tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-224295912024-03-12T23:40:12.592-04:00Drumbent - Tales of (Mostly) Music and MotionMarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06957998770145424270noreply@blogger.comBlogger229125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22429591.post-53038518546462717012013-01-02T00:40:00.001-05:002013-01-03T17:08:12.019-05:00Xtracycle!Happy New Year!<br />
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I've got a few things to blog about, and let's start with my latest bike project. <br />
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I recently took possession of an Xtracycle kit. My friend <a href="http://tricolour.net/xtracycle.html" target="_blank">RGB</a> has been using one as a winter bike and ended up preferring it, citing not only its increased load-carrying but also better handling and stability in wintry conditions (and here in Ottawa we have real winters!).<br />
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The basic frame looks like this...<br />
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... and then you can add to it, like this:<br />
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Fortunately, mine came with the complete kit consisting of the frame and what you see above. My friend Juergen is an Xtracycle dealer through his <a href="http://ridemore.ca/ebike-products/cargo-bikes/xtracycle/" target="_blank">Ridemore shop</a>, and he had the necessary brake adaptor for using a 700C wheel on the kit frame. Yes, 700C does fit, so you can (as I did) use a hybrid bike, but the clearance is rather tight and you can't use super thick tires.<br />
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I decided to add the kit to the <a href="http://drumbent.blogspot.ca/2012/01/new-old-winter-bikes.html" target="_blank">blue winter bike</a> I'd put together last year. That bike was having problems with its elderly Sachs 7-speed hub, and even after a rebuild the situation has not improved. During the changeover I just went with regular derailer gears.<br />
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The Xtracycle, in case you have not heard of it, is an extension you can add to the back of any bicycle. It takes the idea of the standard rear rack and expands that up into a true beast of burden. You can now buy bicycles with extended rear frames that resemble an Xtracycle though those are not a bolt-on kit.
I recommend checking out the <a href="http://www.xtracycle.com/" target="_blank">Xtracycle website</a> to see how everything goes together, not ot mention the extensive <a href="http://www.xtracycle.com/cargo-bicycles/xtracycle-cargo-accessories.html" target="_blank">list of accessories</a>. I have to say I'm quite impressed with the thought that went into this product. When I was putting it together I was noticing how they really thought about how one part was going to fit together or around another part. Some fine engineering smarts went into this thing!<br />
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My interest in this concept is to try and lessen the need for my <a href="http://drumbent.blogspot.com/2008/12/more-trailer-adventures.html" target="_blank">main trailer</a> in the winter. While both of my trailers replace my cargo trike during the winter months they are not ideal at times. The red trailer gets used mostly to move the combination of drums and electronics that I use for my work with the Propeller Dance group. It has been great for that, but there are a few issues...<br />
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Firstly, the bike gets turned from a single-track vehicle into a three-track one, and while the bike's wheels might run in a nice dry (or at least flat) track on the road the trailer's wheels sometimes are outside of that getting dragged through the slush. And even on dry roads you're still dealing with four wheels turning, with resulting drag. Secondly, the trailer has its own weight and you can sometimes feel it tugging behind you. Thirdly, because I have to store my trailer in the basement along with my bike and the gear I have to unhook the trailer from the bike, knock any snow and slush off, then carry it downstairs (it just fits through the door), and then bring the bike down. When one is cold and tired from a winter ride it's nice to reduce the amount of back and forth!<br />
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Because I strip my music gear down to the barest essentials to fit in the trailer I'm hoping that I can instead fit it all on the Xtracycle for many of these trips. This way I will still have a single track vehicle, and while it'll still have some weight of course it'll be one less thing I have to put together and put away.<br />
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While I await the dance group resuming next week
I've been using the bike for trips around town and have found it to be remarkably stable, just as RGB said it would be. It seems to be mainly due to the longer wheelbase, and the most noticeable thing is that while the back end may wash out on occasion it doesn't seem to go as far as before, and seems just better able to stay centered. I still have the studded tire on the front wheel that stays where it should, while the rear just trails along like a happy little dog.<br />
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I kept the single 39-tooth front chain ring on the bike, and for the rear decided to do the same thing that I had done on my cargo trike, which is create a custom seven speed cassette. This involves using individual cogs from a cassette, something we have in good supply at the <a href="http://re-cycles.ca/" target="_blank">re-Cycles shop</a>. (You can get those by grinding off the heads of the three pins that hold a cassette together. These pins are not structural - they simply keep everything aligned while putting the cassette on. But without them you now have the individual cogs and spacers and so can install the cogs you desire.) Looking up Sheldon Brown's <a href="http://www.sheldonbrown.com/gears/index.html" target="_blank">gearing page</a> showed me that Shimano used to make a 7-speed cassette of 13, 15. 17. 20, 24, 29, 34, and that gave me the proper spacing without having to do some trial and error.<br />
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(Yes, I know an 8- or 9-speed would give me more in-between gears, but I've been riding 7-speeds for two decades now and don't find the gaps to be much of an issue. And while the gearing range might seem rather low it feels perfectly dialed in for a heavy bike that needs to carry stuff.)<br />
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I am looking forward to seeing how this rig will work with the anticipated load that I have to carry to the dance gigs, and will report back as I go along.
Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06957998770145424270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22429591.post-40846193706852810202012-12-10T09:50:00.002-05:002013-01-02T00:41:00.086-05:00My kind of video - musical instruments made from recycled materials!<br />
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<br />Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06957998770145424270noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22429591.post-23816909332024094082012-08-27T00:25:00.000-04:002012-08-27T00:25:00.119-04:00Another (sort-of) DIY trailerThe re-Cycles shop has received a few trailers this year. One of them was an older Chariot model that had been modified in a very familiar way. This design would originally have the wheels outside the frame using single-sided hubs (like a wheelchair). For whatever reason the previous owner decided to use double-sided bike wheels, which meant added more framework to hold them. And it looks like he was possibly inspired by my <a href="http://drumbent.com/trailer.html" target="_blank">trailer webpage</a> or the <a href="http://drumbent.blogspot.ca/search/label/trailer" target="_blank">DIY trailer posts</a> on this blog.<br />
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<br />Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06957998770145424270noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22429591.post-46233268891914718492012-08-13T00:07:00.001-04:002012-08-13T00:07:42.145-04:00"How a Bicycle is Made (1945)"A cool vintage movie from Raleigh. The lack of protection for the workers is sobering (belt drives, along with buffing and grinding wheels are not enclosed and waiting to remove a finger or more), but the industrial processes are fascinating.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" frameborder="0" height="300" mozallowfullscreen="mozallowfullscreen" src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/39401575" webkitallowfullscreen="webkitallowfullscreen" width="400"></iframe><br />Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06957998770145424270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22429591.post-85906547414941367282012-07-23T00:22:00.003-04:002012-07-23T02:50:15.265-04:00New trikeport<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The shed / trikeport I had built years ago for the cargo trike had to be moved, as my ground-floor landlord was going to build a deck off the back of the triplex. The 'port was relocated to the back of the parking area against the rear fence, and was easily moved, as I had deliberately made it light and transportable in case it ever had to moved for building maintenance or whatever. But, the landlord had also requested that I rebuild the thing to look a little less, well, trailer park. Can't say as I blame him, but the old one looked as it did because it was fashioned, as many of my projects are, from found materials, and also in a bit of a hurry when I'd moved in.<br />
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As compensation for the hassle of rebuilding it, my landlord would pay for the finishing materials (covering boards and roof) so that it would match his deck and the adjacent dumpster enclosure. During demolition I was very glad I had constructed the old trikeport with screws instead of nails, as this meant for an easy take-apart and allowed me to re-use most of the wood and even most of the screws! Along with some wood from my stash plus a few boards from the old deck the landlord was demolishing I had nothing to purchase aside from a new pair of door hinges and a box of screws.<br />
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I forgot to take photos of the demolition, and even of the first aspects of (re-)construction. Below shows it all framed in, with some temporary thin plywood sheets on top to keep any rain off. The long bottom 2x6 was originally the top board for the old 'port, and the new top one is from the landlord's old deck. Stacked at left are the new siding boards. Also note that this new 'port has a floor, unlike the old one. This is to get it up off the ground for winter access, something I could not do with the old one because its door pretty much scraped the driveway as it opened.<br />
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You'll notice that this trikeport is a fair bit larger than the old one (which had to be kept low to stay under a window and still have a slope for water drainage). The old one was also made just wide enough for the trike itself. I don't have a full photo of it, but this should give a general idea. (Say Hi to Jett the cat while you're at it.)</div>
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This new one is higher mainly to let rain water drain over the rear fence, as having it drain to the left would just mean water seeping under the trikeport following the slope of the land. While the trike goes into hibernation once salts hits the roads in winter, this 'port was made wider to allow me to stuff the <a href="http://drumbent.blogspot.com/2008/12/more-trailer-adventures.html" target="_blank">red trailer</a> alongside (with the trike budged over a bit), which will save me having to drag the trailer in and out of the basement during winter use. </div>
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Leaning against the structure is one of the double doors being built. The big green tarp that acted as a roof cover and side cover for the old 'port was kept as a temporary roof and front cover during construction. (It has gotten a little worn out in spots after five years but I plan to cut it down into a useful smaller one.)</div>
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Adding the siding boards went quite quickly, and the whole thing went from ghetto to nice in short order, even though it was not yet complete. The metal pole in the ground is to mark for the left-side parking neighbour how much room I need to get the trike out, as the adjacent dumpster enclosure (just out of sight to the right) means a hard swing to pull the trike past it. This pole will soon be removed once the various bits of construction fun are over and he can move his car further away.</div>
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The roof consists of thin plywood over 2x4 framing. Instead of using the usual asphalt shingles the landlord and I agreed on roll roofing, which is essentially peel-and-stick sheets of asphalt designed for these sort of low-slope applications. I decided a drip guard over the door opening would be a good idea, and fashioned one from a piece of L-shaped metal trim I had lying around and stapled in place. A piece of wood moulding was set against it, and later the gap was caulked.</div>
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Along the wide top of the fence I laid down a strip of used coroplast (corrugated plastic) to keep any standing water from collecting, though the run-off should dump it right over. The roll roofing will just tuck over it.</div>
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Here's the roll of roofing stuff. It was very heavy...</div>
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I lucked out with the roof dimensions, as I had built the thing not knowing how wide this roll stuff was. The roll was 3'3" wide, and the roof was 6'3' wide (also happens to be my height!), so this meant only two lengths would have to be cut and I'd still have the correct amount of overlap between the sheets. Doing so was a bit tricky, as once the plastic was pulled from underneath the sheet stuck rather quick to the plywood. Once I figured out the technique it went fairly smoothly. Also, I had to be rather careful not to tumble off the low side, as the neighbour's yard on the fence side is two feet lower than our property, and falling would also mean crashing into his net of carefully planted squashes! That probably would not have hurt all that much, but would have been very embarrassing...</div>
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Once the roofing was on I added a length of the siding boards to cover the top edge of the higher side.</div>
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A pair of eye-bolts were inserted into the doors, and fitted through is a surplus bicycle U-lock for security. Also note wheel ramps made from pieces of the same boards used for the doors (door boards were 5-footers, same as side boards, but cut down to 4 feet).</div>
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Given that I don't build things like this very often I must say that it looks pretty good! And a shout-out of thanks to friends Rob and Paul for the loan of their respective power tools (circular saw and chop-saw).</div>
