Twenty Years Of Dulcimers, Laps, And Smiles
Good Morning, Y'all
Happy Friday!
This has been a good week here at the workshop. We're making great progress on nearly every "front." Each day starts with spraying lacquer (before we kick up too much dust!), and while the lacquer is curing (it takes anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour, depending on which coat it is) I'll fire up the various "low dust, low brain-fog" tools: the CNC router, or the CNC laser, and keep them occupied while making trips back and forth to the lacquer room.
This fretboard is now ready for frets. I spend a lot of time making dulcimer parts!
After a couple of hours, I'm done with lacquer for the day, have finished with the laser, and have either moved on to making parts (kicking up big clouds of sawdust in the wood shop), or to finishing off instruments that got their last coat of lacquer a day or two earlier.
How To Finish Off A Dulcimer In Five Easy Steps
To "finish off" a built/sanded/lacquered instrument, I have a series of steps that each instrument gets:
1) Level and Dress the Frets. I polish the fret ends, so they're not sharp and pointy, since none of Y'all want to bleed on your new dulcimers' fretboards. Then I check each fret to make sure it is the same height as the frets around it. Miss one fret, you could have fret buzzes, which we don't want!
The workshop has big windows along the front of the building, and smaller windows (up high) along either side of the building. This window is above my rub-out workbench.
2) Oil the Fretboard. I use a linseed-oil based fretboard oil, just on top of the fretboard, and just between the nut and the last fret (next to the strum hollow). Oil is better than lacquer for the fretboard top, since it doesn't get "sticky" or "tacky" in high heat and humidity. Plus, if you scratch your fretboard with your picks, oil can be touched up without a shop full of tools!
3) Rub Out the Finish. I use steel wool and soap (fancy luthier word for "steel wool lubricant") to smooth and polish the lacquer of your entire dulcimer. We use a variety of lacquer called "nitrocellulose lacquer." This finish has been around just over 100 years now, and it is still the gold standard for a lot of higher-end instruments.
Just a bit of trivia about nitrocellulose lacquer for you: Henry Ford used nitrocellulose lacquer for his automobiles, starting in the late 1920s. And to tie this in to our new shop? Henry Ford owned thousands of acres of woodlands here in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, and even had a company town (Alberta, Michigan) dedicated entirely to logging and wood product production. Why? Because his Model T automobiles had wood frames.
But back to "finishing off" a dulcimer! After the frets are perfect, the fretboard has been oiled, and the lacquer has been rubbed out:
4) Hardware. For a standard dulcimer, this would be machine heads, anchor pins, and strap buttons. A lot of instruments these days also get pickups, and pickups are installed at the "hardware" stage. Hardware is pretty quick for most instruments, but the hardware for a resonator dulcimer is more complicated, and the hardware for a LAP-JO? LAP-JOs take two or three hours. There are a LOT of pieces to a LAP-JO!
5) Nut, Bridge, and Strings. Here's where a lot of experience really helps. I'll make a nut, adjusting the width and thickness to fit "just right" in the nut slot, and then add the grooves (also called slots) that hold the strings. I'll make the nut "kind of tall" (another luthier phrase), then move on to the bridge. Guitar people call the "bridge" a "saddle," and I do, too, for our DulciVoxes. Same process for the bridge as the nut. Make it fit, make it kind of tall, and add string slots. Nuts and bridges can have anywhere from three to six slots, in all kinds of configurations.
All Strung Up and Ready To Strum
After the nut and bridge are made (both "kind of tall"), I'll add the strings. Then start fixing the "kind of tall," and getting the strings to the perfect height for playing. I'll put the strings close enough to the frets so they are easy to press down, but far enough from the frets that we don't end up with the dreaded "fret buzz." I usually aim for 2/32" string height next to fret one, and 4/32" string height starting at the top of the last fret.
String height is also known as "action" and everybody wants a "low action." But it's absolutely a balancing act - ease of play vs. fret buzz. My standard height of 2/32" and 4/32" is good for almost all of us. My personal instruments have this action. Bing's dulcimers have this action. Mandy's dulcimers have this action.
But Carol Walker? She gets a lower action. I get fret buzz playing her dulcimers. She doesn't. Dave Haas? He gets a higher action. There's no "right or wrong." This is definitely a personal preference thing.
After the action is set I test every fret for clarity of tone, and for fret buzz, and for intonation. Every fret, on every string. Just to be sure there's no further adjustment needed. I test the pickup as well. Then I let the dulcimer sit for a bit, then tune it up again (new strings!), and play it for a while. I've been playing "River" as my test song lately (from Heidi Muller's book of Bill Staines tunes). I generally play both slow tunes and fast tunes, just looking for things to fix before the instrument is ready to go. I might find a "dead note" (usually a bridge slot adjustment) or a string that doesn't have enough sustain (usually the bass string, which can generally be fixed with another bridge slot adjustment).
When a dulcimer is ready to go, I'll put it in a case, wrap the case in bubble wrap, then put the bubble-wrap-cocoon into a corrugated box for shipping.
At the end of the day, I walk from the workshop back home, to the cabin in the woods. It's nice all year long, but the past few weeks have given us a lot of color in our maple trees, and it's especially gorgeous.
There are a LOT of steps, and it's a slow process. But we end up with dulcimers that I enjoy playing, and it puts a smile on my face when my dulcimers put a smile on your faces.
