BL Workshop
Make a Native-American Drum
You can create your own Native-American drum. Here’s how:
WHAT YOU’LL NEED:
- Drill with 1/8- and 1/4-inch bits
- Tin snips or shears
- Awl or nail
- Sandpaper
- Source of heat (hair dryer or heat gun)
- Section of very thin plywood (1/88 inch, like veneer) 4 inches wide by 4 feet long
- 1 sheet of rawhide about 24 inches square
- 12-inch leather lace
- 4 to 6 feet of stout cord such as artificial sinew or masonry cord
- Oil-based paint
WHAT YOU’LL DO:
STEP 1: Sand plywood until the edges are smooth. Soak the plywood in water overnight or until it bends easily without splitting or breaking (this might take longer than one night).
STEP 2: Gently bend plywood into a circle about 14 inches in diameter (heating the wood with a hair dryer will help it bend). The edges will overlap several inches. Tie the circle together around the overlaps with string or rope — anything that will keep it together. Set aside to dry about two days in a warm, dry area out of the sun. This is the body of the drum.
STEP 3: With the 1/8-inch bit, drill a series of holes where there is an overlap. Two holes near the beginning of the overlap and two near the end will work. Thread cordage through the holes three times and tie them on the inside with square knots. This holds the drum’s shape. Now you can remove the material you used to tie the wood together.
STEP 4: Lay the drum on the rawhide and draw a pencil outline two inches wider than the diameter of the circle. Draw four tabs about two inches long, equally spaced around the perimeter. Cut around outlined rawhide, including the four tabs, and soak in water overnight.
STEP 5: Cut as many 1/4-inch-wide strips as the remaining rawhide allows. You might need all of them, but probably not. Make these “rawhide thongs” as long as you can. Soak them in water. Once the thin rawhide bends easily, it’s time to use the thongs for tying. Pierce two holes in each of the four tabs about one-third of an inch from the edge. Then punch holes around the edge of the rawhide the same distance from the edge.
STEP 6: Take a thong and feed it through the holes in the tab; then go to the opposite tab and feed the thong through those holes. Slowly pull as tightly as you can and tie securely. Repeat with the other tabs. It should now look like an “X” on the underside of the drum.
STEP 7: Start at one of the tabs and thread a thong through a hole, then the next hole and tie a knot. Continually thread thongs through the holes and pull as tightly as possible until you complete the circle of the drumhead and arrive at the tab you started from. Then wrap the cords of the underside as tightly as you can.
STEP 8: Let the drum dry. It will shrink. Do not play until it is hard. If you try to play it too early, the tone will be dull. When it’s dry, add a handle. Drill two holes with the 1/4-inch bit on the side, spaced about four inches from each other. Use soft leather lace and tie on the inside.
STEP 9: Paint a design. Let dry. Use a soft-headed drumstick for playing.
Read 14 comments about “Make a Native-American Drum”
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August 21st, 2008 at 4:09 pm
nice
August 18th, 2008 at 12:21 am
You can acquire a nice piece of deer rawhide for around $30 from your local Powwow. Look for the fur & hide vendors. The frame can be made from a green slab of white cedar (commonly called arbor vitea). Make a plywood mold so you can steam bend several for as many as you want to make. A steam bender can be made from a down spout and a teapot. If you are going to use plywood for the frame, make small cuts half way through the plywood back to help the bending and keep it from splitting. Make the cuts about every 1/4″. Another place to find materials is ebay. They sell frames, rawhide and the rawhide lacing.
March 20th, 2008 at 4:23 pm
this is cool, You could try it with a bigger peice of plywood to make it more of a colonial drum.
January 28th, 2008 at 5:19 pm
where do i get the wood
December 26th, 2007 at 3:22 pm
exelentrific
December 9th, 2007 at 11:31 am
were do u get raw hide?
November 30th, 2007 at 10:51 pm
awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
November 9th, 2007 at 8:38 am
GeoGuy,
You can find rawhide at craft and fabric stores, leather craft shops (if there’s one where you live), and online (www.tandyleatherfactory.com). Good luck in your search!
November 6th, 2007 at 5:56 pm
Looks cool. I’ll try it and notify you if it’s good.
November 1st, 2007 at 6:52 am
that is so cool