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</div>Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06957998770145424270noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22429591.post-20464095103771853782012-07-03T10:33:00.003-04:002012-07-03T10:33:43.379-04:00Wheel ArtHey, where did I go? Sucked into Facebook land with my photos, mostly. And otherwise just busy. But time to get back to the blog!<br />
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I've always liked bicycle related art. A few months ago my sweetie and I noticed an upside down fork with front wheel in someone's yard, spinning in the wind due to some tape or plastic put between the spokes. I took that idea and ran (cycled?) with it.<br />
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As usual, the <a href="http://re-cycles.ca/" target="_blank">re-Cycles</a> shop was the source for all the bike parts. I started with a road bike handlebar, with one fork/wheel in the usual position, then jammed a sawed-off straight bar into the top (well, bottom since it's upside down) of the stem to go into the ground as an anchor. I originally added a fork to each upturned end of the road bar but the wheels ended up too far apart. So I added some inboard mtn. bike stems and then used straight handlebars to extend the outboard forks. The wheels are each held in place with the usual axle nuts but I also added some old-school wingnuts (vintage quick-releases) for decoration.<br />
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There was then the usual fussing over angles and height (sort of like hanging a picture on a wall), but the general idea was for it to resemble a flower.<br />
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Nothing yet has been added to help catch the wind and make the wheels turn. We'll get to that eventually...<br />
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<br />Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06957998770145424270noreply@blogger.com0Ottawa, ON, Canada45.4215296 -75.697193145.0649016 -76.328907100000009 45.7781576 -75.0654791tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22429591.post-64239111634225649342012-03-19T01:47:00.000-04:002012-03-19T01:47:01.652-04:00@#$%^& taggersI've been told that graffiti taggers don't hit public art such as murals. Well, I guess the "good" ones don't and the stupid punks do. The <a href="http://re-cycles.ca/">re-Cycles shop</a> had both its front door and volunteer-crafted mural (and the wall of our neighbour's house) hit last week.<br />
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Fortunately, they used white paint and not black, missed pretty much all of the front door's lettering, and hit mostly the blue background of the mural. We had kept the mural's paint colours for touch-ups, and we were able to cover things up rather nicely! Thanks to volunteers Melinda, Carla and Matt for their hard work, and also for the weather for giving us a 20C day in the middle of March!<br />
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I only thought of videoing once he started showing me how the gearing-changing mechanism worked, and it's now on YouTube.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/_QJye4_IS2E" width="560"></iframe>Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06957998770145424270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22429591.post-60380803200049858102012-01-05T01:20:00.001-05:002012-01-05T01:24:36.554-05:00New old winter bikes<span class="fbPhotoCaptionText">My faithful old <a href="http://drumbent.com/winterbike.html">winter bike</a> was getting pretty rusty after 8 seasons, and I was also getting rather tired of the mtn. bike frame geometry and wide tires. It was a very stable set-up, but with a studded front tire it was annoying to ride on those days of clear dry roads. Sure, I could have another wheel handy with smooth tire and swap it in, but I also felt the need for a second bike for back-up purposes, if nothing else.</span><br />
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<span class="fbPhotoCaptionText">So as an experiment last winter I took an old CCM skinny-tire bike, swapped in an aluminum front wheel (for decent braking) and used it as a "dry roads" bike. I ended up using it as often as the mtn. bike, and quite enjoyed how much faster and lighter it was, especially when towing one of the two trailers.</span><br />
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<span class="fbPhotoCaptionText">This year I wanted to go the full route and build up a pair of hybrid bike frames; one with smooth tires, another with winter tires (studded front, knobby out back). This way I would have my choice of bike for whatever road conditions, as well as a back-up in case one bike flatted or broke something right as I was heading out to a gig. So through the season at the <a href="http://re-cycles.ca/">re-Cycles shop</a> I kept an eye out for suitable frames / bikes. Both bikes were to be built with very low gearing for trailer-towing in winter conditions, so top gear is usually the cruising gear, and everything else for uphill or towing. If I want to go fast downhill I'll happily just coast...</span><br />
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<span class="fbPhotoCaptionText">First up is called Winter Bike #1, only because it was the first one I put together </span>(WB2 is further down)<span class="fbPhotoCaptionText">. </span>A late-80's Nishiki touring frame came in. It needed a fork, and the one from my deceased (hit by a taxi) hybrid bike luckily fit just right. The frame has some rust and even a small dent in one tube, which allowed me to not feel bad about using what was once a nice frame as a winter bike. This beast has smooth tires for those days when roads are clear and I have some distance to travel and don't want winter tires adding drag. <br />
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I ended up with very tight clearance for the 46-36 double chainring due to the cartridge bottom bracket I happened to have on hand, and should perhaps put in one with a longer axle. Yes, the rear shift cable just touches the underside of the front derailer cage.<span class="fcg"> </span><br />
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Indispensable front "crap flap" was added to the bottom of fender to keep slushy salty spray from hitting (and sticking to) the frame. <br />
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Modern v-brakes added for excellent stopping power (remember that I often tow a loaded trailer in winter since the Mighty Cargo Trike goes into hibernation). <br />
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Yellow crate on rear rack adds both practicality and visibility. Seasonal Xmas led lights run off a small 12v battery w/inverter, though will be removed very soon. <br />
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Adjustable stem is great for getting the bike dialed in, but needs a little attention to keep from gradually wearing out and getting loose.<span class="fcg"></span> <br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">Simple non-indexed drivetrain, with nice wide-range 6-speed freewheel of 14T to 32T!<span class="fcg"></span> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PBzBRYOwUe8/TwU5OTesdvI/AAAAAAAABoQ/m4EiJAZyBIY/s1600/DSCN1160.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PBzBRYOwUe8/TwU5OTesdvI/AAAAAAAABoQ/m4EiJAZyBIY/s320/DSCN1160.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Lightweight aluminum handlebar, fat grips for winter mitts, and light and bell stuffed on there. Note stylish yellow cable housing.<span class="fcg"></span> <br />
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Winter Bike #2. It was a complete Nakamura hybrid bike, showing some rust and so like WB1 no qualms of using it for winter. I kept the cantilever brakes but had to build new wheels (my 6th and 7th times ever doing so), since the front was getting a new generator hub and the rear a used internal-gear hub. (Yes, these Xmas lights are also coming off soon.) <br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> This is what a studded tire looks like. It does a nice job of grabbing in slippery conditions, and you know it's working when the non-studded rear end fishtails. Having the rear wheel wash out is usually recoverable, but having the front end do so usually means a wipe-out. :P On the old bike I did try riding both tires studded one year but the amount of drag was not worth it.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ohFE0HKe6BA/TwU5U3P4gaI/AAAAAAAABog/NwZN7LGhK1c/s1600/DSCN1181.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ohFE0HKe6BA/TwU5U3P4gaI/AAAAAAAABog/NwZN7LGhK1c/s320/DSCN1181.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
This bike gets an added treat - a Shimano generator hub! This little device will supply power to the not-yet-installed custom led lights <a href="http://tricolour.net/">RGB</a> is putting together for me. No friction from this thing like from those old sidewall generators that leaned against the tire!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-WPO5gx7Dkn0/TwU5aCx02nI/AAAAAAAABow/bhPXDLV77DU/s1600/DSCN1193.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-WPO5gx7Dkn0/TwU5aCx02nI/AAAAAAAABow/bhPXDLV77DU/s320/DSCN1193.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><span class="fcg"></span> <br />
<span class="fcg"></span> <br />
<span class="fcg"></span> Shifter for the Sachs 7-speed hub. Now only available in twist-grip form (which I dislike, especially with big winter gloves) this thing is like gold, as the entire unit of shifter/cable/hub clickbox has to be replaced as one.<span class="fcg"> </span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fzJd-q5fSZg/TwU5kdFjxgI/AAAAAAAABpI/-S-qWQt4tiA/s1600/DSCN1198.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fzJd-q5fSZg/TwU5kdFjxgI/AAAAAAAABpI/-S-qWQt4tiA/s320/DSCN1198.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><span class="fcg"> </span><br />
<span class="fcg"> </span><br />
If you've ever tried to mount a single chainring on a crank meant for three, you'll find the bolts are too long, because they are made to join the larger two. While short-stack spacers (used for BMX and fixies) can be purchased, the cheap solution is to take a worn out chainring and carve away just the areas around the mounting holes, leaving nice, if slightly irregular, spacers as shown here<br />
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Drive side of Sachs 7-speed hub. The click-box is where the indexing takes place, and it usually comes with a metal guard arm that clamps to the axle and projects out to protect the unit if the bike falls over. Since the rack-mounted crate sticks out even further I can leave the guard off, which means one less things to fiddle with during a wheel / tire change. Rear cog is a 23T from my old winter bike, while front ring is a 38T.<span class="fcg"> </span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EeyjIbImLjc/TwU5u46o2DI/AAAAAAAABpg/TLb3nvHxBTo/s1600/DSCN1206.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EeyjIbImLjc/TwU5u46o2DI/AAAAAAAABpg/TLb3nvHxBTo/s320/DSCN1206.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Left side of Sachs 7-speed hub, showing coaster-brake (back-pedal) arm and receiver for trailer hitch (WB1 has same receiver, so both bikes can tow either of the two trailers). Maybe I should paint over some of that rust...<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FdQC2733U1k/TwU5rQFyWzI/AAAAAAAABpY/Xgi5dPcN2vQ/s1600/DSCN1203.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FdQC2733U1k/TwU5rQFyWzI/AAAAAAAABpY/Xgi5dPcN2vQ/s320/DSCN1203.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<span class="fcg"> </span><br />
Unlike WB1, this rear wheel did not get full close-fitting fender since that design often packs up with snow. So a plastic spray guard is attached under the rack. And like pretty well all my bike, the rack holds the handy crate.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gNniE1rXpHc/TwU5hKIC6jI/AAAAAAAABpA/_jsNvadlf6c/s1600/DSCN1195.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gNniE1rXpHc/TwU5hKIC6jI/AAAAAAAABpA/_jsNvadlf6c/s320/DSCN1195.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
I fastened this piece of platicized cardboard in place to keep snow churned by the rear wheel from dumping into my boots and also on the chain. Time will tell if it simply just packs up with snow...<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-RAR25b4tF_M/TwU5dk0-Z3I/AAAAAAAABo4/DzXupGKYUn8/s1600/DSCN1194.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-RAR25b4tF_M/TwU5dk0-Z3I/AAAAAAAABo4/DzXupGKYUn8/s320/DSCN1194.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">Front mount for spray guard, with a twist of stiff wire to keep things in place.<span class="fcg"> </span></div><span class="fcg"> </span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-toihL9yDH_8/TwU5WogzrVI/AAAAAAAABoo/7d7UlxiBUDs/s1600/DSCN1182.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-toihL9yDH_8/TwU5WogzrVI/AAAAAAAABoo/7d7UlxiBUDs/s320/DSCN1182.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06957998770145424270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22429591.post-2860464910250211572011-11-13T04:24:00.000-05:002011-11-13T04:24:16.303-05:00DIY drum caseMy latest drum purchase. This is a westernized version of a Thai drum called a "klong yao", made by Toca out of fiberglass. It is quite light, and has a fabulous bass tone, as one can imagine by the length of the body. At local drum circles I am usually one of the more experienced players, so having a drum that can both drive the groove and help steady it is important, and this one is much better for that than my old Remo djembe. Remo makes a similar klong yao, and I tried one out many years ago but balked at the $400 price tag (it also weighs more). The Toca one is around $200 and Dave's Drum Shop here in Ottawa can bring in any Toca product (it was fun browsing the catalogue...).<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdH-Vsfy-HJ8wJksKcICagHraBf7WtbvMuIXIyBXC7d4m8Dnr3u0hyphenhyphenIv9oT-DVf5tKy-VQQYnEi8opO033RJTUPWoM14Ku_0gAtZqyh8JOmsSwEs9jJCcjh1PXh7OwBdBf1YXh/s1600/DSCN0856.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br />
<img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdH-Vsfy-HJ8wJksKcICagHraBf7WtbvMuIXIyBXC7d4m8Dnr3u0hyphenhyphenIv9oT-DVf5tKy-VQQYnEi8opO033RJTUPWoM14Ku_0gAtZqyh8JOmsSwEs9jJCcjh1PXh7OwBdBf1YXh/s320/DSCN0856.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br />
But of course a drum needs a case! Many folks carry their hand drums in bags, and I'd thought of buying a gym bag and lining it with foam, but since I'm often hauling more than one instrument at a time something that could better protect the drum as I squeeze gear through doorways was needed. For my small jazz kit I had extended a 12" case to fit three small drums, and I used that same idea for this one. So, start with one retro 70's drum case (again from Dave's Drum Shop) and add some foam. Note leather strap with buckle instead of modern plastic buckle.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimoIE0120-lOr1TnPSPgmAMNs-ai7eL_Q-dHJEMzSwnoI2IqvfRbu2C0PAYHjbO9zTZQCJVVSGw2zcyboh_cMSpZpwWyQaPcSXsicUOjXBxf2MHDFyNMbFMpPSHaN_cR8Bk4T7/s1600/DSCN0857.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimoIE0120-lOr1TnPSPgmAMNs-ai7eL_Q-dHJEMzSwnoI2IqvfRbu2C0PAYHjbO9zTZQCJVVSGw2zcyboh_cMSpZpwWyQaPcSXsicUOjXBxf2MHDFyNMbFMpPSHaN_cR8Bk4T7/s320/DSCN0857.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