Two Decades Of Dulcimer-Making
Thank you for letting me make your dulcimers, Y'all. Nine weeks from now, I'll have been making mountain dulcimers for 20 years. That's a lot of dulcimers, and a lot of laps, and a lot of smiles.
Thanks for reading, Y'all - I hope you each have a fantastic weekend. Go make some music!
Richard Ash - luthier-who-is-happy-to-have-such-an-amazing-job
This Week's Featured YouTube Video:
In this follow-up to last week's lesson, let’s get our three main chords a bit farther up the fretboard. Most of what Mandy will show you here are concepts for you to put into use. Get these three alternate locations under your fingers, and start throwing them into your arrangements. Have fun with it! Click on the image below to listen and 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.
FOLKCRAFT® DULCIMER PLAYER OF THE WEEK: GARY CURTIS
Folkcraft: How long have you been playing the dulcimer?
Gary: I began playing the dulcimer in 2024 so I could play along with my wife, Susie. At first, Susie "allowed" me to play one of her non-Folkcraft dulcimers, but eventually I was allowed to play one of her custom Folkcraft dulcimers and there was no turning back.
Folkcraft: When did you get your first Folkcraft dulcimer?
Gary: I ordered my first Folkcraft dulcimer from Richard and his outstanding team in February 2025 and just received it in June.
Folkcraft: Where do you enjoy playing your dulcimer?
Gary: I presently play my dulcimer "alone" (special note to you Richard) in our music room, but am occasionally joined by Susie to help give me tips and tricks to being a better musician. I'm also planning to attend my first dulcimer festival next summer - the 2026 ODPC Funfest in Evart, MI.
Folkcraft: What other hobbies, or interests, do you have besides playing dulcimer?
Gary: Until this year, I enjoyed making pure maple syrup every spring with Susie (since 2008, when we retired). However, as a result of...
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF GARY'S INTERVIEW AND READ ABOUT OTHER FOLKCRAFT PLAYERS LIKE GARY & YOU
FOLKCRAFT® PLAYERS - WE LOVE HEARING FROM YOU!
While we don't have a new player (alas!) to welcome to our online dulcimer community today, we are still delighted to re-feature fellow Michigander, Gary Curtis. Did you make it to the ODPC Funfest this past July, Gary? If so, hope you and Susie had a great time!
There's still plenty of room for more of you, folks! Maybe we could feature you and your Folkcraft dulcimer(s) next week?
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!
WE JUST LOVE HEARING FROM Y'ALL!
With the start of autumn comes shorter days. Kids have gone back to school. Less time working out in the yard and more time indoors. Hopefully you can use some of your new free time playing dulcimer. To help you out, we've got a couple instructional books to challenge you and expand your playing skills. The more you know, the better you play. The better you play, the more fun it is! Learn to flat-pick with the amazing Aaron O'Rourke and/or explore several different playing styles in a great book by Dana Gruber. (Just click on either cover to find out more.)
SECRETS TO SUCCESSFUL FLATPICKING
by Aaron O'Rourke
"Flatpicking." Not that hard, right? You play your dulcimer with a flat pick. Got it. Done. Moving on...
Not so fast, there! When we talk about flatpicking, we're discussing a whole range of skills and techniques, from using (of course!) a pick, but also where to pick, how to pick, when to choose one string over another, how to hold the pick, how to hold the instrument, and so much more.
This is the perfect book for someone who already plays the mountain dulcimer, either as a finger-picker (don't get me started again) or as a strummer. Once you get your head around the techniques that Aaron lays out for us here, you'll be able to create your own, unique style of play, mixing flat-picking with strumming and (if you're up for it) a bit of finger-picking.
The more you know, the better you play. The better you play, the more fun it is.
As usual, you can't go wrong with any of Aaron's books, and this is one of his very best. (49 pages)
PLAY PRETTY
by Dana Gruber
Here's another hybrid songbook/teaching book from the renowned performer and instructor, Dana Gruber. We've listed the song, along with the technique she's illustrating (in parentheses) below. All songs are in DAD tuning, unless otherwise noted. (40 pages)
These books are published by Fingers Of Steel, and are made available here as an authorized, licensed download.
LIST OF LESSON TUNES:
Shortinin' Bread
Liza Jane
Fly Around My Pretty Little Miss
Grey Cat on a Tennessee Farm
Rock the Cradle Joe
Soldier's Joy
St. Anne's Reel
Forked Deer
Turkey in the Straw
Oh, Susannah
Dry and Dusty
Cripple Creek
Killavil
Midnight on the Water
Spotted Pony
Wildwood Flower
Arkansas Traveler
Whiskey Before Breakfast
Bill Cheatum
Angelina Baker
Stoney Steps
PLAYING STYLES INCLUDED:
Aura Lee (Legato And 7th Chords)
Red Is The Rose (Fill Bass Notes)
Dixie (Playing With Feeling)
Drink To Me Only With Thine Eyes (Turns)
I Gave My Love A Cherry (Using A Capo) - Capo 3
All Things Are Quite Silent (Turns)
Gentle Annie (Seventh/Bridge Chords)
Do You Love An Apple (Syncopation)
Scarborough Fair (Flat-Picking)
Down By The Sally Gardens (Hammer-On)
Shenandoah (Musical Dynamics)
Farewell To Liverpool (Slides & Pull-offs)
Dixie (Utilizing The Middle String For Melody)
House Of The Rising Sun (Using A Capo/Playing Above The 7th Fret) - Capo 4