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Steel drum resonators

Yesterday I spotted small cat/dog bowls in a nearby shop..

With a head full of 'resonators!' I grabbed one and flicked the bottom to hear the 'boing' .. What was I doing? I know nothing about them.. So I grabbed out my mobile phone, turned on my guitar tuner app and took a reading.. It took about 6 bowls until I got one that seemed to be a D..

I thought I might share this with you guys.. And then had another thought.. Post build.. Couldn't they be 'tuned' much like steel drums are tuned with dents and holes? If they resonate.. Can't they be made to resonate at a desired frequency?

I bought the D bowl anyway.. I might tinker with this idea when it gets used.

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Comment by darryl kernaghan on March 1, 2016 at 5:16pm: I don't know if a tuned bowl will make a lot of effect,as your strings will be the source of the tuning,certainly you can find a different tone,but the outbound tuning is variable any way via the strings.The matter of stretching/thinning the lid has lots of potential for maximising reso effect though i'm sure

Comment by Fomhorach on February 28, 2016 at 2:27pm: That's very interesting to know.. I didn't know that metal could be stretched like that without heat. I also love the 'tarnish' after heating.

My thinking comes from any dominant tones generated by thesethings.

Purely from an aesthetic point of view it has really got me thinking.

Comment by gary herget on February 28, 2016 at 2:28am: I do heat treat after to get the blue color and harden a little to get that reso sound.

Comment by gary herget on February 28, 2016 at 2:10am: It's done cold, so far I've only split one by trying to stretch too far.

Comment by Fomhorach on February 27, 2016 at 7:18pm: That looks sweet. How is it done without the metal splitting? Was it a cold reshape or with heat?

Comment by gary herget on February 27, 2016 at 4:12pm: This is what I do with #10 metal can. Never thought about tunning them but wiil try it.

Comment by Wade on February 27, 2016 at 3:55am: I agree. I hammered out a baking pan to make a guitar and turned quite a few homeade "cones on a potter's wheel. It makes a huge improvement in tone! I would compare it to stretching a guitar string.To a point, the more you tighten it, the clearer the sound.

Comment by Fomhorach on February 26, 2016 at 11:24am: I have no idea, but it might be fun to find out. It might also create something unique.

Comment by Nathan Binns on February 26, 2016 at 8:52am: I guess I see the point of finding a tuned resonator as it should boost the sound when playing an open D. But what happens when I slide up to A? Do I get a volume drop?