To accommodate the lengthy drum an extension was needed. My material of choice for this is sheets of (used) corrugated plastic and duct tape (yay for our petrochemical industry). In this case, a stash of abandoned signs from the Reform oops Conservative Party had been found a while back and now were being put to much better use.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt2Szf5Sqgzr9Ia9Siu2Lz7ExXIWEwQwivVZEhaJLfu9XtvcIzSHrTe3lG5RNioz-swKxUqwN8riYTZD-Tpra0Ca0cr43KY2Kv_KGvnHqjw51gSDeT4Dr0QhfejbdHmgHt9BoH/s1600/DSCN0858.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt2Szf5Sqgzr9Ia9Siu2Lz7ExXIWEwQwivVZEhaJLfu9XtvcIzSHrTe3lG5RNioz-swKxUqwN8riYTZD-Tpra0Ca0cr43KY2Kv_KGvnHqjw51gSDeT4Dr0QhfejbdHmgHt9BoH/s320/DSCN0858.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">Test fitting.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOxMAowksaAI-YR0YraJHBtiMwgTzc9mMl3y48Ha8nshfAwI7meD0e4HUYV6zcobUFJ0B1AJHAJssXvIAHBuKUiD2h0JRU-vcRBo3EKyB9UCdfsw-_z2EXLHcrTRp0uaPMOI5_/s1600/DSCN0859.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOxMAowksaAI-YR0YraJHBtiMwgTzc9mMl3y48Ha8nshfAwI7meD0e4HUYV6zcobUFJ0B1AJHAJssXvIAHBuKUiD2h0JRU-vcRBo3EKyB9UCdfsw-_z2EXLHcrTRp0uaPMOI5_/s320/DSCN0859.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>The trick to getting coroplast to bend is to use a utility knife to score one side. Then add duct tape...<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyYRC6WacOIzqbqT93cxZr_P-vwbZLZgEN4SOtHWGZqr67V4Ng1LL3noycZVQ5dK8J2pmxEurQQ1J4FQCSkLjud4CcbMxKxREAU3AS9Oq-M7y_Yvdg-4Tt6dau0WFTO6kf_5di/s1600/DSCN0862.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyYRC6WacOIzqbqT93cxZr_P-vwbZLZgEN4SOtHWGZqr67V4Ng1LL3noycZVQ5dK8J2pmxEurQQ1J4FQCSkLjud4CcbMxKxREAU3AS9Oq-M7y_Yvdg-4Tt6dau0WFTO6kf_5di/s320/DSCN0862.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br />
Tabs of duct tape hold things in place, and a few full wraps of tape will be added when all sheets are in place.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ7tQFN1zlzv-N3iyuuKH5dkcU6qypvI1BLCM7GBJZNS-KOI7LagwLEEAPQlF0JjgrgxFhRIui6p3WxGYmdX3B5YFQvt3zBkf6peYpX2kl2SahW9_iOi00xloNwvnEdeOYCGgD/s1600/DSCN0860.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ7tQFN1zlzv-N3iyuuKH5dkcU6qypvI1BLCM7GBJZNS-KOI7LagwLEEAPQlF0JjgrgxFhRIui6p3WxGYmdX3B5YFQvt3zBkf6peYpX2kl2SahW9_iOi00xloNwvnEdeOYCGgD/s320/DSCN0860.JPG" width="320" /> </a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
Perfect fit.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjayxWFQjgC4JYvVjZhF7ZYO9HkcTpyD9v6bXO2ZeoyqnQzaA_sSOYYyTtiSio8hwP4TYri8prYc2HHqqJKpCsnA6EAexDYE5H9mOFMn_ItKSXDpg_WwwrBeUNJVuij01-GDy3W/s1600/DSCN0867.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjayxWFQjgC4JYvVjZhF7ZYO9HkcTpyD9v6bXO2ZeoyqnQzaA_sSOYYyTtiSio8hwP4TYri8prYc2HHqqJKpCsnA6EAexDYE5H9mOFMn_ItKSXDpg_WwwrBeUNJVuij01-GDy3W/s320/DSCN0867.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br />
Looking good! For now the strap is lengthened with a bungee cord. If I find an old belt that is long enough I could use that instead.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWoI4Qz5sIcuzmxn5ysxfpjWAaY4Y16Xw5NyilNwLq_86p7dpXtTP8e5yrBA69EeCmQXXP0NrrXV45HhIovrZk8-txTf7mhA7CAd6rX87A9sMqJNRa9u5ejyZv7FnQ6SxBVakc/s1600/DSCN0865.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWoI4Qz5sIcuzmxn5ysxfpjWAaY4Y16Xw5NyilNwLq_86p7dpXtTP8e5yrBA69EeCmQXXP0NrrXV45HhIovrZk8-txTf7mhA7CAd6rX87A9sMqJNRa9u5ejyZv7FnQ6SxBVakc/s320/DSCN0865.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div>Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06957998770145424270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22429591.post-31004646451503955062011-07-13T13:59:00.000-04:002011-07-13T13:59:26.979-04:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The cargo trike is now in its eighth year of operation. One thing I had to decide upon over the winter was the battery pack for its <a href="http://drumbent.blogspot.com/2007/10/update-to-battery-pack-upgrade.html">electric assist</a>, as the most recent one had started to die late last year and I barely squeaked through November with it (though through proper charging and management I did get two years out of that pack, which was darn good).</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I'd been using sealed lead acid batteries (SLA) since the assist was installed, but that is not the best technology for the high power drain of such a set-up. Over the years I was advised to look into a lithium pack, but they were darned pricey (SLA was $200, lithium $800 at the time). But the prices have come down, and my friend BlackBurnPete told me of Ping Battery in China. This Ping fellow was getting excellent reviews of his products on e-assist forums, as he apparently has done his homework to make sure the batteries and their technology are reliable.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">So this is what I ordered: <a href="http://www.pingbattery.com/servlet/the-12/48V-15AH-V2.5-LiFePO4/Detail">http://www.pingbattery.com/servlet/the-12/48V-15AH-V2.5-LiFePO4/Detail</a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">My previous pack was 12AH (amp hours) but being an SLA pack something called the Peukert Effect comes into play so the it only delivered perhaps 8AH. The above lithium pack is 15AH and does not suffer the same effect, so I'd be getting almost twice the range! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">One can feel a sense of trepidation sending money to an overseas seller and hoping everything will be OK. And this transaction was problem free. He notified me as soon as the payment was received and that he would let me know when it was being shipped and provide a tracking number. It arrived as advertised, and as the leads are supplied bare I asked my friend Charles R., who had done electrical work on the trike in the past, to add Anderson connectors.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Since this pack is smaller I simply cut down the battery box (easy to do when made out of coroplast and duct tape) and added some foam padding underneath, since instead of four solid SLA batteries I now had an assembled bunch of smaller lithium ones, and vibration might cause connections to fail. Perhaps this thing is rugged enough as it is, but it is little effort to add this protection. One addition is the piece of recycled plexiglass added to the top so I can see the LEDs for the battery management system.</div><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFEmMDexUF-ighx4Qc_oFUrU-lAbbYQDFMsE4t7lyr-EzwThcbjvgde0hXJcmMbX8ixECJxRf7GoWa4O0ePk_AcAgu7NlymPXvvdAmUXovYzhyrqsVbR5iVZ_FbNfqyG4bfnZ5/s1600/DSCN0498.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFEmMDexUF-ighx4Qc_oFUrU-lAbbYQDFMsE4t7lyr-EzwThcbjvgde0hXJcmMbX8ixECJxRf7GoWa4O0ePk_AcAgu7NlymPXvvdAmUXovYzhyrqsVbR5iVZ_FbNfqyG4bfnZ5/s320/DSCN0498.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr align="left"><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;">This uses the same Anderson connectors as before going to the controller, but the charger uses 3-pin XLR (yes, same as a microphone, which could be confusing for a drummer like me).</span></td></tr>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJUNqjryQWbXADJAffwKfD1A-MWAHcb_ie1u066pnh_pRD40-kVH7aw1DyizZNvqaKGu-D1o212mWwg4P-DvX-M_jY6PDe6vZU7D-ousVynVh4hRYy3E5VNldXLS5fxSSVPRBb/s1600/DSCN0495.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJUNqjryQWbXADJAffwKfD1A-MWAHcb_ie1u066pnh_pRD40-kVH7aw1DyizZNvqaKGu-D1o212mWwg4P-DvX-M_jY6PDe6vZU7D-ousVynVh4hRYy3E5VNldXLS5fxSSVPRBb/s320/DSCN0495.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>The battery management system, the proper design of which is the key to having a healthy battery pack, It makes sure all the cells are properly balanced when charging.<br />
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The biggest advantage to this new pack is that one does not have to constantly recharge a lithium pack. SLAs can get damaged due to sulfation if left in any state of discharge, so if the trike is going to be parked for more than an hour or so the pack has to come out and get recharged. So for almost any gig I did I had to take the charger with me, unplug the pack, and take it all into the gig and make sure it was hooked up. And then reverse at the end. It was not the end of the world, but just one more thing to deal with when getting to the job. But just like your laptop, a lithium battery can be drained will not suffer any damage. So unless I have a rather lengthy ride (more than 20km return) I can wait to recharge when I get back home. <br />
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Now that part is fabulous. And the more I use this new set-up the more I like this aspect. But in the previous incarnation the pack just sat in a bracket in the cargo box of the trike, since it was almost always being removed. Now it can stay with the trike, but just lying out in the open is not a good idea. Time for a sort-of hiding place...<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEOkB2SvXHVeK1LcPyOjMjaV-RwfAYzx94FxkHj52jf7VjSrCish781K1SvXLps4sGrZYFN0v7pO6KtvUKw5t12-cqsk0KIOekmYUfkfhkz5ROr40zsETQjYYOS6pHQEEo7rO_/s1600/DSCN0499.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEOkB2SvXHVeK1LcPyOjMjaV-RwfAYzx94FxkHj52jf7VjSrCish781K1SvXLps4sGrZYFN0v7pO6KtvUKw5t12-cqsk0KIOekmYUfkfhkz5ROr40zsETQjYYOS6pHQEEo7rO_/s320/DSCN0499.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Cut through the floor, bolt in a cradle made from aluminum strapping recycled from my <a href="http://drumbent.com/trailer.html">first trailer</a> (that got damaged in an accident), then line that with coroplast and add the ubiquitous duct tape.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSYE5wl2rernJb3HWt1FnlUx_3LvZSWEDisP48obYuKrzqyNILcNIlcuf9WpMHjo6WNm934ja0VwqIiHUneaKfmT5bcizJSf-pTKI7exF0l9VyR909FJEFKk8h9dXNqyb_QUxN/s1600/DSCN0500.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSYE5wl2rernJb3HWt1FnlUx_3LvZSWEDisP48obYuKrzqyNILcNIlcuf9WpMHjo6WNm934ja0VwqIiHUneaKfmT5bcizJSf-pTKI7exF0l9VyR909FJEFKk8h9dXNqyb_QUxN/s320/DSCN0500.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Drop the pack in (notice even more foam, since the trike has no suspension beyond its fat tires), hook it up and off we go!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZWSL8Ak2iHoyFGhwQsyyOo-n-lLVaKpbnLPKHcs_q8iG9AATVioqxciOuDLpSMbqThGkvwpBSGce8hJZ7emyqXdKEByT5ic4UR7S9ilbVNA0lzuEDgvlXesZr-Q02IvKKPqnJ/s1600/DSCN0502.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZWSL8Ak2iHoyFGhwQsyyOo-n-lLVaKpbnLPKHcs_q8iG9AATVioqxciOuDLpSMbqThGkvwpBSGce8hJZ7emyqXdKEByT5ic4UR7S9ilbVNA0lzuEDgvlXesZr-Q02IvKKPqnJ/s320/DSCN0502.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
So far everything has worked out very well. Charles updated the wiring, and later cleaned out a troublesome Anderson connector that had temporarily rendered the assist inoperable. I've very much enjoyed NOT having to always take the battery pack with me into gigs (try taking a duct tape-covered black box with wires sticking out of it into a Federal Government building), and while I've not yet had to test the full range of this new pack I've been happy not to worry about how far it can go for the trips done so far. So it looks like a big thumbs-up for this new set-up!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06957998770145424270noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22429591.post-2585839862603140452011-07-10T23:01:00.000-04:002011-07-10T23:01:59.353-04:00More water funWell, my camera died a second time! Three weeks after getting it back and only my third time using it. Same lens issue as the first, so I waited again (only five weeks this time) for it to come back from warranty. But upon reloading the memory card I was reminded that I did take some photos in May of the still-high Ottawa River overflowing its banks a bit.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghO-23GL5WvPNVakX5l8wVSL6rmCDzQbWDqP69_vmtcA1lb7R1a-aZLP4njxIJUxjrXeRO9RwmFJ8Dz87GYsoNr3hc3Kic8IIy4Z2FmxQTUmXSmzs6koLZmijrwOHUqEyjtmsz/s1600/DSCN0477.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghO-23GL5WvPNVakX5l8wVSL6rmCDzQbWDqP69_vmtcA1lb7R1a-aZLP4njxIJUxjrXeRO9RwmFJ8Dz87GYsoNr3hc3Kic8IIy4Z2FmxQTUmXSmzs6koLZmijrwOHUqEyjtmsz/s320/DSCN0477.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJVYGNPSKJntFMzwA2etTB2TSqCjN5871FxnV39Nva0KTy8nSa98X-iVpw8qjl5GEDn7U9JPBsHuHzP2kBbkTrLepatjazIwkqrb9xlo7KvUUluB5DNn3okKk-YSfttE16e1XM/s1600/DSCN0479.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJVYGNPSKJntFMzwA2etTB2TSqCjN5871FxnV39Nva0KTy8nSa98X-iVpw8qjl5GEDn7U9JPBsHuHzP2kBbkTrLepatjazIwkqrb9xlo7KvUUluB5DNn3okKk-YSfttE16e1XM/s320/DSCN0479.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2PEfX2VSP5p0KSpxxUVhmW-bAXoezzoSfUpSIr6WeUXJInw3-NSFAJO1M4rW403-ZVDQU_q0T304ezhD6I4_-DYroeD6jUhPfs9a2CVfN8NFBf0IbGe8LJdT7OkZkNGBRpCI6/s1600/DSCN0480.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2PEfX2VSP5p0KSpxxUVhmW-bAXoezzoSfUpSIr6WeUXJInw3-NSFAJO1M4rW403-ZVDQU_q0T304ezhD6I4_-DYroeD6jUhPfs9a2CVfN8NFBf0IbGe8LJdT7OkZkNGBRpCI6/s320/DSCN0480.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06957998770145424270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22429591.post-51109259245773587882011-05-16T01:15:00.000-04:002011-05-16T01:15:31.314-04:00Swingin'!One of my favourite things to do as a drummer is to play swing music. The grooves are fun, and you set the tempos, keep everyone on track, and interact with the sections and soloists. It's even more fun when there are dancers, especially if they happen to be semi-pro / professionals! Back on May 1st the <a href="http://www.ottawajazzorchestra.com/">Ottawa Jazz Orchestra</a> (formerly the Impressions in Jazz Orchestra) teamed up with Ottawa's <a href="http://www.swingdynamite.com/">Swing Dynamite</a> for a fabulous evening.<br />
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The OJO doesn't tend to play the usual "In the Mood" type of stuff - we like to get into plenty of Ellington, some early Twenties, and more esoteric but still swinging tunes. And the Swing Dynamite gang loves us for it. Below is an edited iPhone clip taken as the end of the evening drew near. But while most folks might wish to start slowing down, this crowd likes to get faster! So these last tunes are pretty up there tempo-wise, but your correspondent was able to keep up. Exhilarating stuff...<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/_9gG-wZmb94" width="560"></iframe></div>Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06957998770145424270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22429591.post-4535647891953702882011-04-28T00:55:00.000-04:002011-04-28T00:55:56.572-04:00Spring water funI'm a bit behind on posting, mainly because my year-old camera got cranky and is in for warranty repair. Among other things, the cargo trike got a new hi-tech lithium battery pack, and I'll post about that as soon as I can take photos.<br />
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In the mean time, I have a nice photo spread of the the annual Spring waters here in Ottawa, featuring shots of both Rideau and Hogs Back Falls.<br />
