Wednesday, 7 September 2016
The kids are building either a PVC flute or a cigar box diddley bow. Most of my attention today was on the latter, including my own diddley bow. When we’re done, we’ll use the flutes and diddley bows to study the physics of music. I’m anticipating hitting resonance, standing waves, harmonics, and mathematics of musical scales.
Some details from my diddley bow
Materials (total cost: $6-$7 each):
- cigar box (my local shop sells empties for $1)
- tuning peg (a 6 pack is about $7) https://amzn.com/B00IYGR316
- guitar string (a 6 pack is about $8) https://amzn.com/B0007XBNSS
- a 1″x2″ (aka “furring strip board”, an 8′ length is only $1!) http://www.homedepot.com/p/1-in-x-2in-x-8-ft-Furring-Strip-Board-160954/100009348
- a 2″ long 1/4×20 bolt with nut
Tools:
- drill with 1/16″ bit, 3/8″ spade bit, and 2″ hole saw bit
- saw
- dremel tool
- safety glasses
The tool wall is helpful but demands cleanup daily.
Student diddley bows in progress.
Close up of one student diddley bow.
If you have money for just one power tool in your room, a Dremel tool would be my choice. So versatile!
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