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RedCommieBear
26th July 2007, 04:28
This morning, I finally got sick of air drumming and decided I needed to start playing actual music. But as anyone who has ever played an instrument or thought about it knows, instruments are usually a bit expensive. And since I had nothing going on today, I decided that I should make my own drums out of the coffee buckets on my floor. This was essentially my first foray into DIY woodwork.

Materials Needed:

2 x 4s
Those cases you buy coffee in (Like this) (http://www.russellbeattie.com/notebook/images/folgers.jpg)
Hammer
Nails (preferably ones 1/4 inch smaller than a pole barn nail)
Saw

Instructions:

1. Get all the materials you need
2. Place one 2 x 4 on top of a right side up coffee bucket at the edge with others on the other edge for support
3. Nail through the board into the coffee case. These buckets are plastic or metal. While the plastic buckets are hard to get through, I'll guess metal ones are even harder.
4 Repeat step three 4-5 times in different places.

If the "drum" you just made is lower sounding to the other, call it your bass drum.

5. Cut two 3 x 1.5 inch wood pieces.
6. Nail or screw those paralell to each other approximately 2 inches apart on your first 2 x 4.
7. Nail the 2 x 4 half to the quarters of the way throught the wood blocks. This will make the hammering a lot easier.
8. Make 2 x 4 up side down with wood blocks above second coffee bucket, held up by the already nailed coffee bucket and the new one.
9. Nail through wood blocks and through the coffee bucket. It is difficult, but if you keep on you can get it through.

Because it's not held down, it usually a higher noise. So, it's kind of like a snare drum.

* Optional *

9. Cut any remaining space left.
10. Cut a piece the same length as your newly sized board.
11. Place this new piece at a 90 degree angle to your other one.
12. Write an awesome leftist slogan on the outside of it.

To help you go through my awkwardly worded directions, I've provided MS paint pictures to explain (links below). This project took around 3 hours without power tools (battery ran out).

While not exactly sounding like a drum set, they do make some decent percussion sounds.

Left side view (http://img9.imagepile.net/img9/52386leftsideview.jpg)
Right side view (http://img9.imagepile.net/img9/89285rightsideview.jpg)
Drummer's View/Back View (http://img9.imagepile.net/img9/72374drummersview.jpg)
Front View (http://img9.imagepile.net/img9/1056frontview.jpg)

So what do you think? Dumb idea? Were the directions too confusing?

counterblast
31st July 2007, 03:36
Good idea.

Would you happen to have a picture of the finished thing? I'm more of a visual learner, and the wonderfully drawn paint pictures leave a lot to the imagination. :wacko: :wub:

RedCommieBear
31st July 2007, 03:56
Originally posted by [email protected] 31, 2007 02:36 am
Good idea.

Would you happen to have a picture of the finished thing? I'm more of a visual learner, and the wonderfully drawn paint pictures leave a lot to the imagination. :wacko: :wub:
Yeah, the pictures weren't very good. I'll try getting ahold of a camera tomorrow.

RedCommieBear
1st August 2007, 16:12
I was able to use someone else's digital camera, and I got 4 pictures of the drums.

Image 1 (http://img9.imagepile.net/img9/64573hpim0798.jpg)
Image 2 (http://img9.imagepile.net/img9/54958hpim0799.jpg)
Image 3 (http://img9.imagepile.net/img9/75747hpim0800.jpg)
Image 4 (http://img9.imagepile.net/img9/83709hpim0802.jpg)

Note: I wasn't sure if I should've just edit my previous post or start a new one. I started a new one so it would show up as unread, updating counterblast (and anyone else who was interested) about the new information on it.

Lacrimi de Chiciură
1st August 2007, 19:59
This actually looks pretty cool. I might try this sometime. Are they very loud?

RedCommieBear
1st August 2007, 22:24
Originally posted by Fly Pan [email protected] 01, 2007 06:59 pm
This actually looks pretty cool. I might try this sometime. Are they very loud?
I would say they are. When hit moderately-hard, they can compete the stereo (turned up quite a ways) as far as decibels go.

Here's how they sound. (http://geocities.com/james_link03/DIYDrumDemo.mp3)

I would also like to add that the sound the drums give gets better the more you pound on them

Edit: added last statement