcimers "in progress."
The photo above shows just one of the walls in our showroom. On it are the dulcimers I need to get rubbed out, and strung up, so they can go on the website. Six columns of dulcimers that are built and lacquered!
The far left column has four LAP-JOs. The next one has two DulciVoxes. The third column from the left has two resonator dulcimers - you can see the giant holes in the tops! The fourth column from the left has three FolkRoots H Series dulcimers. The fifth column from the left has three MaxDAD dulcimers. And the sixth column, all the way to the right, has three Folkcraft Custom Series dulcimers.
Helpful? Or A Waste Of Time?
A couple of years ago, I kept a page of "dulcimers in progress" on the Folkcraft.com website. I'm considering adding that page again - photos and specs of instruments that are to this stage of construction/setup. Would you find that helpful, or is it a waste of my time? I'm open to suggestions, for sure.
We already have a page called "Mountain Dulcimers, Ready To Ship." and another page called "Mountain Dulcimers, Design Your Own." The potential new page would be titled "Mountain Dulcimers, In Progress." As you can see, I'm highly creative with my naming strategies. Although I could name the new page "MOUNTAIN DULCIMERS YOU HAVE TO BUY NOW - BEFORE THEY'RE GONE! LET ME GO TALK TO MY MANAGER AND GET YOU SPECIAL FINANCING! HURRY - HURRY - HURRY!" But frankly, even though it must work for car dealerships, I think it would be a little tasteless for a dulcimer maker.
I'm going to wrap this up now - my workbench is calling.
Have a great weekend, Y'all - go make some music!
Richard Ash - luthier-who's-pretty-low-key-about-pushing-dulcimers-into-a-player's-face
FOLKCRAFT® DULCIMER PLAYER OF THE WEEK: KAREN POUNDS
Folkcraft: How long have you been playing the dulcimer?
Karen: I started trying to play dulcimer in 2010. I struggled because I got a dulcimer that had a 28-inch VSL. Since I have small hands, it didn’t work out too well.
Folkcraft: When did you get your first Folkcraft dulcimer?
Karen: I accidentally came across a Folkcraft dulcimer late in 2010 and fell in love with it. It had a shorter VSL than my previous instrument. I recently purchased a custom dulcimer from Folkcraft - with crawfish and morel sound holes! Thank you, Richard, they are beautiful! It sounds so amazing! So now I have three Folkcraft dulcimers: two hourglass and one teardrop.
Folkcraft: Where do you enjoy playing your dulcimer?
Karen: I enjoy playing at church, festivals, and with our group here in Missouri.
Folkcraft: What other hobbies or interests do you have besides playing dulcimer?
Karen: I enjoy hiking, reading, camping, sewing, crochet, and...
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF KAREN'S STORY AND ABOUT OTHER FOLKCRAFT PLAYERS LIKE KAREN & YOU!
FOLKCRAFT® PLAYERS - WE KEEP HOPING TO HEAR FROM MORE OF YOU!
No new Folkcraft Player to feature this week, but we are delighted to re-feature Karen Pounds. How're you doing, Karen? Hope you have a good summer!
Who's Going To Write In Next? Keep The Family Growing?
It really is super-easy to join our online dulcimer community. Just three easy steps:
1) Send an email to: newsletter@folkcraft.com
2) With the answers to the four questions below
3) Attach a photo of yourself with your Folkcraft dulcimer(s)
We look forward to receiving your submission & featuring you in our newsletter real soon!
1. How long have you been playing the dulcimer?
2. When did you get your first Folkcraft dulcimer?
3. Where do you enjoy playing your dulcimer?
4. What other hobbies, or interests, do you have besides playing dulcimer?
WE'RE OFFERING A $25 FOLKCRAFT GIFT CARD TO ANYONE WHO ANSWERS THE FOUR EASY QUESTIONS LISTED ABOVE, AND SENDS IN A PHOTO (OF YOU WITH YOUR FOLKCRAFT DULCIMER). IT'S REALLY SO EASY TO DO!
This Week's Featured YouTube Video:
This week, we will work on (and think about) that "A" string. It’s important to realize you can find some notes closer to where your hand currently is on your middle string. I'll show you how. Have fun! Just click on the image below to listen & learn.
We have a slew (that's a fancy luthier word for "bunch") of videos for you to watch on our YouTube channel. Click here to see the full list. Be sure to comment on a video, and subscribe to the channel - either action helps us a LOT with YouTube's suggestion algorithms.
WALTZES
by Dana Gruber
Dance along to the enchanting sounds of waltz music from around the world with Dana Gruber's "Waltzes" book. Arranged specifically for mountain dulcimer, each piece is presented in both standard notation and dulcimer tablature, making it accessible for players of all levels. Elevate your music repertoire with this captivating collection from one of the dulcimer world's finest arrangers. (42 pages - some tunes require a capo)
This book is published by Fingers Of Steel, and is made available here as an authorized, licensed download.
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Andreev's Waltz - Traditional Russian Folk Waltz
El Coyote - Southwestern Waltz
Elie's Waltz (capo needed)
Life In The Finland Woods
Metsakukkia (Forest Flower) Waltz - Traditional Finnish (capo needed)
Oh My Little Dutch Girl
Old Rusty Mill Waltz (capo needed)
Peek-A-Boo Waltz
Rockin' My Babies To Sleep
Slumber My Darling - Stephen Foster
The Old Man Waltz
Valse Apasionado (The Passionate Waltz)
Waltz Of The Hills
Waltz Of The Little Girls (Melody, Harmony, and Bass Parts) - Russian Folk Song
White Rose Waltz