head an african djembe drum

8/19/2019 Head an African Djembe Drum

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Here is a tool list:

• Cloth or leather gloves • Athletic Bandage • Custom cloth for rings

•

Small locking pliers • Needle nose pliers • Scissors • Smooth curved blade knife • Razor knife • Bic or Lady Bic Razors • Pulling stick or Rope Wizard • 120 or finer sand paper • butane lighter • 100 - 120 feet Drum rope • Goat Skin • Piece of Bees Wax

Let's get Started!

You should have the djembe drum body all ready to

go. Here I touched up and leveled out the head

profile before beginning. Some maintain it should

have no waffles and be perfectly flat. I haven't

found a big difference. To level it, put on a course

level concrete floor, head down, and rotate the bodyuntil all surfaces touch. I round off with a belt

sander, but you can use a good rasp as well. Many

drums have the bottom ring welded on, as here,

because the trumpet flares toward the bottom and

other wise it would ride to high up the bowl. A local

welder can help you out if you need rings or to

make the existing ones smaller to fit more snug.


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This is what a good head edge profile should look

like. a look at your thumb sideways is a good guide.

Sometimes it may be thick enough to round all the

way over to the inside, leaving the high point right

in the middle of the thickness. In hardwood drums

this is the easiest area to carve thin and sometimescarvers try to make up for weight here, leaving a

sharp uncomfortable edge. Consider lowering the

whole edge down till you find thicker wood to allow

some rounding. Theoretically the edge shouldn't

matter, your hand should not hit it. No big

consolation when you do however! This edge just

has a tiny bevel on the inside to assure a clean edge

for hide to take off from the wood.

This view shows you the typical spacing of the rings

around the drum. Typically I leave about 5/8" total

gap (just under 3/8" on each side). If you are

making the rings, the cutting length of 1/4 inch rod

for drum rings is the following: the top ring is

calculated at 5/8 of an inch larger than actual drum

size and the hide ring is calculated at 3/4 of an inch

larger than actual drum size.

If your drum is oval, I hand bend the rings (a knee

works good here)so they match the shape. If your

drum has no decoration that determines front and

back for you, you might consider aligning the goat

skin spine on the widest sides of the oval. Thethicker skin at the spine may help pull your drum

back round over time.

I check to see that the skin is big enough here. This

one is marginally big enough. I wanted to use up

this smallish hide. a little more room would be

better, and if I have the choice I cut the circle nearerthe neck end (above in photo) than the tail end. I

tend to center it like this if the neck skin is a little

too thick compared to the rest.


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Now I flip the skin and cut out my circle. Yup, wishI had more room outside the rings because I want to

be able to trim it a little and also wrap it back down

over the rings when finished.

This is important, so I do it as soon as I remember

to, else I end up forgetting! Take a bit of Bees Wax,

or any candle in a pinch, and wax the head edge

profile. It coats and effectively lubricates the surface

and allows the hide to slide over more easily when

tuning. Remember wet hide makes glue, and you

don't want the goat skin glued here!

I always wrap the rings. I believe rust forming

against the goat skin forming sharp particles is a

major cause of head failure. Here I wrap "on the bias" the hide ring with textured medical cloth tape.


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... and the top ring with electrical tape.

If I have a choice, I make the top ring a little smaller

than the hide ring, like this. If they are equal that is

fine too, as long as they are snug. Never put a larger

ring in as the top ring, it may pull right over as you

tune the drum later!

You can see there is just barely room between the

top ring and the drum body for cloth, cradle rope,

and two layers of skin (the skin comes over the

wood edge, goes behind the top ring, wraps under -

around the hide ring and the goes back behind the

top ring, making TWO layers there) .

Here is how I start the decorative cloth wrap. it is

about an inch wide but I fold over what becomes the

exposed edge as I wrap on the bias, making one sidehave a hem. All it take is a little glue to hold the

start and then keep tension on as you wrap.


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As I get to the end, I fold the other edge in as well,cut it all at the wrap angle, add glue and smooth it

around. If it take two pieces just end one and restart

over the first's ending.

Here the drum is flipped, and I am going right over

the old ratty African cloth, done without the folded

hem. I swear I have found rings wrapped with old

underwear. I know when I get to Africa there will

be tales of underwear thieves!


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Page Two - Roping the Djembe Drum

This whole page is about roping the cradles, tying knots and threading the vertical rope. It is the part of

this task that is the most scary for your first time. If you are re heading a drum that was badly roped,consider ripping it all out and starting fresh!