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Where the Rideau River meets the Ottawa River there are a pair of falls due to Green Island (site of our former City Hall) sitting right on the escarpment's edge. The western falls aren't that interesting, so it's the eastern one that gets all the attention. And since this river controls the level of the the northern half of the Rideau Waterway, a LOT of water passes through when the Spring melt begins.<br />
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For some background on the Rideau waterway and the falls, I recommend <a href="http://www.rideau-info.com/canal/history/index.html">this site</a>.<br />
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Also, a few years ago I took some video footage of the falls and the blasting that occurs to break up the ice:<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/GRHgfHUoB-I" width="425"></iframe><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi91NVRhBq5YwmVTp16NWSQ__9RbnM_5s_dDtztEOqzP93u0AWg-C4xejUcqI_72mAX4BzKIDZOXGp1CUCFtPExVN10JUDsrVXeOmUQFHmILl0QYQ-I39UFotC_61CURpyNUVQ/s1600/DSCN1184.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi91NVRhBq5YwmVTp16NWSQ__9RbnM_5s_dDtztEOqzP93u0AWg-C4xejUcqI_72mAX4BzKIDZOXGp1CUCFtPExVN10JUDsrVXeOmUQFHmILl0QYQ-I39UFotC_61CURpyNUVQ/s320/DSCN1184.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">The falls in full roar.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjWyQUeE2O3HATkS8LD7oSWlzrYVhwlkqEsuR05TAETFQJFlPWgBF-8uObYakHPnaFLUV2X32MizR_vphXtDqoaQ01HnSX-K_l03pB94s_SaK-53VaR-SSMdgDjxv8YRmSHl0/s1600/DSCN1199.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjWyQUeE2O3HATkS8LD7oSWlzrYVhwlkqEsuR05TAETFQJFlPWgBF-8uObYakHPnaFLUV2X32MizR_vphXtDqoaQ01HnSX-K_l03pB94s_SaK-53VaR-SSMdgDjxv8YRmSHl0/s320/DSCN1199.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">This beast is used to lift the square timbers that close the dam.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM4qmDcvTBqug1WEKY2lWM6v6ozcoSBsP6ggHZQgJ_M-gvhxwLWiUHum8YzA1w4RRRm_brONNzFF6iLc8NhcSWS5K182_PgEab3EanHmGbPOGmUitnU_GUtQZc2KtbfC6DdOA/s1600/DSCN1190.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM4qmDcvTBqug1WEKY2lWM6v6ozcoSBsP6ggHZQgJ_M-gvhxwLWiUHum8YzA1w4RRRm_brONNzFF6iLc8NhcSWS5K182_PgEab3EanHmGbPOGmUitnU_GUtQZc2KtbfC6DdOA/s320/DSCN1190.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Not sure where they can even find wood this large anymore.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3hUKlTnVDwaQ3BYOn0ktTiczWgEv9MOOOtL-vPC5opWUm-4dw143p9MX0z4jqgqeUMHD5r9tA35Yr5f_Krn4UfBPQGyxzweBZIO2wMq4vsnqv-nBDugdzhl20ZVeA-UcLE0E/s1600/DSCN1204.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3hUKlTnVDwaQ3BYOn0ktTiczWgEv9MOOOtL-vPC5opWUm-4dw143p9MX0z4jqgqeUMHD5r9tA35Yr5f_Krn4UfBPQGyxzweBZIO2wMq4vsnqv-nBDugdzhl20ZVeA-UcLE0E/s320/DSCN1204.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Some interesting ice formations can occur.</span></td></tr>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpkSEz5kGAMvMMd0LzulobgKWLqxv4S8vpTWF_PiBoONfjvn6WGKpXX2AT8twkp3nU84piYGU5dpk5HeVgcHNnrJbHOxM0iItqoG3S2SxCWM-FHdfR6E5KXbqEzUwwYKxTONM/s1600/DSCN1213.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpkSEz5kGAMvMMd0LzulobgKWLqxv4S8vpTWF_PiBoONfjvn6WGKpXX2AT8twkp3nU84piYGU5dpk5HeVgcHNnrJbHOxM0iItqoG3S2SxCWM-FHdfR6E5KXbqEzUwwYKxTONM/s320/DSCN1213.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWaw1kUN1b9yiaNXHZvGFcpJAnTRzZnusfTJojMf0U7lyMe5icKtC1dAxTNc4Eh48_m-hBLK1ttNiDEs4XYP6hVqIknj16EaPrVjXgB9e4HVGByC6Lofc8t5_e-NzyY64_3h8/s1600/DSCN1220.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWaw1kUN1b9yiaNXHZvGFcpJAnTRzZnusfTJojMf0U7lyMe5icKtC1dAxTNc4Eh48_m-hBLK1ttNiDEs4XYP6hVqIknj16EaPrVjXgB9e4HVGByC6Lofc8t5_e-NzyY64_3h8/s320/DSCN1220.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1ZCRKRr3i67dCJKrMdkLrh_FZf4cLdrlAPJDIo6eMxFWAygDp9B7cnJ6tEP2l9TG45o5QFK-ksp1K8fw3TvKeeaEeu3D6EPieewJ26wVba2ByFLal1KnSqM_7KaY1dh_Oq5A/s1600/DSCN1237.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1ZCRKRr3i67dCJKrMdkLrh_FZf4cLdrlAPJDIo6eMxFWAygDp9B7cnJ6tEP2l9TG45o5QFK-ksp1K8fw3TvKeeaEeu3D6EPieewJ26wVba2ByFLal1KnSqM_7KaY1dh_Oq5A/s320/DSCN1237.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Now up to Hogs Back Falls. This where the canal splits off from the river at Mooney's Bay.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM8wkfPxuX4RoP5XAPDTmKrM-eb2BM_qFZpFH3dXXuv3X_NdEc4tlB6sGuSDb1oX87O-pjgYjTtfmLJn-8Rw_J1cxFMhGq7QZDnP0PG9Y4DSk0gSC6NOakXf0tIbnXIuTtixo/s1600/DSCN1239.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM8wkfPxuX4RoP5XAPDTmKrM-eb2BM_qFZpFH3dXXuv3X_NdEc4tlB6sGuSDb1oX87O-pjgYjTtfmLJn-8Rw_J1cxFMhGq7QZDnP0PG9Y4DSk0gSC6NOakXf0tIbnXIuTtixo/s320/DSCN1239.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr align="left"><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;">To get there by bike I took the pathway alongside the canal, and it loops over the Falls and back under the roadway. Except that the subway was still filled with ice!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhta580g-70oXCs4ztLTsoDiVmLWwaxqsxsYg8KQunCb6je4l7KAi72JNNbMHhGJ7E9TFjyLxQBGkw-GFuLNa_Drkq43MXhwj8jAnVrpzDgBAM7-LOq-xJb7AABYf_7DURJYM/s1600/DSCN1241.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhta580g-70oXCs4ztLTsoDiVmLWwaxqsxsYg8KQunCb6je4l7KAi72JNNbMHhGJ7E9TFjyLxQBGkw-GFuLNa_Drkq43MXhwj8jAnVrpzDgBAM7-LOq-xJb7AABYf_7DURJYM/s320/DSCN1241.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfC5jJm5JSd6l-d3iwXTU0dcj4_8LDJwjzefcixrws7_dupSojrJWBDXsB3ynKIWDk8LCEB3orHQsXCgIqMopxnwqUF6XDrtZm2Lyb59Xcm4zlTiuQvANuuk-Ui38tgxfRumw/s1600/DSCN1243.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfC5jJm5JSd6l-d3iwXTU0dcj4_8LDJwjzefcixrws7_dupSojrJWBDXsB3ynKIWDk8LCEB3orHQsXCgIqMopxnwqUF6XDrtZm2Lyb59Xcm4zlTiuQvANuuk-Ui38tgxfRumw/s320/DSCN1243.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Ah, here we go, the dam is wide open and in full flood.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
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<tr align="center"><td><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWu0F2fRCe5HnmHgKATv-zHL4RxIeNM0E1n8BAPwcyVlkjaKGQcukKe3vtv1VrgbYPy9y6OxhE0lJrozjTSvZCwYQvV0EnsDLZccMCWpWag62tqzM5KNVB6Zbq0aOUFBJiyY0/s1600/DSCN1254.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWu0F2fRCe5HnmHgKATv-zHL4RxIeNM0E1n8BAPwcyVlkjaKGQcukKe3vtv1VrgbYPy9y6OxhE0lJrozjTSvZCwYQvV0EnsDLZccMCWpWag62tqzM5KNVB6Zbq0aOUFBJiyY0/s320/DSCN1254.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr align="left"><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;">At this point the camera started to go wonky and the lens would not extend, so that was the end of photos for a while.</span></td><td class="tr-caption"></td><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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</tbody></table>Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06957998770145424270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22429591.post-13926051091142349822011-03-06T03:33:00.000-05:002011-03-06T03:33:43.988-05:00A foggy soggy day<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Saturday March 5th was quite the weather day. Overnight snow had turned to rain, and the humidity was something like 200%. In my walking travels that day (glad I was able to avoid cycling) the roads were a mess, the sidewalks were an icy mess; it was just, well, a mess everywhere! <br />
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Walking on Metcalfe St. I saw the Peace Tower through the gloom and decided to get a bit closer for some mood shots.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4w8ic-g2Cv09PLxNXFBxqqlXgHeCteE4q5AgjKhwqv1tKjgSzyZvddPjCunSaguJ3R-JzCpcRXdDYSr9eN_RWBLuy8Tl_ZYXji3XT6iHkgk3f_MYKYuVWSV80StSRFV1any7k/s1600/DSCN1109.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4w8ic-g2Cv09PLxNXFBxqqlXgHeCteE4q5AgjKhwqv1tKjgSzyZvddPjCunSaguJ3R-JzCpcRXdDYSr9eN_RWBLuy8Tl_ZYXji3XT6iHkgk3f_MYKYuVWSV80StSRFV1any7k/s320/DSCN1109.JPG" width="258" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidLQ_02NcMuLCu-jYCxtAX0-CJUqnctaRJMYMyziWBEa4pxi5LUeZcPDkbyALoyYtmWX__FaA3gp74-5RRUzG2-7HtONk-y0X7xOjQ5tM-zleSpJQInoe-DHqU4K7GIEEgi6mV/s1600/DSCN1110.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidLQ_02NcMuLCu-jYCxtAX0-CJUqnctaRJMYMyziWBEa4pxi5LUeZcPDkbyALoyYtmWX__FaA3gp74-5RRUzG2-7HtONk-y0X7xOjQ5tM-zleSpJQInoe-DHqU4K7GIEEgi6mV/s320/DSCN1110.JPG" width="316" /></a></div><br />
The along Sparks St. to Confederation Square, with the War Memorial in front and the Chateau Laurier through the fog. <br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3dKfOFib_HVLYENQOkJIken21W0au07Ek3R0vvgbv9al17QqXEVnEAwcLhTAGPaE-JJIDDKwXlzCNUuKGq2uU3hRtyAAsfPwsK1aGbL4SUTvOLqmzlToBzwYNonMkQtib4FBu/s1600/DSCN1113.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3dKfOFib_HVLYENQOkJIken21W0au07Ek3R0vvgbv9al17QqXEVnEAwcLhTAGPaE-JJIDDKwXlzCNUuKGq2uU3hRtyAAsfPwsK1aGbL4SUTvOLqmzlToBzwYNonMkQtib4FBu/s320/DSCN1113.JPG" width="320" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwIUGTfNt0gN6TCDy-4HT-GiyJQkwgoNShNM8iNyPKibR7GDWxBFLhOSeV7bN-0Noy3Eh_WfcZ1jn2QVMN9Yw5gb8QFXiUzVKhWXn_6RCVRYBT4cXM49knQOE_9oPdExVGL4Gu/s1600/DSCN1112.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwIUGTfNt0gN6TCDy-4HT-GiyJQkwgoNShNM8iNyPKibR7GDWxBFLhOSeV7bN-0Noy3Eh_WfcZ1jn2QVMN9Yw5gb8QFXiUzVKhWXn_6RCVRYBT4cXM49knQOE_9oPdExVGL4Gu/s320/DSCN1112.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIddsDXTkQAYcQP9HVMaP_P00kyvNrE74I83tXHZwSgYBeGxCJ6_FdfCQrBDWl9opQ5Sj_hDQl4IosZbORfETyV7acQvCLb8OnL5y74fWDxs_xAbkpQsTeJYfKHhl_NBy3ur_j/s1600/DSCN1114.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIddsDXTkQAYcQP9HVMaP_P00kyvNrE74I83tXHZwSgYBeGxCJ6_FdfCQrBDWl9opQ5Sj_hDQl4IosZbORfETyV7acQvCLb8OnL5y74fWDxs_xAbkpQsTeJYfKHhl_NBy3ur_j/s320/DSCN1114.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
On the way home, and the intersections in places could be a bit of a challenge. My waterproof boots passed their test. <br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">James St. was completely under water in some sections. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjirr_CATO4S2I9u1J72q5EexaE4YBvjo_qQUKS6K-ETimhC6wQlzn9nqM9sJtMq__oFTIid0QN5Ht09Z-70jmOgafblkeNbnW-DunzVF6hxI4ute-wEtgJJR69RWXFLhB-xC7p/s1600/DSCN1117.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjirr_CATO4S2I9u1J72q5EexaE4YBvjo_qQUKS6K-ETimhC6wQlzn9nqM9sJtMq__oFTIid0QN5Ht09Z-70jmOgafblkeNbnW-DunzVF6hxI4ute-wEtgJJR69RWXFLhB-xC7p/s320/DSCN1117.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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'Twas bad enough that City crews (ok, one lonely front-end loader) were out unblocking the drains. <br />
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The sidewalks were fun too. The well-traveled ones were just wet in places, while others had ice under the water. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaPiQ-MC3gOYCSwyGqWZxQX4AMPW5g-hGFnkbYcscZ6_ZbhWoJlp2m7mdo3_1id8KSqpN0JHHYywu0vwNJjPyyIYCB6fw4j_K18Jr8GU1xXid7qngFl7q1s4nCA0Fdn2LcIO-H/s1600/DSCN1125.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaPiQ-MC3gOYCSwyGqWZxQX4AMPW5g-hGFnkbYcscZ6_ZbhWoJlp2m7mdo3_1id8KSqpN0JHHYywu0vwNJjPyyIYCB6fw4j_K18Jr8GU1xXid7qngFl7q1s4nCA0Fdn2LcIO-H/s320/DSCN1125.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06957998770145424270noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22429591.post-51736083951190690012011-02-10T23:46:00.000-05:002011-02-10T23:46:45.098-05:00who needs a car?Folks often say "I need a car to move large items", but that's because they haven't got a bike trailer! Most utility trailers can haul whatever you can fit in a car (note the word "in", not "on top of"), and of course my <a href="http://drumbent.blogspot.com/search/label/cargo%20trike">cargo trike</a> can often carry what <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHuqxFVcFdYvtlWjdm7GRFdEqx5k3JYbSVaCwEuPu4i2VuhINx-wrbScT41QEKBQJpdqSiOQLCDNQ50ujl2qf-LF8XzHS3obPMVKAcOsS8ApX7b9myBbpHYYEqx2MngmxnN5ys/s400/IMG_2309.JPG">some cars can't</a>. ;) <br />
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I recently had to get both my old TV and my old CRT monitor off to the recyclers. The City of Ottawa has a <a href="http://app01.ottawa.ca/takeitback/Welcome.do?lang=en">Take It Back</a> program, which lists local businesses that will take your recyclable items that are not part of the weekly blue / black box pick-up. The Staples store on Bank St. was listed as taking the stuff I had, and a quick call confirmed this and also that they do not charge a fee.<br />
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So, hook up the <a href="http://drumbent.blogspot.com/2008/12/more-trailer-adventures.html">coroplast trailer</a> and find that the two items fit perfectly! <br />
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The trip was all of five or six blocks, but the funny thing was when I arrived at the store. I walk in carrying the TV, wearing a bike helmet and obviously looking like a cyclist, and tell the young staffer that I have two items for recycling. She doesn't even blink at the fact that I'm carrying a TV via bike, and when I go and fetch the monitor she asks, upon my return, "anything else?". I had to admire her blithe professionalism...Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06957998770145424270noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22429591.post-42894378179059992482010-12-20T21:12:00.000-05:002013-03-26T16:36:45.691-04:00yet ANOTHER trailer!<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8f5jxVr_XuwNokrWD2nrZ7qngXw83_4M19I5mGCpILWTcqAubtQ9oFbZaCPhlgkVBBFhig1jWmHB7yWD5bEtouE26NS1rNmnU3b6pBFZBfBJjC413Apd2cJuRhhBr-JrnkBU/s1600/DSCN0865.JPG" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="248" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8f5jxVr_XuwNokrWD2nrZ7qngXw83_4M19I5mGCpILWTcqAubtQ9oFbZaCPhlgkVBBFhig1jWmHB7yWD5bEtouE26NS1rNmnU3b6pBFZBfBJjC413Apd2cJuRhhBr-JrnkBU/s1600/DSCN0865.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Ok, so here we go once again with another trailer build! Well, like <a href="http://drumbent.blogspot.com/2008/12/more-trailer-adventures.html">the last one</a>, I did not build the frame, but simply added a box to a decommissioned kids trailer. The reason for this one? With the <a href="http://drumbent.blogspot.com/search/label/cargo%20trike">cargo trike</a> in winter hibernation I still like to move my drums by pedal power as much as possible. In past winters I've borrowed <a href="http://drumbent.com/trailer_big.html">the big trailer</a> I built for my friend Bridget a while back, but it is bigger than I need, a bit too flimsy for the weight of drums (side rails bend more than they should), and a real pain to store in my basement due to its size.<br />
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I decided for this year that since I'm don't really want to tow my bigger kits across town (there's VrtuCar for moving those babies), and that most of my downtown gigs are with the small jazz kit, a trailer to just fit that would be ideal. Yes, it looks quite similar in size to the other trailer, but here's why it's different:<br />
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The other one, being made with an aluminum frame, a bit of plywood, and lots of coroplast (corrugated plastic) is nice and lightweight for hauling and keeping dry the various amplifiers and electronics and small drums I use in my dance class gigs. It is fine for towing this sort of stuff for quite a few kilometres, but between it's a bit flimsy for the weight of a drum kit, and the fact that its dimensions make it just a bit too small for the kit sealed the issue. So now I have one trailer for lightweight and long haul, the other for sturdy and short haul.<br />
