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Technical Building a Bodhran Lee Allan's Bodhran
Technical Building a Bodhran Lee Allan's Bodhran
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| Lee's Bodhran Building |
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Drum And Writeup by Lee Allan, Australia
Diameter is 13"
Rim depth is 4"
Head is kangaroo
Given this is my first attempt, I have made this one
non-tunable, however I did add a "fixed" internal ring to (a) house the tacks
and (b) to allow for a raised schamfer for the skin. This is the same principal
as a tunable "ring" only that it is fixed. I think it helps in reducing the
"zingy buzz" a little more and I have put some tape around the drum to reduce
the vibration as well.
  For construction I used 1.5mm ply and a home made "jig" i
fashioned from an old bin (see photos). I attached timber to the outside of the
bin so too increase the diameter and figured 13" would hopefully be lucky
enough. The glue I used was of a boat builders grade and was very adhesive -
best to follow the instructions and wear gloves (it's not good on the bare
skin!). I secured each outer layer (3 in total) with adjustable "strap
clamps". It worked quite well with each layer adhering to the other and no
drummy spots. The circumference is almost perfect, just a couple of wee flat
spots.
 As for the skin, and as everyone knows, this is the "nuts
and guts" of a drum, I used kangaroo. That decision was prettty much a given as
I'm here in Australia and the poor old roo is considered a pest, moreso at the
moment due to the drought and consequently are quite readily available.  I was
having a fair bit of trouble removing the remaining fat and tissue from the
inner side of the skin. When I was in Ireland last month I paid a visit to
Seamus O'Kane and he gave me a couple of tips for this process (he's a real
gentleman). I'm quite pleased with the end result, at least the skin does not
smell like "outback roadkill". I mananged to get the skin relatively thin and
even over the whole area and it is very responsive and gives lovely top end
"pops". With some playing I'm pretty sure it will get better.  As it is
non-tunable, when it's hot and dry the skin responds by getting tight, however
all it needs is a wipe with a lightly dampened dish cloth and the
skin loosens enough to give substantially more variance. Putting the skin to
the frame is not as easy as I thought, hence the rather untidy tackline, but it
does the job and holds the skin to the rim nicely. 
I'm going to attempt a tunable drum next time. I'm having
trouble finding appropriate materials for the tensioners/ tuning blocks so if
anyone has any suggestions please let me know. I was hoping to find some type
of plastic as opposed to brass/ metal, so if anyone has an idea that they think
may work please drop me a line. Also, if anyone has some tips/ advice on skin
softening methods etc, it would be great to hear of also.
All in all I'm quite pleased with the end result. I have
given this drum to my 5 year old daughter Niamh, so now both she and I can annoy
the jaxie out of the boss in the house - revenge is sweet, but payback's are
double - I'll keep you posted.
I have attached some photos, so if you could post them for
me it would be appreciated. Ias you well know, it's very pleasing to make
something and find at the end it actually works. I'm hoping my next one will be
even better. Keep up the great work with bodojo and the academy!
Cheers
Lee
Australia
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