Hammers

[jel]

I'm using the original felt-tipped hammers which came with a Musima Salzburg-format. The felts are wearing and need replacing, and as in any case I'd like a choice of tonalities, does anyone know of a hammer-makers able to supply, please?

[Dick Glasgow]

Hi Jel,

I have a few sets of Hammers now.



My own favourites are:

Jill Weimer Quality Hammers

&

Laserelegance

They have both supplied me with first class pairs of Hammers & I must say their service is excellent.

However, Nikita here has much more experience than myself in this Dept. & with a far wider variety of Hammers, so if I were you I'd check with him first, especially as he plays a Hackbrett too.

Cheers
Dick

[jel]

Many thanks, I'd already spotted those on the main forum. Nice set, though!
Mine are single-sided heads, with a fairly pronounced double-suded handle, as they're pivotted between thumb and middle (rebound and volume being controlled by the thumb pressure, note by the middle finger, at least the way I've self-learned). Ich werde mit die Deutscher plaudern...
I'm also tempted to look at some of those Russian recurved handles, because I'm certain that they're getting extra recoil from the top bow. (In case you haven't seen those, they're fairly short, made, as far as I can see, from some sort of thick cane, basically bent in a loop about 1" across and secured at the handle, wool-wound - primitive but very effective).

[capa49]

Sorry for the late reply but I just joined this forum. I don't know if this name was ever mentioned here but Bob Bedard (http://hammerdulcimer.homestead.com/bedardhammers.html).
You can see a 7-part interview of Bob by Dan Landrum here
youtube.com/watch?v=4RyK27SUZrY
Sorry if the subject's been mentioned here before...

[Dick Glasgow]

You are working well already Capa ~ great link.

Making Dulcimer Hammers ~ Parts 1 - 7

Cheers
Dick

[Nikita]

nice vidéos !
Hey, Dick, sure nice to read from you ! where have you been, to be so silent on this board ?

[Dick Glasgow]

Hi Nikita,

Yeah, been busy trying to make a few bob & keep this roof over our heads for a few more years!

Still bashing away at my Dulcimer though, every week, mostly at sessions but our Harp & Dulcimer sounded really nice when playing together yesterday for a wedding in a beautiful old chapel, near here.

Hope all is well with your good self, over there on the flat plains. I hope you have not been flooded out with all this summer's rain?

Cheers
Dick

[Nikita]

well, Dick, we swiss tend to kick the floods over to nearby France... snicker !
been over to Spitzberg, no music, but so many birds... !
next week we're playing a lot... also Hb and Celtic harp... if, or rather when we meet someday, we'll have a great session, with so many strings...
cheers !

[capa49]

Speaking of hammers, do you know if anyone produces flexible shaft hammers in Europe? I know that Sam Rizzetta makes a special graphite-handle model and someone else in the US produces a similar model (Bob of Laserelegance I think) but I was wondering if there's anyone producing these in Europe...
Who's making hammers at all in Europe btw, besides Marc Ramser...?

[jel]

It rather looks as if not.
I've now run that race of hammers to earth, they're from the tsimbaly, but have migrated onto other forms of east European dulcimer - it might be worth exploring Brussels metro as there are probably HD variants we don't know about.
There is a maker in Australia, I'll let you know her opinions.

[jel]

Well, the outcome of that is that there's no real source other, perhaps, than a factory in Minsk. Those I've come across are almost certainly homemade, according to the source from willow or beech, although what I saw were not the latter. They're very short, not more than five inches long, and completely recurved - imagine a Santouri hammer taken all the way back to meet up with the handle again, where it's secured with twine, which will allow it to float a bit. That turns it into a spring, assisting trills and quick play by up to 50%. The rest of it is a hammer pad.