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This newest trailer is built from 100% recycled or leftover materials. The only new items were the bolts, and even they were surplus from previous trailer / cargo builds.<br />
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A simple plywood box bolted to an old trailer frame. It's previous incarnation was as a kids trailer, complete with webbing and buckles and straps, but all were in questionable shape. A friend's friend gave this to me just before moving out of town, saying "hey, you like trailer projects...".<br />
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Since this trailer takes the place of the big cargo trike during the winter some flexibility is needed with what it can move. I was thinking of a hinged tailgate, then remembered I had this metal grid stuff from years ago. And I thought if the grid layout even roughly fits the width of the trike I'll use it, and it did, quite nicely! It's held on with easily removable zip-ties for now, and allows long things to be carried as they can poke through the grid.<br />
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The wood was bolted together using 1/4" bolts with nylock nuts and surplus aluminum channel I had found years ago at Cohen and Cohen. This channel stuff has also been used for both the cargo trike and the big trailer.<br />
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Since I was using scrap or leftover items I found two pieces of plywood for the bottom. One sheet would've been ideal, but these needed to get used up. Of course a brace below the seam might be good, so I added a piece of 1x3 for this, which also doubled as a support for the rear end since the box overhung the trailer frame (I then notched the wood so it would rest on the crossbar).<br />
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The brown bolts were from some old melamine cabinets.</div>
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The hitch is a bit primitive compared to the Chariot ball and socket on my other trailer, but seems to work just fine.<br />
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Box is held to frame at three points. Two out back, and this one in front. This allowed me to use existing holes and not add more than necessary, as any holes can provide entry points for moisture (all other existing holes from when it was a kids trailer were tightly covered over with electrical tape).<br />
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Despite a long coroplast "crap flap" hanging from the winter bike's rear fender, some salty spray still hit the underside. So a coroplast spray guard was added to the trailer's front.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLqPCNrjZpi99SrEo9o25aMQRHSKEoMdT2KVc6HmJ5kfa2Kl7S_UMeDR5bE8JVJI1aJbYBryxWNDbL3uvCETptQW295Ib6ZS3AqOyr0kCV4f2mRu9_MRO7TnmDSFjy1ZXtdc4/s1600/DSCN0877.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLqPCNrjZpi99SrEo9o25aMQRHSKEoMdT2KVc6HmJ5kfa2Kl7S_UMeDR5bE8JVJI1aJbYBryxWNDbL3uvCETptQW295Ib6ZS3AqOyr0kCV4f2mRu9_MRO7TnmDSFjy1ZXtdc4/s320/DSCN0877.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
A few days later, and some additions. Fenders installed, and eye-bolts replaced a few of the reg bolts so a tarp could be added over top if need be. In the past I've used coroplast for fenders, but these lovely orange things, while a bit short, could not be passed up.<br />
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I think the only remaining improvement to be made is to change out the old hitch for a modern Chariot one as on the other trailer, because right now I have to undo the winter bike's axle bolt and change the fitting for each trailer. UPDATE: done! It's nice to be able to use this trailer with either of my <a href="http://drumbent.blogspot.ca/2012/01/new-old-winter-bikes.html" target="_blank">two winter bikes</a> (which in 2011 replaced the single blue one pictured above).Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06957998770145424270noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22429591.post-78630760924762266872010-11-24T13:14:00.001-05:002010-11-24T13:15:49.048-05:00More HPVOoO parade fun<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://tricolour.net/photos/2010/11/20/med/21-23-09i1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="289" src="http://tricolour.net/photos/2010/11/20/med/21-23-09i1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Last Saturday the HPVOoO gang took part in our local Help Santa Toy Parade. We've been doing this annually since 2003, and our thing is to dress up <a href="http://tricolour.net/gtvs6.html">Richard's Greenspeed tandem recumbent trike</a> towing the big organ trailer as our main float. Then the rest of us cycle around it on our mostly dressed-up bikes and trikes.<br />
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For this year we came up with the idea of dressing the rig up as an old steam locomotive, with lights being used to delineate the form. <a href="http://hpvooodesign.blogspot.com/2010/10/locomotive-theme-for-toy-parade.html">A blog was put together</a> for sharing design ideas, then a bunch of us gathered at the re-Cycles shop on a Saturday afternoon (only doable because re-Cycles had switched to being open on Sunday for the winter) and got things underway. More work was done throughout the week, and on parade day it was fabulous!<br />
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Details on the build here: <a href="http://hpv.tricolour.net/train.html">http://hpv.tricolour.net/train.html</a><br />
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Lots of photos: <a href="http://tricolour.net/photos/2010/11/20/hpv.html">http://tricolour.net/photos/2010/11/20/hpv.html</a> <br />
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The main feature was a real diesel train horn, which Richard went looking for and was actually able to acquire! It sounded awesome (and very loud) when we tested it (hooked up to a compressor), and so it was incorporated into the design. It was a great hoot (literally) during the parade.<br />
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More links to the parade at: <a href="http://hpv.tricolour.net/events-2010.html">http://hpv.tricolour.net/events-2010.html</a>Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06957998770145424270noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22429591.post-5927058305332107962010-10-07T23:20:00.002-04:002010-10-20T14:00:58.837-04:00Even more whistle / flute creationI decided to revise the bend in the copper Bass whistle, and added a neck strap. The strap consist of the three pieces: a sleeve of bicycle innertube around the instrument, with a key-ring slipped in, and a clip-on strap.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggXc4L5hIkN__vIqVA5SWdT6ry1dhjem7bA7Juy0zzDsbi8QX_huO4YFKkTsKIYSykELQPt-D1oxeN1faFhDvAMFZYVYibdAY2U7k-2H1KsoiK99GpjgSDEFviG_WG6W-j7qaF/s1600/DSCN0716.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="191" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggXc4L5hIkN__vIqVA5SWdT6ry1dhjem7bA7Juy0zzDsbi8QX_huO4YFKkTsKIYSykELQPt-D1oxeN1faFhDvAMFZYVYibdAY2U7k-2H1KsoiK99GpjgSDEFviG_WG6W-j7qaF/s400/DSCN0716.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
The playing position with the lower bend was OK, but this more conventional bend feels even better. Now to spend more time playing this thing and getting used to the finger hole spread...<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq3P_6ajAUprLjYcIkYnPElfg7edVqBo2BaTmqgdt0l4lAgFP5gLz2Ad6OXLD5ZkpgOpzvS6B2GmjBmey_I5KGuB4gfwDA21pEXKoPfRMtFGlXmyE4joq2IgEivgPEz5vHao-P/s1600/DSCN0717.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="203" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq3P_6ajAUprLjYcIkYnPElfg7edVqBo2BaTmqgdt0l4lAgFP5gLz2Ad6OXLD5ZkpgOpzvS6B2GmjBmey_I5KGuB4gfwDA21pEXKoPfRMtFGlXmyE4joq2IgEivgPEz5vHao-P/s400/DSCN0717.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> Time to give this beauty a final polish and then a spray coat of lacquer.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Next up: The low D pvc whistle sounds quite nice, and since it has a detachable head joint I decided to make two more bodies for it, one being in D minor (same scale as D but just a flatted 3rd), and then a weirder one in what I finally figured out is called "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phrygian_dominant_scale">Phrygian Dominant</a>". This mode has lowered second, sixth and seventh notes that result in a scale used in lot of Arabic and Middle Eastern music. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The only challenge with this last one is the large reach to the last hole! Since the third note (F#) is in the usual place and the next note is a minor third down to the flatted second I have one heck of stretch. This is being dealt with by using my pinky finger instead of the the third finger, and I also use this technique on the Bass whistle, and does not feel odd since I'm so used to playing recorder when the pinky is used for the bottom note. As a matter of fact, since my third finger sits idle with this technique I could be silly and add a hole under it, resulting in a major / minor scale!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrPSqzoxnfjO6a7Jo-rfQUKScqVr1BZEjbjR6tZcMOtPfrzsBMwIkICgFb2em6aD0pw643qyttgpSzIckDn8Vbk_9egMK9JtUCCphQHETQtV8w6S_av_8op5OlaRMzmL3-TC0s/s1600/DSCN0715.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="175" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrPSqzoxnfjO6a7Jo-rfQUKScqVr1BZEjbjR6tZcMOtPfrzsBMwIkICgFb2em6aD0pw643qyttgpSzIckDn8Vbk_9egMK9JtUCCphQHETQtV8w6S_av_8op5OlaRMzmL3-TC0s/s400/DSCN0715.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">D major on top, then D minor, then the Phryg.-Dom. scale. </div>Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06957998770145424270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22429591.post-82370381198694046162010-09-16T02:39:00.000-04:002010-09-16T02:50:39.663-04:00More flute / whistle creationOK, so in the previous post I showed off some tin / cro-moly / pvc whistles I've been making.<br /><br />This next one is a Low Bass in "A", made from 1" copper pipe. This pipe (about ten feet long) was salvaged from the previous location of the re-Cycles shop, as the old heating system was being torn out with lots of pipe up for grabs. I'd saved the longest pieces for future projects at the shop, though I was thinking more for railings or similar than for instruments.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Here I've attached the external windway and am filing out the fipple hole:<br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDIMF2ZkK-w5arV4WRKIUxFwzbBj_PmVzdNVO4IsDkqoZkMaWEPNJZgKIox2-4peVstbKzzoP55KkPEZLEQcFhRUy2HhBzJLxkxOqgwWTE2odJLA3jiGkdx6sW1CFR-d5mc2Po/s1600/DSCN0595.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 299px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDIMF2ZkK-w5arV4WRKIUxFwzbBj_PmVzdNVO4IsDkqoZkMaWEPNJZgKIox2-4peVstbKzzoP55KkPEZLEQcFhRUy2HhBzJLxkxOqgwWTE2odJLA3jiGkdx6sW1CFR-d5mc2Po/s400/DSCN0595.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516656363295416386" border="0" /></a>Yes, it be a long beastie. Roughly 31 inches! Note the amount of tarnish, and how nicely that polishes away with some fine steel wool and lots of elbow grease:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlG1TNRgT9r5sD_M-8-V7EON-rFGjOR-1-QtiFhMiy7xPol5AhciyizmNElxkjeQgPLJi7MzFBBTIrYNwObTQibw4s_HyZHnXLtvRAbAa_-FBcks3tJIk0k-DbFFZQSqYpxGjQ/s1600/DSCN0602.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 177px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlG1TNRgT9r5sD_M-8-V7EON-rFGjOR-1-QtiFhMiy7xPol5AhciyizmNElxkjeQgPLJi7MzFBBTIrYNwObTQibw4s_HyZHnXLtvRAbAa_-FBcks3tJIk0k-DbFFZQSqYpxGjQ/s400/DSCN0602.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516656369204749730" border="0" /></a>First hold drilled - it's in tune! More or less, of course. Always need to do some filing and fine tuning:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjysMpLg3A789f5pfpfvLXSt_IIFxYMtho2oz1iAuUp2MHTPu1SrxGgDfuUZQa5jJ5CO46SexNi8SFJpAMYqErtEraoCbbeBtcslLUPl4GKhLP35x4xgC2swpOkLbj1tcHmqmYy/s1600/DSCN0603.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 302px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjysMpLg3A789f5pfpfvLXSt_IIFxYMtho2oz1iAuUp2MHTPu1SrxGgDfuUZQa5jJ5CO46SexNi8SFJpAMYqErtEraoCbbeBtcslLUPl4GKhLP35x4xgC2swpOkLbj1tcHmqmYy/s400/DSCN0603.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516656373669858354" border="0" /></a>Et Voila! It will take a while to get it really polished up. There's some discolouration along the back that I may or may not fuss over, as I think it'd need some sort of power buffer to get rid of it:<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLFdkbcyNjtIsUtJbovBOd6u53XEeJX9Sn4rjOhRyEYGoUI-eBYQA0FIDrz7QwXf2a_tRmk_jCU1Xw83IJD-vksOASxoPD8AJNIOqLaiPtParHsDqGoq_Kym9xmGajebNQBRwl/s1600/DSCN0608.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 212px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLFdkbcyNjtIsUtJbovBOd6u53XEeJX9Sn4rjOhRyEYGoUI-eBYQA0FIDrz7QwXf2a_tRmk_jCU1Xw83IJD-vksOASxoPD8AJNIOqLaiPtParHsDqGoq_Kym9xmGajebNQBRwl/s400/DSCN0608.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516656385123470018" border="0" /></a>The 2nd and 3rd whistles along with the new guy:<br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtKrgpSVYHbIF5buO1dkmAE6yHLI7mwfHONshAt4gT1aDoA8lUePLIura8P3b2rvEDa4Wcp0rGn5OmwQf_Y2NQMRH6SJMh8HUkE5tfuXI3hY3CSj91IhS01srCE5PTQLNn4S0Y/s1600/DSCN0610.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 174px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtKrgpSVYHbIF5buO1dkmAE6yHLI7mwfHONshAt4gT1aDoA8lUePLIura8P3b2rvEDa4Wcp0rGn5OmwQf_Y2NQMRH6SJMh8HUkE5tfuXI3hY3CSj91IhS01srCE5PTQLNn4S0Y/s400/DSCN0610.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516656393818868626" border="0" /></a>I knew that the holes would have to be fairly far apart. And while I have big hands it would still be almost impossible to play if the holes were kept inline. So some judicious angling was needed. As it is, I cannot easily reach the last hole with my third finger, though can do so with the pinky and it's just large enough to cover.<br /><br />An alternative would be to learn the "piper's grip" used on bagpipes, where some holes are covered by the joints of the fingers. Otherwise I've hit the limit of how long I can make one of these things and still play it without adding keys:<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMj1m8jyyjOlUNTekIaVrAts1rRogzXt3eQs2zIOhlBzZ1PnngNviGmyekzpf6Fnf7x-ZuaGwvS9nm7O7bfqgfgZnuJyGkF21uz2NzC9SHS_Q6mTpHyioLng6vT7rDqPmmw0D8/s1600/DSCN0611.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMj1m8jyyjOlUNTekIaVrAts1rRogzXt3eQs2zIOhlBzZ1PnngNviGmyekzpf6Fnf7x-ZuaGwvS9nm7O7bfqgfgZnuJyGkF21uz2NzC9SHS_Q6mTpHyioLng6vT7rDqPmmw0D8/s400/DSCN0611.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516657347002404146" border="0" /></a>The beak and windway:<br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmeg6xuytsV8UsbQUANbXZGj85Vb2aKVA24xoI3C1DiJgKVOw6U-VXNvJI2sCBzxPd8TT0TKDZumUt4XcZj4w4ijdKpUNCBK6AE2EYV-Wrl7FxTRFoJfLB9MO5QNucRKd2Y4de/s1600/DSCN0613.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 301px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmeg6xuytsV8UsbQUANbXZGj85Vb2aKVA24xoI3C1DiJgKVOw6U-VXNvJI2sCBzxPd8TT0TKDZumUt4XcZj4w4ijdKpUNCBK6AE2EYV-Wrl7FxTRFoJfLB9MO5QNucRKd2Y4de/s400/DSCN0613.