I measure out a length of rope. For this drum with a circumference of 42" I multiplied by a short 5 and

started with 200". You can use a foot shorter length for the bottom cradle rope. This drum has 24 knots

(I like to use even numbers here) and if you use more knots you'll need more rope! I like to use extra

here,as then I don't run short and I use the extra to tie the self tightening knot which takes more rope. I

plan to have 16" additional extra that becomes the skeleton of a carrying handle later.

Begin with the top ring. I find the middle by folding

and the just slip the two ends around the ring back.

over the top and down through the center fold. If it

looks weird for you, try flipping the ring over. Itshould look like the knot on the left here. I start in

the middle and work first one way (to the right

here), and then the other (to the left). It is a rope

handling trick so you handle as little rope as

possible as you work. So take the right hand rope.

go over the ring from the outside, and as you come

around go through the loop of rope that the

connection to the first know left. Here I'm about to

go through that loop Note I am pushing a loop of

rope through, then I pull the rest through.

Now I have snugged the first knot tight (left) and

leaving the width of two fingers, have snugged the

first half of the second tight. I am about to complete

the second knot by following the black lines and

going behind and under the ring, and again through

the through the loop just made by that action. That

is the pattern:

Over the ring, through the loop

Under the ring, through the loop.


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I keep them nicely snugged as I go, Two fingers

apart. You will need to adjust them when you meetwith each end on the far side. I've found you can

always pull them, a little tighter to space them more,

and it is easy to slide them closer together. These

will stretch as you tune the drum, so no need to

leave slack. The tension will make them slack!

I did twelve on to the right and found I was just

under half way (and running out of rope. I reversedand started from knot One and went left. The

amazing thing is either way the mantra works:

Over the ring, through the loop

Under the ring, through the loop.

Here you see the end two knots, 24 in total and the

ends stretched opposite directions where they meet.

Now the beginning knot is actually in the middle of

the far side, so know I renamed the knots now #24

on the left, #1 on the right. What I am going to do is

thread the rope that leaves knot #24 headed right,and thread it all the way through, following the

exact path, of knot #1. Then we'll take the end from

knot # 1 and as it heads left, thread it all the way

through knot # 24, following it's path. To do this we

loosen both knots a little. I have tried to mark the

arrows to make it easier to follow. If this gets too

difficult you can also tie the ends in a square knot in

that last horizontal gap, and the tie a half hitch in the

ends and snug it to the square knot so it can't slip. I

used to do it that way but find it inferior now.


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We are looking at knot #1 which is marked in

purple. We take the rope that heads to the right from

Knot #24 (marked with arrows) and follow the path

of the Knot #1.. First up through the small

horizontal center piece of the knot, in front of, over,

and around the back of the ring and through the leftside loop. Then you can see here I am about to

parallel the center piece and go through the right

side loop...and then follow the path of the Knot #1

and come up behind the ring, over and down

through the center...Phew, that is scary!

Here is a close up of the knot 24's end threading to the right through # 1's path. Don't tighten it yet, once

you get it. Note; my hand s have glue residue from wrapping the rings with cloth, They aren't actually

that bad!


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Ok breathe, but don't quit now! Take the rope leading left from Knot #1 and start by going up through

the center of knot #24 as pictured.


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take the rope and follow to the right the path of the the knot till you come down through the center.


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I think I got it!


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One last task, to tighten it... Take the rope entering knot #24 from the left. Tug it so you know where it

enters the knot and tighten it pulling right at each part...then follow it all the way through knot #1 taking

all the slack right with you. Then take the rope entering knot #1 from the left and snug and move all the

slack left...all the way through knot # 24.

Voila!Hopefully your spacing is about the same as the other knots. If not, no worries, hey you did it! The

beauty of this knot is it is self tightening (the tighter the pressure the tighter it grips) AND if you need to

re-do the cradle you can untie this and you have a little extra rope here to use.

Now we do the bottom ring the same way. "But it is

so hard to work under the bowl, and everything is

upside down", you say. do as pictured here, flip the

drum upside down and now it works exactly as it

did for the top ring. Same mantra:

Over the ring, through the loopUnder the ring, through the loop.


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You have determined the number of cradle ropes,

24 in this case with the top ring. You need 24exactly in the bottom ring now. What I do is space

them one finger apart here and then check after 1/4

of the number of knots I need (6 in this case). Am I

just under a quarter way around the bottom ring?

Ok, yes I saved the hardest till last! Now you do the

same self locking knot at the bottom. You have a

little tighter work area but exactly the same process.

See, I knew you could do it!

Note Drum is upside down here.


