Q: What kind of person should build from a kit?

A: One who enjoys handcrafts and who has the time and space available to do the work.

Q: What kind of basic skills are needed?

A: It is helpful to know how to glue and clamp pieces of wood together to make a firm joint. Although a total novice could build an instrument, he/she would definitely benefit from supervision of a friend or family member with some wood-craft experience.

Q: What kind of equipment is needed?

A: Basic hand tools are essential:

• Hammer
• files
• wire cutter
• screwdriver
• pliers
• sharp chisel
• variety of sandpaper grits
• a few clamps

Some electric hand tools are worth purchasing:

• reversing electric (or cordless) hand drill for both drilling holes and driving screws
• electric palm sander
• electric hand jig-saw (saber saw)
• electric router (maybe) for rounding over edges

Q: How much space is required?

A: Use a solid table or workbench about 3' X 5' in size. A folding "church table" works fine. Set it up in a place where sawdust will not be objectionable. The space must be kept at room temperature for proper drying of glue and finish.

Q: Is a harp a good first-time project?

A: Perhaps not for a young person under 14, but for older teens and adults of any age, many harp kits are good projects for learning how to do woodworking. As mentioned above, it might be helpful to have supervision from a more experienced wood-crafter.

Q: Upon receipt of a kit, what should I do first?

A: Find the parts list and check over everything in the kit to make sure 1) it is all there, and 2) it is in acceptable condition. Keep the parts organized in the box so you don't lose anything. Then skim through the instruction manual to see if you need to purchase some tools, supplies, accessories, and/or decorations to finish the project as desired.

Q: What do people report as the single most difficult or frustrating part of the assembly process? Any tips?

A: This varies from one model to another, but I suppose fitting the neck (harmonic curve) to the body and the pillar is the trickiest procedure because it requires holding parts together and looking at joints that are in three different points of the triangle. As a manufacturer, we try to simplify this process by pre-fitting all three joints at the factory, and, on some kits, pre-gluing the neck to the pillar. We also design our harps so that these parts can be set in place and held by gravity while the builder inspects the fit.

Q: What resources are available if a customer has trouble?

A: Musicmaker's has woodworkers on hand to answer email and phone calls during normal business hours. Most problems are easily handled. We supply replacement parts, often for free, and we have lots of gimmicks on hand to take care of such mistakes as drilling oversized holes for pins or eyelets, touching up wood filler to match surrounding grain, adding decorative inlays, rosettes or decals to cover blemishes, etc.

Q: How many of your kit builders are repeat customers? Do people enjoy building more than one harp?

A: Musicmaker's caters to the do-it-yourselfer, and that type of customer typically gets great satisfaction from building a harp. Though we have no numbers available, many of our customers find harp-making to be rather addicting. Once they show the first harp to friends and neighbors, they are often solicited to make harps for others. We have helped many a hobbyist get started in the business of making and selling harps.

Q: Any additional comments?

A: You have not asked the "quality" question. Many people assume that a kit-built harp is inferior to a factory-made instrument. We receive countless testimonials that contradict that assumption, though there are, admittedly, some lower quality kits available on the market. It is important for customers who want a good-sounding harp to research a little before purchasing a kit. Having said that, however, we are amazed at how excited people can be over a dead-sounding instrument! We would not discourage a bargain hunter from building a cheap harp kit, provided it holds together and stays in tune. It can give a budget-minded person a good beginning experience.

About Musicmaker's:

These answers were written by Jerry Brown, owner and founder of Musicmaker's Kits, Inc, in Stillwater, Minnesota. Jerry started this business in 1978 as a variety hobby shop specializing in kits of all kinds for the do-it-yourselfer. Over time, he discontinued all non-musical projects and began printing a catalog of strictly musical kits for a mail-order clientele.

The company has always focussed on kits, and currently sells over 70 percent of its instruments in kit form. This means that kits are not a sideline concession to the occasional bargain-hunting shopper. Our target market is the hobbyist, so we focus full time on designing kit parts that fit together well, and on writing clear, fully-illustrated assembly instructions, and giving good customer backup support.

Our factory-direct catalog & website marketing program allows us to offer very high quality instruments at reasonable prices. Today, Musicmaker's is best known for its harp designs, selling over a harp per day (either in kit form or finished), though we also manufacture kits for mountain dulcimers, hammered dulcimers, guitars, banjos, mandolins, and a few odd items like kalimbas, psalteries and hurdy gurdies.

A: The Hurdy Gurdy is a stringed instrument that is played by turning a wheel which vibrates the strings to create sound. By pressing keys you change the length of the strings and create different pitches. A hurdy gurdy has drone strings (strings which never change pitch) and melody strings. This gives the hurdy gurdy a sound similar to that of bagpipes.

Q: Where did the Hurdy Gurdy come from?

A: The hurdy gurdy first appeared in Europe sometime between the 10th and 12th centuries. It was originally called the oraganistrum. In its earliest form, it was a two-man instrument consisting of 3 strings, a wheel turned by a crank, and a series of rotation buttons that were turned like door keys to stop the stings at different lengths. One person turned the crank, and the other turned the keys with both hands - a rather cumbersome operation! It was usually played in church to accompany the chants of the choir.

The current sliding button action came into being about the the 13th century, allowing the instrument to be played more quickly, and by one person. It then became popular as a secular instrument among beggars and street musicians, and even enjoyed a brief stint in the royal court of Louis XIV.

Although the hurdy gurdy was never accepted as a chamber instrument, it survives in France today as the "vielle a roue", and is still popular among folk musicians. Most people are fascinated by its mechanical operation but discover soon enough that setting it up and adjusting it for easy playing and good intonation is a test of patience.

Q: Is the Hurdy Gurdy dangerous?

A: That depends on how much you play it and how many people can hear you!