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516657347675783410" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_EtVrdcz7p2p2bsza-blsR0LgX82PSKvkD8GCOxRhxxiad1eWpoy8Vi1nh49eY2unAKZLur_s0ws1cXYMvC-kLZFVq9I9Wvh-vG_LFh0_oGMMGYad1Lp5d8rnEj9_8sAQijhw/s1600/DSCN0614.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 309px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_EtVrdcz7p2p2bsza-blsR0LgX82PSKvkD8GCOxRhxxiad1eWpoy8Vi1nh49eY2unAKZLur_s0ws1cXYMvC-kLZFVq9I9Wvh-vG_LFh0_oGMMGYad1Lp5d8rnEj9_8sAQijhw/s400/DSCN0614.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516657356652176722" border="0" /></a>I was already planning to put a tuning barrel on the thing, which would help reduce its size when being transported. Then I thought perhaps a bend would help with the reach, because part of my energy was going into just holding the thing out at an angle so I could play it properly. So the one thing purchased for this whistle was the 45 deg. coupling:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNKAHu0_UalWkYYHKXOOOD48tCwPQQ77UCSbCaDjSVSlAbW1aJ8sFwOd8AE6KmPPAomF7MHEG5P_2EfrgfhN38pmDQRxB_61waskcQxyFUQUa_98BLERU9s_vDGMHCr_7iEtyS/s1600/DSCN0623.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 228px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNKAHu0_UalWkYYHKXOOOD48tCwPQQ77UCSbCaDjSVSlAbW1aJ8sFwOd8AE6KmPPAomF7MHEG5P_2EfrgfhN38pmDQRxB_61waskcQxyFUQUa_98BLERU9s_vDGMHCr_7iEtyS/s400/DSCN0623.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516657360971060306" border="0" /></a>Yes, it might look a bit odd, sort of like those old oboes or clarinets from the 1700s. Aesthetically it would've looked nice with the bend nearer the beak, but then it would not have packed down as nicely. I guess I could add a barrel in the middle AND have the angle near the beak, but then I'd just be adding more weight to what is already a pretty hefty instrument (probably weighs twice as much as a normal flute, and those things even have keys and related mechanisms on them).<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTKY714FaONob8tZImcXnAcn35Sol28APDQ2xcmFOiTuSph86vBb27Q5BjpZa5MtzbSyQdvjgWrsMZoVzUTQu7oJiUn8wXhtjIu7dxwm3UXET1W6JvgoaoCmKUafGQ7sse152G/s1600/DSCN0628.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 217px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTKY714FaONob8tZImcXnAcn35Sol28APDQ2xcmFOiTuSph86vBb27Q5BjpZa5MtzbSyQdvjgWrsMZoVzUTQu7oJiUn8wXhtjIu7dxwm3UXET1W6JvgoaoCmKUafGQ7sse152G/s400/DSCN0628.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516657376314131346" border="0" /></a>The big thing is how does it sound? Actually, really good! :)<br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKd1PJWtskX__r_jLZ0QLAepkboOplVmiOVb7_MiEAGdlfPNV6QmLiXmPCqnQUnIXcHHB9TPyh6su9q_E1S9e9bS63gL3YkohziSwAmC5gKJsdyt_F6VIEK_5gUpEtAR4rZBAC/s1600/DSCN0629.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 219px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKd1PJWtskX__r_jLZ0QLAepkboOplVmiOVb7_MiEAGdlfPNV6QmLiXmPCqnQUnIXcHHB9TPyh6su9q_E1S9e9bS63gL3YkohziSwAmC5gKJsdyt_F6VIEK_5gUpEtAR4rZBAC/s400/DSCN0629.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516657566360038050" border="0" /></a>I can so far play a full two octaves and they are all in tune. I'm actually rather amazed it came out as well as it did, but that's mainly because I'm not much of a diligent craftsman and tend to rush my projects.<br /><br />But one thing I'd been pondering... would the sound change much if I used the traditional windway and fipple? With the above whistle being made in two pieces I could simply make another top piece and try it out. So I carved a windway into another piece of dowel, and hammered out a fipple...<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi6GTXa5vMvbobOVniKwB8mNiBZWYwSXJU8ovbTizNN9w5ZW4kx4DJKpKoNtKU9GNPsyeyQEXFusb-xuYSkQO_A8j0rrmSDlAVFFLCX1eKNHGxn6KnOL-5NisWhj_kTmvyaPay/s1600/DSCN0631.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 327px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi6GTXa5vMvbobOVniKwB8mNiBZWYwSXJU8ovbTizNN9w5ZW4kx4DJKpKoNtKU9GNPsyeyQEXFusb-xuYSkQO_A8j0rrmSDlAVFFLCX1eKNHGxn6KnOL-5NisWhj_kTmvyaPay/s400/DSCN0631.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5517391836044709778" border="0" /></a><br />I didn't have a dowel of sufficient diameter for the tube, so some masking tape was employed (and yes, of course I need to do some finishing work, like sanding!):<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinxtREOeriR26jyxYsoVCMKSLxF46HldPMQLFCmI_xulyD6kthLl4Co5DfqY2y2vXOx_n_7-ySuUeFHVHKIQ9wPI75saYXd_vg5Iu0qMgVHojPDGUYCnZP7omXjPa3rcWEMLjA/s1600/DSCN0633.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 337px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinxtREOeriR26jyxYsoVCMKSLxF46HldPMQLFCmI_xulyD6kthLl4Co5DfqY2y2vXOx_n_7-ySuUeFHVHKIQ9wPI75saYXd_vg5Iu0qMgVHojPDGUYCnZP7omXjPa3rcWEMLjA/s400/DSCN0633.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5517391838529067666" border="0" /></a><br />Everything I've read advises that this is the most critical area of the sound. Just a millimeter or two in terms of the fipple's width, length, or depth can make a noticeable change. So lots of room to fuss, and I'm not the most patient person with such things...<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5h4kDbzdwSA_0NxNcvZ1LG-ewva-PUMbgO71tPrrNY0ummThnNMJpuVzl5_AeiHnGJMpTcTBEMOXp-ufhyU_YORcWujixNxXNOobuBwgdRXizgz1TgiWByy07YlVjrM_hY30R/s1600/DSCN0634.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5h4kDbzdwSA_0NxNcvZ1LG-ewva-PUMbgO71tPrrNY0ummThnNMJpuVzl5_AeiHnGJMpTcTBEMOXp-ufhyU_YORcWujixNxXNOobuBwgdRXizgz1TgiWByy07YlVjrM_hY30R/s400/DSCN0634.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5517391846429938754" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijMCBPCXWHApjMxWw12shyLa5iTr_crErqyXdKXuDitkD6nVlnA5y7SJh_Y1K4TSOuv_A1hCxNd9KcaERXQXZSosfj3VMA_qKH1cNWwKKRZxwzM-Nz4H9X9TmJYCAIKDPIusH0/s1600/DSCN0640.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 399px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijMCBPCXWHApjMxWw12shyLa5iTr_crErqyXdKXuDitkD6nVlnA5y7SJh_Y1K4TSOuv_A1hCxNd9KcaERXQXZSosfj3VMA_qKH1cNWwKKRZxwzM-Nz4H9X9TmJYCAIKDPIusH0/s400/DSCN0640.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5517391848291988754" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnN-kGcHlT8l3Y3w2phlF7iZt56oxK1m0UP8vMfl4ZJaa2I1WGNffCcQBvtkuvYsyEe6JI-iZ0F3t41M6y2C2PNfWCj01ywkaBVFu8UnTp3EwcVYO9MyJU-_Ya9gZAAdZGpdM7/s1600/DSCN0641.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 346px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnN-kGcHlT8l3Y3w2phlF7iZt56oxK1m0UP8vMfl4ZJaa2I1WGNffCcQBvtkuvYsyEe6JI-iZ0F3t41M6y2C2PNfWCj01ywkaBVFu8UnTp3EwcVYO9MyJU-_Ya9gZAAdZGpdM7/s400/DSCN0641.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5517391852049175986" border="0" /></a>And how does it sound in comparison to the exofipple design? Well, so far it actually sounds more pure, more flute-like. But it's a whistle, not a flute, and so I actually prefer the tone of the exofipple head sounds, which sounds so nice right now. So I'm not in a hurry to experiment with this newest head, but will keep it around and play with it at a later date.<br /><br />So Yay for a fabulous Bass Whistle in A, made for about $5 (not counting wear and tear in drill bits, etc.)!Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06957998770145424270noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22429591.post-27151388247996955212010-09-14T03:46:00.002-04:002010-09-14T03:50:18.415-04:00DIY tin whistlesFor the dance group my wind instruments have been my recorders, both alto and my recently-acquired tenor. I've been wanting to get a "Low D" tin whistle for a while now, which is one octave below the usual penny whistle. As with pretty well all of my non-drumset instruments, I'm not all that interested in playing the folk / ethnic music these were made for, though I do make sure I know what that music is about and its history. Because with the dance group I'm usually working in situations of improvised music I'm always looking for new ways to express myself, and the low whistles can have a rather haunting, beautiful sound.<br /><br />So I was going to buy one, and but for some weird reason the <a href="http://www.susato.com/konakart/Welcome.do">Susato</a> I'd ordered from a Canadian distributor never arrived, and they were baffled as to why, so my order was canceled and money refunded. While this was getting sorted out I'd been reading up on do-it-yourself whistles, and now presumed this order foul-up was the universe telling to get on with making my own.<br /><br />There are some excellent resources on the Net for this, both websites and YouTube videos. I was rather intrigued by the ideas offered at <a href="http://www.ggwhistles.com/howto/" onmousedown="'UntrustedLink.bootstrap($(this)," rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><span>http://www.ggwhistles.com/</span><wbr>howto/</a> and also <a href="http://rjaysplace.com/exofipple/" onmousedown="'UntrustedLink.bootstrap($(this)," rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><span>http://rjaysplace.com/exof</span><wbr>ipple/</a> . So I decided to try it out, and so what kind of tubing should I use? Well, why not start with bicycle tubing? It's not, given my pedal-powered proclivities, like I don't know where to find any. ;)<br /><br />So I cut up an old dead Peugeot road frame. This first one was just to try the external windway concept, and so I initially only drilled the fipple hole, put a plug in. Now, with a conventional whistle the windway is carved out of the top of the plug. But with the "exofipple" design it rests on top of the tube. So I taped on a windway made from of a slice of handlebar! It sounded suprisingly fabulous, so I drilled the other holes rather quickly in roughly the right places just for fun. The whole thing is a bit sharp, as I had not bothered to set a specific pitch by cutting it to length (since it was supposed to be a one-note test).<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrWH6qUoMc8NXUQK7ZkO_7vcABkwpxlHUeo_GqmE4NE1Vgfqs3uNqVlXjsuBBHg6wqICBZPTgRpwpYfjvM0rWBjr0k1qsV9wuM6PENoZw_6xB9UvN4U_GshvLbiMiMaV8374Ww/s1600/DSCN0519.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 221px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrWH6qUoMc8NXUQK7ZkO_7vcABkwpxlHUeo_GqmE4NE1Vgfqs3uNqVlXjsuBBHg6wqICBZPTgRpwpYfjvM0rWBjr0k1qsV9wuM6PENoZw_6xB9UvN4U_GshvLbiMiMaV8374Ww/s400/DSCN0519.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5511809434140402690" border="0" /></a>The handlebar windway. I made this using the end of an aluminum handlebar, which worked nicely because the outer edge is beveled.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUWVbwUrBX7YVZ6hKl8WMQXwRaOWQp73y_jZNzWogihMiDlepurYA3xrNacw-QNf6JNgWn3QO-0HhFyo5D9B45LtGwvDJlLy5cUXi6lUttNxR9990B1NkLTuhbPWkF4re5yct7/s1600/DSCN0514.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 328px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUWVbwUrBX7YVZ6hKl8WMQXwRaOWQp73y_jZNzWogihMiDlepurYA3xrNacw-QNf6JNgWn3QO-0HhFyo5D9B45LtGwvDJlLy5cUXi6lUttNxR9990B1NkLTuhbPWkF4re5yct7/s400/DSCN0514.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5511809417285799154" border="0" /></a>Fipple view:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWHsI8OOMNDxMrBIsDkP6G5vIsAN3KmDQT9L6UzQZbAdL80Q03-8BVdKpRybp8Bgv4PjgHvWvGjt-ZwQ_6Tg4QcD9qjCh0kTY6Xk022zUwsvAiiiQaIeqnaz6oibhD3uFUX1Bz/s1600/DSCN0517.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 379px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWHsI8OOMNDxMrBIsDkP6G5vIsAN3KmDQT9L6UzQZbAdL80Q03-8BVdKpRybp8Bgv4PjgHvWvGjt-ZwQ_6Tg4QcD9qjCh0kTY6Xk022zUwsvAiiiQaIeqnaz6oibhD3uFUX1Bz/s400/DSCN0517.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5511809426706945266" border="0" /></a><br />So while it 's a bit wonky it does work. So the next step was to use a prize piece of tubing, this one being from my old bike that was damaged when I was hit by a taxi a few years back (i never really thought about why I did not just scrap the bike right away, but I'm now very glad I didn't!). This tubing, unlike the old Peugeot, is made from triple-butted cro-moly steel, and much lighter. Unfortunately it's also black and scuffed up, so not much of a looker...<br /><br />Fipple hole drilled:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPmbPY97vBVFz-PvY230111sOFUGLI5_iQnHmQhfOby7UR4V2M_d-_9J3ULHR91UOaLSD-NB8k_qrEnokKYxE701CfWUHn2Uh5yivOl6PiUpIsJGuHdW5B1YVD2b2yeyZMPefl/s1600/DSCN0521.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 353px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPmbPY97vBVFz-PvY230111sOFUGLI5_iQnHmQhfOby7UR4V2M_d-_9J3ULHR91UOaLSD-NB8k_qrEnokKYxE701CfWUHn2Uh5yivOl6PiUpIsJGuHdW5B1YVD2b2yeyZMPefl/s400/DSCN0521.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5511808813905265410" border="0" /></a>Wooden plug made from an old broom handle (yes, this will need some sanding):<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBfv_SDFekLX5SxTQxXXSp7sY_qjSAAiU9Pbw6piFgzKztE2qrZcCS97b5J5YSB7kC0ZOFh7aPt9EImQSiDr6vLPTIAgBTLrodOsX9Vd11GB5TW_jrziqzUQ2LduFEM34JmWbQ/s1600/DSCN0523.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBfv_SDFekLX5SxTQxXXSp7sY_qjSAAiU9Pbw6piFgzKztE2qrZcCS97b5J5YSB7kC0ZOFh7aPt9EImQSiDr6vLPTIAgBTLrodOsX9Vd11GB5TW_jrziqzUQ2LduFEM34JmWbQ/s400/DSCN0523.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5511808804676085362" border="0" /></a>Cutting the windway from the handlebar:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv3U-hExuWJ1ZOmfBKOqUiCL3gs7bUwzL0_0e-udwXGwKP-64hgUY2YEwNic86lABPA-wnTaQYB2ZzcH9HdgBrcWBuhQwo-OhGRCpVUMIHnhFbawQqj4ds0A4WkM3SAGztW6hQ/s1600/DSCN0524.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 327px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv3U-hExuWJ1ZOmfBKOqUiCL3gs7bUwzL0_0e-udwXGwKP-64hgUY2YEwNic86lABPA-wnTaQYB2ZzcH9HdgBrcWBuhQwo-OhGRCpVUMIHnhFbawQqj4ds0A4WkM3SAGztW6hQ/s400/DSCN0524.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5511808796188161474" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMe4ZTVXTP1uLqycGWY6HrcMGRV0xXRQMxPZtYakOmn4svL4-CvNtWwpbaARP0oickWOrI_fpNBRpWL5nOyhQqI_TrG4jsigCMSUlJqRPxQ4F_tZFBgs4XwQpZfUgtoTwm4jBv/s1600/DSCN0526.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 374px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMe4ZTVXTP1uLqycGWY6HrcMGRV0xXRQMxPZtYakOmn4svL4-CvNtWwpbaARP0oickWOrI_fpNBRpWL5nOyhQqI_TrG4jsigCMSUlJqRPxQ4F_tZFBgs4XwQpZfUgtoTwm4jBv/s400/DSCN0526.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5511808785330480066" border="0" /></a>It's kind of hard to put visible drill markings over black paint, so I used masking tape.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXt440RuAjV4olqoGh3cJEEjWaWW92gMmEKC0lfpxOdDYTl3U1e1FSvhM7739I0klh_wnN-INNhgkDI_9Rdt6EvXh1Hn0hXSSnLRcEacUVN2teo8Y0CN-0BmT6E4az-I7WJ5ES/s1600/DSCN0527.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXt440RuAjV4olqoGh3cJEEjWaWW92gMmEKC0lfpxOdDYTl3U1e1FSvhM7739I0klh_wnN-INNhgkDI_9Rdt6EvXh1Hn0hXSSnLRcEacUVN2teo8Y0CN-0BmT6E4az-I7WJ5ES/s400/DSCN0527.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5511808779732974786" border="0" /></a>I left the tube's cable housing guides on. The middle one makes for a fine thumbrest.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr6-P2Z_rATjUuLxfZUYAXcOIWeKHftB-qOrQnEeuOVZj6T9lN9ofMifOyoCeG3ZGI6CFp4lvY5nSgeMLdqaK2OYlDIauqiqv7leTkB8tDNIP1xxyG_S4r8u1VnJTmar1imrdZ/s1600/DSCN0529.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 237px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr6-P2Z_rATjUuLxfZUYAXcOIWeKHftB-qOrQnEeuOVZj6T9lN9ofMifOyoCeG3ZGI6CFp4lvY5nSgeMLdqaK2OYlDIauqiqv7leTkB8tDNIP1xxyG_S4r8u1VnJTmar1imrdZ/s400/DSCN0529.