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| PVC didges, cont. One advantage of making a PVC didge is you can start playing it almost as soon as you leave the store where you bought the pipe. If you do "play" it, be sure to avoid any rough or gritty portions of the pipe. When you get home, smooth down these areas with wet sandpaper. If need be, do the work with the PVC under water. When the PVC is dry, you can do a number of things with it. You can cover it with colored tape (masking, electrician's, package and duct tape, that is) or acrylic paints. Beeswax is commonly used for mouthpieces but I've also heard of mouthpieces made from latex (especially vulcanized rubber), wood disks and epoxy putty. One PVC didge I used to have had a rubber grommet for a mouthpiece. Although I had no problems playing this particular instrument, I thought the rubber smelled a bit strong. If you have an allergy to latex, do not use this sort of material. Also please note: before epoxy putty has set, it gives of toxic fumes. You may need to cover the material further with a nontoxic compound, such as shellac. Health and safety are important, so you may wish to judge accordingly. Although beeswax can be messy, I prefer using it for my didgeridoos. Besides, it is natural and smells pleasant. The wax is sometimes used to lubricate metal screws; hence some home improvment and hardware stores may carry it. Beeswax candles are another excellent source. Form a mouthpiece by pinching off small pieces of beeswax and warm them in your hands. You can either make a sort of snake with these balls and then press the snake around one end of the pipe or simply add the pieces on one at a time until the inner and outer edges of the pipe are covered with wax. The purpose of the wax is to cushion your mouth and make holding the didge against it more comfortable. Be sure the wax does not block off the pipe. Leave at least an inch in diameter of space. Some didges don't even have mouthpieces. With PVC, this practice is probably not the best one. |
| You can also have a didgeridoo which is partially bent and curved. The advantage is an instrument which takes up less space. Altering the shape sometimes changes the sound quality as well. A heat gun, one used to melt paint, is useful. However, proper ventilation, along with considerable caution, are required. Besides giving off toxic fumes, heated PVC is extremely flammable. Use the lowest setting (750 degrees) rather than the highest (1000 degrees). Also, be sure to bend the pipe slowly, so it does not collapse or crack open. Guide the heat gun over an area of five or six inches of PVC before bending in the middle of the treated area. Once completely cool, you can paint the didgeridoo and add a mouthpiece. |
| A cardboard didgeridoo is easy to make. Find a tube from an empty giftwrap box. Another possibilty is carpet roll (the cardboard tube inside a large carpet). Optimally, the tube will be three to five feet long. You might want to give the tube a couple of coats of shellac, inside and out, in order to waterproof it. Or shellac the inside and paint the outside with acrylic paints. Then add a mouthpiece as desired. |
| A bamboo didgeridoo takes a bit of extra work. You can find bamboo shoots growing wild in some states. Alternative sources include furniture or garden stores.In the latter case, see if you can find poles which ordinarily would be used for garden ornaments and stakes, as well as for clothes racks. Some poles come in eight foot lengths. The best kind for our purposes is a pole with an inner diameter of about one and a quarter inches. Finished bamboo products usually have a finish, such as shellac, painted on them. Wildly growing bamboo poles, once cut to size, need to be cured before being transformed into musical instruments. Doing so eliminates moisture and oils, both of which could cause the bamboo to become moldy. Sometimes, bamboo can be cured by leaving it in sunny, dry areas for several days. Another method is storing the wood in an enclosed area for several weeks. A quick way is to heat the material with a torch, blowdrier or heat gun. You may wish to consider the optimum method for curing bamboo before you make a didgeridoo from it. Once the bamboo is cured, you need to hollow it out. A four-foot long drill bit often serves the purpose, particularly if your didgeridoo is at least that length. Long drill bits are often used to install electric wiring in walls. Although bamboo is a type of grass, it has features in common with other kinds of wood. Be sure to use a good amount of sandpaper and adequate ventilation. Once the "tube" is hollowed out, you can woodburn, carve then shellac or paint your didgeridoo. |
| Making a clay didge takes considerable time and patience. A straight tube is not feasible because you need to consider the fact the instrument is going to be fired in a kiln. I've made a ceramic didge and found the instrument to be rather cumbersome, even though the sound was rather impressive. If you make a clay didgeridoo, you might want to consider using an extruder. Else, start by using a stick, say an inch or inch and a half in diameter as an armature. Form short lengths and/or even "elbows" with the clay and allow to dry leather hard. Assemble the pieces using slip (liquid clay "glue") and be sure to reinforce joints, thin areas and any weak areas which could rupture during firing. |
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