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The rope is all prepared. Note I lined up the two sets

of cradle rope end tails so I can have a four rope

skeleton for the handle later. I want to line up thespine with the design on the trumpet, so I have

aligned the ovaled hide ring and then marked where

the tail end spine of the hide will be aligned with

electric tape. Once I get the skin tied on the hide

ring I can just pull the tape off. The rope ring is just

barely snug enough to hang there for this photo.

Once the two layers of hide are between the rope

ring and drum body it will be nicely snug. If I make

one too tight or loose I try to adjust with rope size in

the cradles... But then I have a stash of different

sizes of rope.

For me, I have had the head soaking now for an hour, and I've got this ready to rock in that

time...otherwise get that skin soaking! Now let us begin Mounting the Goat Skin Head


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Page Three - Mounting the djembe head

The hide should have soaked for between 45 and 60 minutes prior in cool

water before beginning this stage. I grab

a piece of cardboard to use as a backer.

In a pinch you can just carefully do this

right on carpet or the lawn. here I use

push pins to show you how i lay it out.

The job is to put 16 1/4 long razor cuts

parallel to the edge of the hide circle and

about 1/4 in from the edge. I like to use

a razor knife with the blade about half

extended out, and the simple push it into

the skin, Seem when you try to slice ityou often end up with a two inch long

slit that cuts through the edge! I first put

cuts in the four quarters 12/3/6/9 o'clock

positions. Then as shown with the push

pin in the upper left quarter, I divide that

in half with a cut and the divide each of

those. Do that in each quarter and you

have 16 evenly spaced slits.

Now I lay out the skin. The neck end is

where I'll play (the thickest skin at 12 o

clock) I have aligned my tape with the

tail end spine, so when O put it on the

drum and line it up with the drum

design, my oval ring will be aligned

with the oval of the drum it was bent to

follow. If your drum is pretty round and

you have no design to align to, no

worries here, just slap it the hide ring on

the hair!


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Oops, just one more knot to show you.

You need a knot for loops that won't

close with tension. You can make a loop

at the end and just tie a half hitch with

the doubled rope, but this knot is nicer.First tie a half hitch in the very end of

the rope and pull it tight. Then ahead of

the knot twist the rope 1/2 a turn to form

a loop. Take and push a loop of rope

JUST ahead of the knot and push the

loop through twist loop, leaving the knot

right on the outside of it.

Snug it up and the loop pushed through

becomes the non closing loop. With

practice you can make just the minimum

size loop with the minimum amount of

rope...and important quality to get you

out of trouble sometimes! This knot can

also ALWAYS be untied, another great

characteristic!

I make this knot on a say 30" piece of

rope (hey make four, you'll need another

three soon anyway!) and using it like a

needle, thread it in and out of your 16slits in the hide, making a draw string

around the hide ring.


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I slide the knot in as far as it will go, run

the needle end of the rope through my

non closing loop and pull back. I can

snug the draw string right up, centering

the hide, and then do a half hitch right at

the loop to hold it snug. You can barely

see the tape on the hide ring that marks

proper alignment with the spine in this

case.

Now i lay it all back on the drum, take a

deep breath and admire the promise of a

great drum with all the careful

craftmanship I've used so far.


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Remember those other three ropes with a loop? now you need them. I make three ties, dividing the

circumference in three, that secure snuggly the top and bottom ring through a cradle rope. Here I also put

in three small nails to hold the bottom rope ring in the groove on this ivory coast drum. The nails are

often unnecessary for an IC drum which has a ledge, but with other styles, especially if the bottom ring is

sloppy on the trumpet, this can be a real aid to ending up with the bottom ring centered instead of pulled

way to one side. You can scrimp here and skip this step, but even as an experienced builder I find the

five minutes it takes to add these ropes and snug them evenly down gives great consistent results.


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Now go all around the hide edge and

make sure there are NO FOLDS where

the skin wraps around the ring. The one

pictured really isn't bad, if it come

around the bottom to the front it can bedeadly. I believe behind rusty rings, and

to large of rings, a fold at the hide ring

greatly shortens head life.

Just slip your fingers behind the fold and

spread each edge outward behind thefold, and it will smooth out and

disappear.

We are ready to thread the vertical rope.

If working off a spool I pull of about 30-40 feet and melt an end and form a nice

threading needle. I pick a spot just to the

right of a temporary tie and begin

threading to the right. I start by going up

through a loop and back down through

the adjoining loop.