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5511808122516128930" border="0" /></a>Yes, the holes do not line up as well as they could have. I'd like both a decent hammer punch, and a drill press!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUb3SOsG2ua-CYOaj8jg_u8gaQB8zllNG6GUAe9FEZO8BwyKzASdVBXKFIS5TswnKxhDTJbOknBEKY4_AKcPWQCMtrbVqqORprPv8YG7glr_EQ0oF9R9MNvw8xih1gETT29G25/s1600/DSCN0530.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 228px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUb3SOsG2ua-CYOaj8jg_u8gaQB8zllNG6GUAe9FEZO8BwyKzASdVBXKFIS5TswnKxhDTJbOknBEKY4_AKcPWQCMtrbVqqORprPv8YG7glr_EQ0oF9R9MNvw8xih1gETT29G25/s400/DSCN0530.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5511808115462153810" border="0" /></a>Note how much taller this windway is than on the green whistle. The small hole in the wood is for a hook so I can hang the plug while its gets varnished. The hole will disappear when the the end is cut to make the beak.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgudFFo47G18jyTMsyaphtIAEdOLWHAA67wKDf3rWVnY3BWE1VfRH3BFrZRKNw9IKKmxn_ryweJP-OeEJ-R9jG02rqrKhKSWNnL4PawwImGwy-6XXZWIfuol8vuK_JtOn61ZuLJ/s1600/DSCN0531.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgudFFo47G18jyTMsyaphtIAEdOLWHAA67wKDf3rWVnY3BWE1VfRH3BFrZRKNw9IKKmxn_ryweJP-OeEJ-R9jG02rqrKhKSWNnL4PawwImGwy-6XXZWIfuol8vuK_JtOn61ZuLJ/s400/DSCN0531.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5511808107195171058" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcMaUSEAwcsyeNWSzXfooY6UamrzDMRbQUEZyvpcHZbgPJVbo5CVZA8h5Pt-9DhDBmeEVBlPui6zQL6bEzaJ-dIW_OdIti8c6wBRitqCGfyfAtrEdzfPuluUzBQKsZ92Es5879/s1600/DSCN0534.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcMaUSEAwcsyeNWSzXfooY6UamrzDMRbQUEZyvpcHZbgPJVbo5CVZA8h5Pt-9DhDBmeEVBlPui6zQL6bEzaJ-dIW_OdIti8c6wBRitqCGfyfAtrEdzfPuluUzBQKsZ92Es5879/s400/DSCN0534.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5511808096559332882" border="0" /></a>Yay for lots of cut-up bicycle tubing to play with. But I later realized most of it is too short, so the ideal bore to length ratio cannot be achieved. For low whistles (the kind I want to build) I need lengthy tubing from really large bikes!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUNfXtRyqtx1gF9-jelTFMbCDj760ISfAb1G2seuLFpWHR36Gm18Rf-0BhVpbEjOyINEr8ooaoDaM9_y3C5P6qgx0i1WotX-63K7go_7PPOKs6G7gF0-k7_3EZJO04mLmXK5Zw/s1600/DSCN0538.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUNfXtRyqtx1gF9-jelTFMbCDj760ISfAb1G2seuLFpWHR36Gm18Rf-0BhVpbEjOyINEr8ooaoDaM9_y3C5P6qgx0i1WotX-63K7go_7PPOKs6G7gF0-k7_3EZJO04mLmXK5Zw/s400/DSCN0538.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5511808087874170114" border="0" /></a>Even the black whistle's bore might be a bit big for its length, but it sounds fine. Oh, and it is in the key of "G".<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyucvV90eNwjuClW8Spnb9DR9H3Tv-jhqieI_KT1LTJnc7zmu1bPGmEZKKevcaOQQRtKw2zZMWSPjmmZJlBlG0cTVNJ3Lhvc6M20ifLOCu-k_QDRZKXm1espp2-UvjIKSuyp07/s1600/DSCN0539.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 252px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyucvV90eNwjuClW8Spnb9DR9H3Tv-jhqieI_KT1LTJnc7zmu1bPGmEZKKevcaOQQRtKw2zZMWSPjmmZJlBlG0cTVNJ3Lhvc6M20ifLOCu-k_QDRZKXm1espp2-UvjIKSuyp07/s400/DSCN0539.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5511807550398885714" border="0" /></a>Now on to more fun, and time for an actual Low D whistle!<br /><br />I made the first one out of pvc pipe, but messed up the hole calculations due to reading the ratios for short whistles, not long ones. Doh! So then I grabbed an old squeegee mop, and its shaft was made from aluminum. This one came out right! But boy, the reach to the lowest note is a bit of a stretch, but I'm getting used to it. This last whistle is a bit too breathy, so I'll file the windway down a bit so it's not so tall.<br /><br />Note in the photo below that the black on, while shorter, has a wider bore. So it's definitely the loudest of the bunch, and when the <a href="http://re-cycles.ca/">re-Cycles</a> shop scraps its next large road bike frame I'm grabbing its downtube to make a nice cro-mo Low D. ;)<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKujBgSqAzFuAp_8k6FvubOqzmLWH8Vjq4IZCfLnvqnlPMlsDMoBKg0sTh1AE37V2ADY4l1SqYBOr_KMyEb5rxG2X_W1V54nToALuYhL1m_wXhIUjx0XBWIhM5bRw3hXvaJGWi/s1600/DSCN0542.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKujBgSqAzFuAp_8k6FvubOqzmLWH8Vjq4IZCfLnvqnlPMlsDMoBKg0sTh1AE37V2ADY4l1SqYBOr_KMyEb5rxG2X_W1V54nToALuYhL1m_wXhIUjx0XBWIhM5bRw3hXvaJGWi/s400/DSCN0542.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5511807541196283570" border="0" /></a>The cro-mo whistle now sports a correct beak. The whistles are certainly playable without the beak, but having one is more comfortable.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCf6F0fcReo1flzFzYZqb0NwN0OOtOF2qR82zKRtaACdSQkP87rhX6Y5cxzqv0IPjwi7pjBvvFN8Xe2Cc1QwH6CnTUEfnpV9bwGEPMdfi0QwZTXJ5bv5bAN7UTsbi3WqFkn37m/s1600/DSCN0543.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 329px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCf6F0fcReo1flzFzYZqb0NwN0OOtOF2qR82zKRtaACdSQkP87rhX6Y5cxzqv0IPjwi7pjBvvFN8Xe2Cc1QwH6CnTUEfnpV9bwGEPMdfi0QwZTXJ5bv5bAN7UTsbi3WqFkn37m/s400/DSCN0543.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5511807531213412098" border="0" /></a>The pvc's windway. Obviously not going to spend any time smoothing it out and cutting the beak, since there's no way to correct the intonation issue. It's all part of the learning process!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbsk8ClZpZ5E_sTQ50_B-m4k_pO_6UUnO8dIrvEJCuzcMylID3XE9tDSXQmaDMBmsQYq60SJ16lBAUxspcoecCkEwYdXqQwnYnu23XeukJFN2yYZnT8w4JbHDtw2ZomDU4P1Dz/s1600/DSCN0546.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 396px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbsk8ClZpZ5E_sTQ50_B-m4k_pO_6UUnO8dIrvEJCuzcMylID3XE9tDSXQmaDMBmsQYq60SJ16lBAUxspcoecCkEwYdXqQwnYnu23XeukJFN2yYZnT8w4JbHDtw2ZomDU4P1Dz/s400/DSCN0546.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5511807528878555298" border="0" /></a>The two Low D whistles. Note that the pvc's holes are mostly too far up the pipe, making them sharp. Note that only holes 6 and 3 (from left) match the upper whistle.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWJiUM3Vfd0M7bOpR-SjuC-LOKwOAqPelVqHvf8YHG3EM1sVPS-d7dnJ3NErLEHSiHTBmjtsPFzgTVHGNoEq6dV-5RsOnAaPF3-UiRnfazhbZVu9B0DNligaxAkV703-0J5t-U/s1600/DSCN0548.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 246px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWJiUM3Vfd0M7bOpR-SjuC-LOKwOAqPelVqHvf8YHG3EM1sVPS-d7dnJ3NErLEHSiHTBmjtsPFzgTVHGNoEq6dV-5RsOnAaPF3-UiRnfazhbZVu9B0DNligaxAkV703-0J5t-U/s400/DSCN0548.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5511807525699242034" border="0" /></a>Upcoming whistle projects: an in-tune pvc one (in either D or C), and also one out of copper pipe. I will want to make a pvc one using Guido's plans (no exofipple).<br /><br />I'm also intrigued by the "overtone flute" concept (look up "fujara" on YouTube), and the idea of making both a Japanese shakuhachi as well as a S. American quena. But these last two have a a bit of a learning curve, so we'll see if I first make them, then ever get a sound out of them.<br /><br />Oh, and I would also like to acknowledge the fabulous accumulated wisdom in the forums of <a href="http://forums.chiffandfipple.com/index.php">Chiff and Fipple</a>, and the fine info from <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/Junkdojo">junkdojo on YouTube</a>.Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06957998770145424270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22429591.post-6373262296868461172010-08-15T21:55:00.006-04:002010-08-15T22:42:18.545-04:00Propeller Dance - "Shedding Light"Ok, I wandered away from this blog again... Mostly because I tend to upload stuff to FaceBook first, but also because my new camera creates such large raw files that my old Mac Mini was struggling to keep up when processing them. Now I'm using a nice G5 iMac with four times the RAM and double the processing speed, so things are rockin', and continue to be about four years behind the cutting edge. ;)<br /><br />Back in early June the Propeller Dance group held its annual year-end fundraiser on the 11th and 12th, and this time we did two nights at the Arts Court Theatre. It turned out to be a hot ticket event, as both shows sold out! Photos are below...<br /><br />I've done a ton of work with the group so far this year, as I continued not only working with the Monday evening class but also with the main performing group. And there have been quite a few workshops as well, and for a change these have continued into the summer. Since Dominique St. Pierre has always been the perf. group's main musician we did not want to leave him out of the big show, so he was able to juggle his schedule and Propeller found the cash to pay for both of us! So we got to create the music together and it was great fun. A video of the show should be forthcoming.<br /><br />More photos of this event are at David Scrimshaw's <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/davidscrimshaw/collections/72157624145179275/">Flickr page</a>.<br /><br />Our shows were on the Friday and Saturday nights, and Thursday was for dress rehearsal, so we musicians loaded in on the Wed. night while the stage set was being constructed...<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhetW2J_6o-zQhctZgfsmY4LMDOxNQAsNuEKHe4rC_3rR7m0G-upR-1_g20VkHddiNIaxnDieBlWsxPHd6lHbumCze65hn4TjgM4eFSwDjlFYZ5vIr1sgUiv3BNaPst8n2WOPpc/s1600/DSCN0290.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhetW2J_6o-zQhctZgfsmY4LMDOxNQAsNuEKHe4rC_3rR7m0G-upR-1_g20VkHddiNIaxnDieBlWsxPHd6lHbumCze65hn4TjgM4eFSwDjlFYZ5vIr1sgUiv3BNaPst8n2WOPpc/s400/DSCN0290.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5505821186839451554" border="0" /></a>Testing out lighting patterns...<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO2BXzhyX5yothph53s6XWe1YrRh-FNId4yZ5YVNGtAJa29oWcKDafdOIJ1j7r_5vHyT8O3wzVB0VsePQ4LwGYfHYvBRDKQGuwX9RD9dJa4yk39vwvfgTSpm6tk0ZPTespsEh4/s1600/DSCN0296.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO2BXzhyX5yothph53s6XWe1YrRh-FNId4yZ5YVNGtAJa29oWcKDafdOIJ1j7r_5vHyT8O3wzVB0VsePQ4LwGYfHYvBRDKQGuwX9RD9dJa4yk39vwvfgTSpm6tk0ZPTespsEh4/s400/DSCN0296.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5505821190170069330" border="0" /></a>More or less complete...<br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXZfDwe8qzNRL56mPDMlcanu0l0T6SpM15luyAMJ767qSXa4tzk4h4ZZ4sSEoUObovgslaHuVFTL_g5aD7Kzy-6V8ayi90k8UcNL5bIy5pHduHaX6uFnhg3azXOl3Aw7Ic5WOs/s1600/DSCN0321.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXZfDwe8qzNRL56mPDMlcanu0l0T6SpM15luyAMJ767qSXa4tzk4h4ZZ4sSEoUObovgslaHuVFTL_g5aD7Kzy-6V8ayi90k8UcNL5bIy5pHduHaX6uFnhg3azXOl3Aw7Ic5WOs/s400/DSCN0321.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5505821205616061970" border="0" /></a>Fellow musicians Mike Essoudry and Dominique St. Pierre get things organized...<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN_TXg03rps0iNq5UHjfOGoP2oGQ3_CD9UHAXqZjNIwGyKQlRP0Bv9e6QPhJxDqKauIpYqyi3qOy6beEkpT-AMU2nld-Xm21w5sj5XCDLCLN9-yy4zIgRWcCf46ItcWC8jHW08/s1600/DSCN0297.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN_TXg03rps0iNq5UHjfOGoP2oGQ3_CD9UHAXqZjNIwGyKQlRP0Bv9e6QPhJxDqKauIpYqyi3qOy6beEkpT-AMU2nld-Xm21w5sj5XCDLCLN9-yy4zIgRWcCf46ItcWC8jHW08/s400/DSCN0297.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5505821199155938978" border="0" /></a>My rig. Yes, it resembles those keyboard stacks from the 70's, but it made life easier, since sounds often have to be changed quite quickly. Just had to thrown some plywood together for a stand and voila. At left, Roland Handsonic HS-10 (digital percussion pad). The lower keyboard is my venerable Kawai K4 synth (now about 20 years old!), while upper one is an M-Audio Key-Rig 49 triggering soundfonts on the petite iBook at right (which also played a few loops). On the Kawai sits my Aulos alto recorder...<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz5mgeeUlTN71wkUna0HSd_cxsSGKOkpFC9TYTf00-2ZY80nyZfOOOmkGvsosIpi8UCZ6Em_St6KIYUZd5OS4AIKSFmeHWv2qiVdNN85ELyzPIg7iZM87Xk89k1iag-Jta1OsO/s1600/DSCN0303.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz5mgeeUlTN71wkUna0HSd_cxsSGKOkpFC9TYTf00-2ZY80nyZfOOOmkGvsosIpi8UCZ6Em_St6KIYUZd5OS4AIKSFmeHWv2qiVdNN85ELyzPIg7iZM87Xk89k1iag-Jta1OsO/s400/DSCN0303.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5505821202171483330" border="0" /></a>The silent auction during intermission. It brings in the dough!<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgctGXC7iqR-sGSuzPvXDjC-Vr_4wj3tzdF7qXqu12P7UbA1UWwNwpuVlAsYz7ue_R3dOmlZvqt0d1eRjlOSY5gUYmDPxC_Vvl5rrv-fJ1aHwKQoRJnvXFHTxKzKjc7p2YzHvyZ/s1600/DSCN0331.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 264px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgctGXC7iqR-sGSuzPvXDjC-Vr_4wj3tzdF7qXqu12P7UbA1UWwNwpuVlAsYz7ue_R3dOmlZvqt0d1eRjlOSY5gUYmDPxC_Vvl5rrv-fJ1aHwKQoRJnvXFHTxKzKjc7p2YzHvyZ/s400/DSCN0331.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5505821591972342066" border="0" /></a>Members of the main performing group gear up for the show...<br /></div></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjttaipRyvu1waxAlLIz9aBQK3xORr72AJGwOVX1-SoGgxUEc17UUPM6OEMvnVmb8tvfJfqPAtmG3cc5ruZXPmcN_j6chmU7FeS-iVtcAwdEWWp00rvKOX337dcdhTiI2zqH7E4/s1600/DSCN0330.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjttaipRyvu1waxAlLIz9aBQK3xORr72AJGwOVX1-SoGgxUEc17UUPM6OEMvnVmb8tvfJfqPAtmG3cc5ruZXPmcN_j6chmU7FeS-iVtcAwdEWWp00rvKOX337dcdhTiI2zqH7E4/s400/DSCN0330.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5505821589945414898" border="0" /></a>Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06957998770145424270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22429591.post-19942421604046652912010-05-30T23:30:00.001-04:002010-05-31T01:25:07.773-04:00more urban explorationMy friend Andrea and I, when we don't go for bike rides, go for long walks. One day we wanted to get away from the city, but since it was March the ground was pretty mushy a hike in the woods was not desirable. So I suggested exploring Victoria Island in the Ottawa River.<br /><br />This island, along with its counterpart Chaudiere Island, was heavily industrialized in the 19th century, and as anyone in Ottawa knows, Chaudiere Island still has the old EB Eddy plant (now Domtar) all over it. Most of the buildings on Victoria have been cleared away, but not all. And it's the remnants that fascinate. There's also an old log slide, still intact, passing through a valley, but pretty much hidden by foliage. But there's not much foliage in March so photos could be taken. Here's what we found along the way.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">A tree slowly eats its name tag:<br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO9gDI0gkU3iS0zfX9KjihQD_wJI4onGl5H9yvSQtoLkjd2-MchfX6-cIPZUJwIiVT_qWrN-zfcyab7RHQcnZlqrYt-RBdmy7EJKGR1jntKj-3PHp5WJrGnQzZ5Pi12SNGrXEj/s1600/IMG_4200.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO9gDI0gkU3iS0zfX9KjihQD_wJI4onGl5H9yvSQtoLkjd2-MchfX6-cIPZUJwIiVT_qWrN-zfcyab7RHQcnZlqrYt-RBdmy7EJKGR1jntKj-3PHp5WJrGnQzZ5Pi12SNGrXEj/s400/IMG_4200.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461524104264521394" border="0" /></a><br />Right near the a First Nations pavilion was a weed that appropriately resembled a dream catcher:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZsJMJsQy1dVhiBuCc4Fd-FXsvu6u3c_1vhyphenhyphenlupDhG6Zp0SPukAXywBA_1VRtaDLSKgbefNV0CyE3jZV-VKRrxAX6mbdD-zooLbJR1UhhhDrXAyljzvaKJVxPeC7vgn7NOXOOL/s1600/IMG_4203.