Our narrow profit margins prevent us from offering free shipping. We've tried to simplify the shipping calculation by printing a basic chart for normal service. Certain oversize or heavy items will have an additional shipping surcharge.

A: Yes. In fact we have one of the best warranties in the business!

Q: Well... what is it?

A:

II. Need help with construction?
We are happy to finish assembling a kit for you. The basic fee is the difference between the kit price and the finished price shown in our current catalog (regardless of the price you paid for the kit). If you have done some of the assembly, we may be able to discount the construction fee, unless we need to re-do some of your work. If you want us to do only part of the construction, please call us about the price.

III. Desire a refund?
We give refunds, or credit toward other merchandise, for kits returned within one year of purchase, regardless of reason for return or stage of construction. You must present proof of purchase from MUSICMAKER'S KITS, INC. Such refunds will be for merchandise only, not shipping, handling, or insurance fees.

If we made an error on the original shipment, we will pay for return shipping. Please call us for the proper procedure.

II. Did the product break or warp?
We will repair or replace, without charge, within five years from date of purchase, any instrument that we built if the materials or workmanship are defective. You must present proof of purchase from MUSICMAKER'S KITS, INC. to verify the date of purchase.

Dealership Program

Q: Does Musicmakers offer a dealership program?

A: Yes we do. If you have a Musicmaker's Harp it should have come with a string chart. If you want to order harp strings you can check your string chart to see what size strings to order. If you don't have a Musicmaker's Harp we may still be able to sell you some strings. You just need to know the gauge of the strings you need. You can find the gauge on the string chart for your harp or by measuring it with a micrometer. We do NOT sell gut strings. Nor can we provide any wound strings for any harp that is not a Musicmaker's Harp. It would be best if you contacted the maker of your harp for those strings. If you can't find the maker you can try Robinson's Harp Shop at (619) 473-8556.

Q: Do you rent harps?

A: Yes we do. However we won't ship rental harps. So you have to be able to come to the store and pick up your rental harp. . The rental fee is $65.00 a month.

Q: What is that instrument in your logo?

A: According to The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Musical Instruments it is called a saung-gauk. The saung-gauk is a classical Burmese arched harp that typically has 13 silk strings that run through rings on the bow. The strings are tuned by moving them up and down the bow.

Q: Do you have a kit for the saung-gauk?

Q: Do you sell the names on your mailing list?

A: No. We do not share information about our customers with anyone.

Q: Is your online order form secure?

A: Yes. Though we can't guarantee that sending credit card information over the internet is 100% safe we can tell you this - In the past five years we have never had a customer tell us that their credit card information has been stolen or used improperly as a result of using our online order form.

Q: Is your refrigerator running?

A: Yes. And so is my nose. Very funny.

A: Yes we can. However it isn't as simple as that. Unfortunately all Hammered Dulcimers aren't strung the same so there is no "Hammered Dulcimer String Set" so to speak. So if you would like to purchase strings for your hammered dulcimer it will be helpful if you can gather some information before you contact us:

• Try to find out who built the Hammered Dulcimer. If you can find out who made the instrument your best bet is to contact the maker directly. The maker should be able to tell you exactly what gauge wire you need.
• If you have no idea who built your Hammered Dulcimer or you can't contact the maker then you will need to measure the gauge of the strings yourself. To do this you will need a micrometer. This instrument will accurately measure the gauge of your strings. If you don't have a micrometer handy you might call your local instrument repair shop and see if they have one on hand.
• Once you have measured the gauge you just need to figure out how many feet of each gauge you need.

A: Yes we can. If you bring the instrument into our shop we would be happy to quote you a price for restringing. We typically charge about a dollar a string for labor plus the price of the wire.

A: Yes. As a matter of fact just about all of our instruments can be made into a left-handed version. Just let us know that you would like a left-handed kit when you order and we will make the necessary changes.

Q: Can I buy just a fretboard or other parts from you?

Q: What can I do about a buzzing harp string?

A:Your harp need not suffer the problem of rattling or buzzing sounds when you play. If you hear such noises, you can correct them. Here are some troubleshooting hints:

If the buzzing sound occurs only when the sharping lever is flipped up (engaged), then you need to tighten the lever more firmly against the neck of the harp. Use a ball-end allen wrench to turn the cap-screw clockwise.

If the buzzing occurs when the lever is flipped down (disengaged), the string may be vibrating against some part of the sharping lever itself. Look very closely at the position of the string as it passes through the sharping lever. It may be rattling against the plastic cam (the part that you flip up & down), or against the small post (the part that the cam pinches the string against when engaged.) You can change the position of the string by pushing in or pulling out the brass guide pin on which the string rests above the sharping lever. (Make sure the string is resting in the groove of that pin.) Use a pliers to gently push or pull on the pin, watching how that moves the string in relation to the sharping lever.

If the problem is not located around the sharping lever, you may have a loose end of string that is rattling inside the soundchamber. Put your hand inside the harp and touch the knotted ends while plucking the harp to see where the problem is located. Oftentimes we can solve it by simply trimming off a loose end of string or by twisting the knotted end in a different direction.

Our Gothic style harps have stiffener battens glued inside the back of the soundbox, on either side of the access holes. Occasionally we've encountered a buzz or rattle on a harp when one of these battens has come loose at one end. Check for this situation by pressing on the side of each access hole and feeling the batten to see if it comes free at one end. If you find a loose batten, work some Elmer's glue under it and clamp it back in place until the glue dries.

Our Limerick and Studio model harps have backs that are glued into a slot in the hardwood sides. Sometimes we have seen a buzz develop when the back panel is not securely glued all around the edges. Check this by tapping on the back panel. If it rattles, you may need to glue some corner strips along the inside corners of the back to silence the noise.