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The rope goes down to the bottom ringand goes in the loop that will make the

rope vertical and then back up the

neighboring loop. Now all the 30 -40

feet of rope is worked through this pair

of upper and lower knots. Actually I like

to pull through downward after exiting

the top knot...so I would get to the next

knot on top and work this all through to

get started.

This detail shows the bottom ring. You

need to check each and every pass

through the cradles. You can tell when

they are right when the rope aligns with

the horizontal center of the knot as it

passes through, and each loop will end

up having TWO vertical ropes through

it. One as the rope goes up, the other as

the rope comes back down. This is true

for both top and bottom rings!


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The threading progresses...

notice how the horizontal knot centers line up..

Two ropes through each loop, centers

aligned. CHECK YOUR WORK, if you

miss a loop, you will have to undo back

to your error and then re do it !!!!


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Just remove the temporary ties as you

reach them.

Don't be confused when threading

through the self locking knots, just treatthem exactly the same. When you are

done, they will just have three ropes

horizontally. You may have to spread

the loops with a needle nose pliers,

especially at the bottom, take your time,

get it right!

I guessed almost perfectly how much to

take off the roll, only one loop short of

finishing. I end after going through the

last top cradle knot i can reach with a

loop knot in the end of the rope. Now

working off a roll, I take about 2.5 feet

for each up and down pair of ropes I am

short (if I was 8 short it = 20 feet) then I

add another 8 feet for tuning rope. I

figure by the time I get it all snugged up

I will then have about 12 extra feet for

tuning rope.


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Now I have cut the rope off the spool so

I can finish from the other direction. I

like to end by going up through the last

bottom cradle to my loop near the top

cradle knot. Then I just pass through, go

back to that last bottom cradle, go

behind again, and tie there with a half

hitch. By doing this I have a minimum

of knotage in the vertical ropes, making

them easier to cross when tuning. I also

have the end of the rope at the very bottom of the drum so my tuning

diamonds can start as low as possible.

note the head is about a finger thickness

below the playing surface.


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Now take the slack out be just snugging

everything to the left. I start at your loop

knot end, and pull down on the vertical

on the left side of the top cradle knot. I

call this left one the "down rope", since I

pull it down! Usually just pulling that

down rope is enough to tighten that pair,

no need to pull up on the "up rope".

>

Now if your top and bottom cradle knots

were all exactly evenly spaced along the

rings, all your vertical rope pairs are

perfectly vertical. Check this by putting

the drum upside down and lookingdown at it from above. as your eye goes

around the drum you may see some

straight up and down and some leaning

one way or the other. Now is the time to

take your best shot. Decide if the

greatest amount of verticals would

indeed be vertical if the top ring was

shifted a little left or right. here I tapped

it clockwise slightly with a rubber

hammer. I hit the edge knots gently at

the tangent, and it will move!


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Go around to the left from the end loop

again. Keep the head even as you go,

but now exert firm pressure. I pull the

down rope out and then lean down on it

with the heel of the other hand. You

might also want gloves at this point.

Go around another time with a mechanical aid. I put a finger where the down rope emerges from the

cradle knot to keep the rope from slipping back while I move to the next one left. Once I get a little

tension then you can let it go. You are now seating those cradle rope knots into the skin to really grab as

it dries.


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When you are done I like to be a thumb width below the playing surface with the top ring. If you push on

the skin it should feel darn taught. point.

All right, time for the fun part, Shaving the Head


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Page Four - Shaving the Head

Obviously, if you are using a hair off skin, you don't need most of this, but look it over anyway. You still

may want to form the head over the rings. If you want the top ring to show, you cut it off short where it

emerges from the top ring. Because of the risk of head slippage, I let the head dry tied with the draw

string and then just slightly loosen the draw string knot when I tune it. I wait until it is pretty well tuned before cutting off the excess hide. In doing so, either use a fine sharp scissors, or put a small piece of stiff

plastic behind the skin and use a razor knife. either way, BE CAREFUL, a slip here wrecks the whole

job!

Let's get Started! Untie the draw string

rope and remove it from the hide. The

Head should be pretty level and the topring about 3/4 " below the playing

surface.

Lay out some newspapers, and maybe a

bag for excess hair would be handy.

Secure a bag of Bic or Lady Bic single

blade disposable razors. I tried to use

generic on this drum and they were so

dull, NEVER AGAIN! Take a needle

nose pliers and bend down with a

twisting motion the guard where it

attaches at each blade edge until it

breaks loose. Then you can break the

few little center spike of plastic across

the middle that hold the guard in place.