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 318px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZsJMJsQy1dVhiBuCc4Fd-FXsvu6u3c_1vhyphenhyphenlupDhG6Zp0SPukAXywBA_1VRtaDLSKgbefNV0CyE3jZV-VKRrxAX6mbdD-zooLbJR1UhhhDrXAyljzvaKJVxPeC7vgn7NOXOOL/s400/IMG_4203.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461524120513885698" border="0" /></a><br />One of the many water channels feeds this hydro dam. This channel runs alongside the rec. path that heads east from the War Museum.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcQUSXY9ggv0skS5RVHoMubYj6fC9_xuid-9_ZE-4S1g0MWprWXlkCyr4z1p7rEKi595YLSptdo4itD6fCAsK_7Y1qyVMbiQUtwGMQDK7YOm2PaL5SAcLy71x5K32oCDM8-FuT/s1600/IMG_4201.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcQUSXY9ggv0skS5RVHoMubYj6fC9_xuid-9_ZE-4S1g0MWprWXlkCyr4z1p7rEKi595YLSptdo4itD6fCAsK_7Y1qyVMbiQUtwGMQDK7YOm2PaL5SAcLy71x5K32oCDM8-FuT/s400/IMG_4201.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461524113738650498" border="0" /></a><br />A nice view eastwards, with quite a few Ottawa landmarks. From left, the Alexandra / Interprovincial Bridge (1901), the National Gallery (1988), St. Patrick's Basilica (1868), and the Parliament Buildings (1876 and 1916):<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOZ036LZnDAvzg7Oacb60zrmEfbBWaocn6arlBvvTce2FL3FJnavBaY_HJMm59NiY88frTcE1EhFO083EqdwTCzAx5LV3oJuZTIxspxCPEXV5O75sPhURz00ZVoBohK6vLH_VR/s1600/IMG_4205.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOZ036LZnDAvzg7Oacb60zrmEfbBWaocn6arlBvvTce2FL3FJnavBaY_HJMm59NiY88frTcE1EhFO083EqdwTCzAx5LV3oJuZTIxspxCPEXV5O75sPhURz00ZVoBohK6vLH_VR/s400/IMG_4205.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461524124357991986" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Andrea lends her support to the recently renovated Library building:<br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0h84fJBFZ6LjINo6ETEV_FHKdHkywFoMrJc1rarUf2lIY0FFFytNiAbFhrJOy14wykyKkK-26Of5OL5tH9YekAsGI5oFkENC_Dn3BvGImiu78IDDB_GFms-9zccP_RYiNsZ1x/s1600/IMG_4208.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 323px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0h84fJBFZ6LjINo6ETEV_FHKdHkywFoMrJc1rarUf2lIY0FFFytNiAbFhrJOy14wykyKkK-26Of5OL5tH9YekAsGI5oFkENC_Dn3BvGImiu78IDDB_GFms-9zccP_RYiNsZ1x/s400/IMG_4208.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461524126528797458" border="0" /></a><br />The Portage Bridge cuts across the island, so on the north side the path crosses out over the river using this cantilevered structure:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZUPEzn4rJ-eQsWQOwXqf9Ts1oX0DrBz7GXVvhPA6H1k52lG5PhuwL7GL80nHMziDd1JuEEUVAUdtUfsvAtRkxpygI_F9MH31tj9LSxZSb8gFY3jsHOvNv_zOq6M1pxP0820hv/s1600/IMG_4214.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZUPEzn4rJ-eQsWQOwXqf9Ts1oX0DrBz7GXVvhPA6H1k52lG5PhuwL7GL80nHMziDd1JuEEUVAUdtUfsvAtRkxpygI_F9MH31tj9LSxZSb8gFY3jsHOvNv_zOq6M1pxP0820hv/s400/IMG_4214.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461524603115548434" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">More trees eating things:<br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDr8QN-KFUGx-LZ5ti5uKfvzskP7-_tU_Xakr1ppZyF_KacUMxQESkE2l4vPT4XW5myeprsyUoh1Ltm4htF2BhQcjx39z1Mv7XEeZrLEmLEkNZFnIP5X1A_XeKlmHtAWIH_NRH/s1600/IMG_4216.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDr8QN-KFUGx-LZ5ti5uKfvzskP7-_tU_Xakr1ppZyF_KacUMxQESkE2l4vPT4XW5myeprsyUoh1Ltm4htF2BhQcjx39z1Mv7XEeZrLEmLEkNZFnIP5X1A_XeKlmHtAWIH_NRH/s400/IMG_4216.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461524608046229890" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYjxUXpeVEaagY4DkzpclpVQlTHxGvUf55Ni72uHqWuc2uBYbboTFH0nHh1DqWENvQMj96tEhilP0ZB_kKkeFWWt-4u3EsKwo82NlSakSalfnQRM63iLfaGRme1Gfde3gPDNwt/s1600/IMG_4217.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYjxUXpeVEaagY4DkzpclpVQlTHxGvUf55Ni72uHqWuc2uBYbboTFH0nHh1DqWENvQMj96tEhilP0ZB_kKkeFWWt-4u3EsKwo82NlSakSalfnQRM63iLfaGRme1Gfde3gPDNwt/s400/IMG_4217.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461524612115547026" border="0" /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><div style="text-align: left;">Another channel, this time on the north side, with the water being churned from an outlet of another small hydro station:<br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis9zhQxko7oUJML8djPfolpuLwgvgxwd0yfBC8SN1oM1BdXo9RWIJBQ1qX5NvFM_qE0i-relt4c4tk8OLP-rtkfox0K6xbyQqiUH5MbjDKzgyWpscXNRDlgJndbx3I8qeTjRYu/s1600/IMG_4218.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis9zhQxko7oUJML8djPfolpuLwgvgxwd0yfBC8SN1oM1BdXo9RWIJBQ1qX5NvFM_qE0i-relt4c4tk8OLP-rtkfox0K6xbyQqiUH5MbjDKzgyWpscXNRDlgJndbx3I8qeTjRYu/s400/IMG_4218.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461524609549603650" border="0" /></a><br />This building was put back to use as the Vertical Reality climbing gym:<br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyDX5hYDYZoJKk-n4TEneM0qjn9b1O3Imma2QuC08b-CjFtZTHmtGlLM0Q8LJs2cEktMqqHPxDUX25ahZX2_LCWGkoCbfpPqRk71qJFFNcimtSj4Cg19-7M3-UKpkDhZMb7cP7/s1600/IMG_4229.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyDX5hYDYZoJKk-n4TEneM0qjn9b1O3Imma2QuC08b-CjFtZTHmtGlLM0Q8LJs2cEktMqqHPxDUX25ahZX2_LCWGkoCbfpPqRk71qJFFNcimtSj4Cg19-7M3-UKpkDhZMb7cP7/s400/IMG_4229.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461525416113600274" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">To its left is another channel:<br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjPrzFHDud3xSvBtiGrB_g96TwKhkg8ISn6RdRUgDOo1VGJMbqIs6H1Jd5bPqdMpEW4b53EphFrAX3zl8PqPPOcUAVJYWwEzpG8Rv5qxX_6JJ7HzH_qDChd10OBR-OBJ3Ito0u/s1600/IMG_4221.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjPrzFHDud3xSvBtiGrB_g96TwKhkg8ISn6RdRUgDOo1VGJMbqIs6H1Jd5bPqdMpEW4b53EphFrAX3zl8PqPPOcUAVJYWwEzpG8Rv5qxX_6JJ7HzH_qDChd10OBR-OBJ3Ito0u/s400/IMG_4221.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461524620120746690" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Over which goes this channel to the above-mentioned hydro station:<br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCNwuKkvuwNpZfA5tTxfCfVP0C95X9pGk2paNKbgPa5C1iHpUNX3MHoLV_x0BKFN50QyDakgtqi64gdMN7tlCb_XXE_E9EiZ_lFgfKuiajgzOGbvR46jCfNbqtb0LgvxaNQiQB/s1600/IMG_4222.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCNwuKkvuwNpZfA5tTxfCfVP0C95X9pGk2paNKbgPa5C1iHpUNX3MHoLV_x0BKFN50QyDakgtqi64gdMN7tlCb_XXE_E9EiZ_lFgfKuiajgzOGbvR46jCfNbqtb0LgvxaNQiQB/s400/IMG_4222.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461525091465348354" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Back on the south side, off the rec. path channel is this closed gate for the log slide:<br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk5Q9OzzijO1wI2NGKyrQUICfU1qy_XWvUv2ZsZThiS0O3v2lYlMf8KsZowtlv0XQ8qzPJGpZ18P6vF6UCOwZXubBxvDoEODPySI-22hNh2eIH1WueXXU7qFgYia_EovS8ynLs/s1600/IMG_4223.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk5Q9OzzijO1wI2NGKyrQUICfU1qy_XWvUv2ZsZThiS0O3v2lYlMf8KsZowtlv0XQ8qzPJGpZ18P6vF6UCOwZXubBxvDoEODPySI-22hNh2eIH1WueXXU7qFgYia_EovS8ynLs/s400/IMG_4223.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461525094485629570" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Opposite side:<br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjnCLyayzIcAGITQrEivZDXQXByMEMkkWwd_lTabHZ22xD-LIaCfUxF6zf24ngKNaca2qEHSmRLL1KXI7zp1L1t4su6wiI8Ia2csNdPk7BfDtZ5W2jljCf8alUTytj-NbgO_87/s1600/IMG_4225.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjnCLyayzIcAGITQrEivZDXQXByMEMkkWwd_lTabHZ22xD-LIaCfUxF6zf24ngKNaca2qEHSmRLL1KXI7zp1L1t4su6wiI8Ia2csNdPk7BfDtZ5W2jljCf8alUTytj-NbgO_87/s400/IMG_4225.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461525099321027410" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYBefnAZJ2svMRFMC0ltiXt6V_hIu4K9AvWGyyoya4UnMtMB5b7CsPtgSDyq0QwHLRnMplRMhLg75MZ_4fb0wBoomP1QMrB_Hk7JAdL_FlDvuH5FkEezX8ldPiPaVMq-MgOC4w/s1600/IMG_4226.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYBefnAZJ2svMRFMC0ltiXt6V_hIu4K9AvWGyyoya4UnMtMB5b7CsPtgSDyq0QwHLRnMplRMhLg75MZ_4fb0wBoomP1QMrB_Hk7JAdL_FlDvuH5FkEezX8ldPiPaVMq-MgOC4w/s400/IMG_4226.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461525110733926914" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZM0E2S3BocGHN2IIZGsXdF5FLGA1bpABz9r96n05XbdCoS3j8xLpgYxOniSXoKYkesb2cf3X6j9vmiBSJIVnz3WyoLJz8_vxJ6xO0XqhHfsACIQxMFhhnqfciT75twcatzcCd/s1600/IMG_4228a.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZM0E2S3BocGHN2IIZGsXdF5FLGA1bpABz9r96n05XbdCoS3j8xLpgYxOniSXoKYkesb2cf3X6j9vmiBSJIVnz3WyoLJz8_vxJ6xO0XqhHfsACIQxMFhhnqfciT75twcatzcCd/s400/IMG_4228a.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461525112056067442" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">And it continues along the valley:<br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ9UyfIYGZq6voVpZNaudqhfQOaD5ryv_RlqPf3k-Qqfo6r-qE0EK8idaiqjpFWfCzWp_pCNskvbKsLuJ8wvT9Kam9AzUXNz_x7zN66gTrD7LTIQwDC7PnGpPco2OM0rHZ_5Pk/s1600/IMG_4231.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ9UyfIYGZq6voVpZNaudqhfQOaD5ryv_RlqPf3k-Qqfo6r-qE0EK8idaiqjpFWfCzWp_pCNskvbKsLuJ8wvT9Kam9AzUXNz_x7zN66gTrD7LTIQwDC7PnGpPco2OM0rHZ_5Pk/s400/IMG_4231.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461525415902100626" border="0" /></a>Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06957998770145424270noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22429591.post-88470958000690060022010-04-18T12:24:00.003-04:002010-04-18T12:51:12.279-04:00cool new drum<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiReDdKUFvjNUXvtxewb4faRtgapo328T6Cpbh2NXGqmtGfrr_UrS6Qy30SyyDJPe99OfoLjCIu48QqjXOxlg2KWSaN62uxy16Ir3OpPLwKiN0opOZOSS573VZurf3_PRcge9A9/s1600/IMG_4160.JPG"><br /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmMdhA_b1GwS6bS3QnNyaCEB3yPOVvtg62Dwp0PXCSwfyv69MQB-X3RigZf_61Q0PZ6MJave-A-B6axdycWSOP1NXNidHcojPG7g1sxg6OLrJV1QSMNt48d1uAx2csuQqUAA3q/s1600/IMG_4149.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmMdhA_b1GwS6bS3QnNyaCEB3yPOVvtg62Dwp0PXCSwfyv69MQB-X3RigZf_61Q0PZ6MJave-A-B6axdycWSOP1NXNidHcojPG7g1sxg6OLrJV1QSMNt48d1uAx2csuQqUAA3q/s400/IMG_4149.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461514746948023730" border="0" /></a><br />Back in February my younger brother Mike was in India for a few weeks on business, and emailed me asking if there were any musical instruments I might want? Well now there's a fine idea! :)<br /><br />So I asked him to pick up what is a called a dhol, or dhola, drum. So Mike found a local shop that made them, and chose a medium-sized one. The best part was the price: $60 Cdn., and that included the sticks and case. Of course then Mike had to shlep it from India to England to Ottawa. Thanks bro!<br /><br />From <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dhol">Wikipedia</a>: "The drum consists of a wooden barrel with animal hide<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rawhide" title="Rawhide"></a> or synthetic skin stretched over its open ends, covering them completely. These skins can be stretched or loosened with a tightening mechanism made up of either interwoven ropes, or nuts and bolts. Tightening or loosening the skins subtly alters the pitch of the drum sound. The stretched skin on one of the ends is thicker and produces a deep, low frequency (higher bass) sound and the other thinner one produces a higher frequency sound. Dhols with synthetic, or plastic, treble skins are very common."<br /><br />Mine has a plastic skin with mechanical tuning on one side, and a traditional animal skin with rope on the other. The skin side is the "bass" tone, and the sound is modified by use of Syahi, which is the black tuning<span style="text-decoration: underline;"></span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Musical_tuning" title="Musical tuning"></a> paste one sees on tabla drums. For this type of drum, usually played with sticks that would wear the paste down, it is applied on the inner side.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifxaoh8rymPnCYCYtNsozdaAcREJz1rq04LS8hJ876dhNbtb7Y08q6s9EU8PwVVnqEqkEhHN0tbj0AMCe_Mv_2Kt5T5-Kk53pIpmImT_CWOMI2MDLOJUb1uyYHM4KkRQmb2Hzc/s1600/IMG_4150.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifxaoh8rymPnCYCYtNsozdaAcREJz1rq04LS8hJ876dhNbtb7Y08q6s9EU8PwVVnqEqkEhHN0tbj0AMCe_Mv_2Kt5T5-Kk53pIpmImT_CWOMI2MDLOJUb1uyYHM4KkRQmb2Hzc/s400/IMG_4150.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461514748231611378" border="0" /></a><br />The plastic side is cranked up for a very cracking sound. It is really loud! :) When I use this drum indoors I often play it with my hands, or maybe the stick on the bass side. If I start using the stick on the high side it gets pretty hard on the ears in an enclosed space.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDHgEFraMCPzBibJtVthfNkjBgKYLVQmf__u_Wi_2He_oqef75OMuuZPzbYUC4COQHXEMqMk0JWO9A2JJOorMHPXA1B2vngoNDRQFJDHLx4nxiHxVCMejlZzq26QWpn5dxMXiM/s1600/IMG_4151.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 342px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDHgEFraMCPzBibJtVthfNkjBgKYLVQmf__u_Wi_2He_oqef75OMuuZPzbYUC4COQHXEMqMk0JWO9A2JJOorMHPXA1B2vngoNDRQFJDHLx4nxiHxVCMejlZzq26QWpn5dxMXiM/s400/IMG_4151.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461514752950953442" border="0" /></a><br />I had one unfortunate thing happen with this drum. Shortly after getting from my brother the shell developed a crack! I took off the plastic skin to find that the split started about halfway down and made it right to the rim of the high side. The shell was under such tension from the tuning that it overlapped itself. The good news about this was that I just applied carpenter's glue to the overlap, then popped it back together (obviously the tension had been greatly relieved since I had to remove one skin). Two straps around the drum to hold it for 24 hours, and the drum seems fine.<br /><br />A friend of mine with experience in imported instruments said that the shell would have been desperately lacking moisture. It came from humid India, got stored in various cold airplane holds, then got taken out in the dry Ottawa winter. He said theat first thing I shuold have dne was to remove the heads and apply oil (any vegetable or nut-based oil) to the shell. I duly did so (using olive oil, since that's all I had on hand) and the drum has remained stable.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMpB1kva1EdUC5Xh8r7j1Urx01Jpj8PBfkTkoj7jLr1tkYB2prK9sQ0sxqTie92kxjavjyEVPsGVHMXAQSn65mV17CgVMm-Lj1PfuLhxeP-IFUPKoac9_tIRvzVtWx3hzyoGEy/s1600/IMG_4158.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMpB1kva1EdUC5Xh8r7j1Urx01Jpj8PBfkTkoj7jLr1tkYB2prK9sQ0sxqTie92kxjavjyEVPsGVHMXAQSn65mV17CgVMm-Lj1PfuLhxeP-IFUPKoac9_tIRvzVtWx3hzyoGEy/s400/IMG_4158.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461514756582557890" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmMdhA_b1GwS6bS3QnNyaCEB3yPOVvtg62Dwp0PXCSwfyv69MQB-X3RigZf_61Q0PZ6MJave-A-B6axdycWSOP1NXNidHcojPG7g1sxg6OLrJV1QSMNt48d1uAx2csuQqUAA3q/s1600/IMG_4149.JPG"><br /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiReDdKUFvjNUXvtxewb4faRtgapo328T6Cpbh2NXGqmtGfrr_UrS6Qy30SyyDJPe99OfoLjCIu48QqjXOxlg2KWSaN62uxy16Ir3OpPLwKiN0opOZOSS573VZurf3_PRcge9A9/s1600/IMG_4160.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiReDdKUFvjNUXvtxewb4faRtgapo328T6Cpbh2NXGqmtGfrr_UrS6Qy30SyyDJPe99OfoLjCIu48QqjXOxlg2KWSaN62uxy16Ir3OpPLwKiN0opOZOSS573VZurf3_PRcge9A9/s400/IMG_4160.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461514764021082626" border="0" /></a><br />I've mainly used this drum with the Propeller Dance classes, and it is a lot of fun when the dancers really need to be stirred up because this thing can do it! :)Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06957998770145424270noreply@blogger.com0