Remove the guard and it's supports

completely


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Take a fine file and file the blade edges

at a 45 degree angle so the corner won't

dig in the hide. Just a few strokes is

enough.

More than likely, the skin has kind ofdried out a little. I pour some water on

the hair, taking care it stay on the top

and not roll down to the top ring crack

on the edges.


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I begin at the neck side, and work with

the hair to the tail side. I like to leave a

little hair tail as decoration so I start

leaving that triangle of hair. Hold the

razor vary low, so the handle about

touches. The blade is then almost

perpendicular, and cuts the best. The

blade is always pulled with the hair,

never press in without moving. I start

with short light strokes till i get down to

the skin. sometimes it will just roll right

off. Never start slicing by moving right

to left.

Extra special care must be taken where

the edge meets the skin. The skin is pretty forgiving when free, but with

wood under it, it cuts readily. Just

slowly work along the edge, using light

pressure. Add water as necessary. it

usually works best to remove all the hair

as you go rather than just getting "most"

of it. I save the spine till last as the skin

is courser and dulls the blade quicker.


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Do each side first, taking care at the

edges. I usually can do it with one razor,

maybe two for a tough Guinea goat skin.

I used a whole handful of generic ones

here.

Lastly clean up the middle. You can

leave another triangle at the tail end... or

not as on this drum. I have found thattriangle of hair works especially good

for regulating how much "ring" a drum

has. I often leave one 2" or more my

ceramic djembes and then slowly dry

shave it off after tuning to effectively

"tune" the best amount of "ring". This

doesn't have to be perfect, you can dry

shave any remaining stubble or take it

off with sand paper.


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Next trim any excess hide off. Here I

just barely have enough so I just cut off

enough to remove the draw string slits.

You need 1.5 to 2.5 inches to cover the

top rings. For a SUPER job you use a

fine scissors and make sure you cut the

skin and not any hair that hangs down so

it makes a fuzzy natural looking edge. I

usually just cut it!

Tie off one end of an Ace type athletic

bandage to a vertical rope and then

angle up and begin wrapping the edge.Pull the hide down taught over the rings

as you go. Avoid big wrinkles and folds.

Sometimes an extra hand is nice!


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Work your way around and then justwrap the excess bandage. Here I have

one of those nifty metal grabbers on one

end, else just drop back down and tie off

to a vertical rope.

To finish, I tie the upper and lowercradle rope ends together. Later these

form the skeleton of a carrying handle.

I wrap the excess vertical rope around

the trumpet, and tie that off to itself or

a vertical. Now everything is tidied up,

and the drum is set aside to dry before

tuning. I like to leave a hair on drum

for three days in the best drying

location i can find, or two days for a

hair off skin. DO NOT RUSH THE

DRYING TIME! It can be shorten by

a day by using a fan, or putting it onyour furnace. If you tune it before it is

dry, that portion where the head wraps

around the rings will still be moist and

overly stretchy. As you tune the rings

will pull down excessively without

significantly tightening the playing

surface. Often the top ring gets

uneven, and it over stretches the skin

just above the top ring. This

significantly reduces head life I

believe. BE PATIENT!

Now get that messy goat hair out of

the house before you are banished to

the garage!


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Page Five - Tuning the Djembe

You can use this page as a guide to tune any djembe. Assuming it was roped traditionally, all you need

do is determine which pairs are being crossed and apply the Mali weave. This drum we've been working

on, and it is just ready to start, so we get to make it right from the start! If your drum rope looks all

messed up, I recommend taking all the weave out and you can begin with us by tightening the verticalropes.

Let's get Started!

here is where we left the drum to dry. I

let this one dry for two days atop my

furnace. It takes a lot to thoroughly dry

that hair that is completely wrapped

between the rings. You can take off the

ace bandage now, If you don't have a

great tool like the Rope Wizard you

need a round piece of wood about 1-2"

thick and 16 inches long. I sometimes

use the removable handle from myrubber mallet, or a piece of closet pole,

or you can by a replacement hammer

handle at the hardware store. To see

how the stick is used go back to the

Head Mounting Page.


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I like to clean up the head at this point.

The Goat skin is dry and pretty taught.

You can do it all with sandpaper from

this point. I find it faster, and franklysatisfying to do a bit of "dry shaving" to

remove any hair fuzz that is left. Use a

very sharp knife with a nice curved

blade, and keep a honing stone handy to

keep it sharp! Note the outline of the

exact edge is fairly visible, even through

the fuzz.

I like to hold the knife tip and blade in

each hand for stability. As with the

razor, the blade is always scraped along

perpendicular and is moving before it

hits the hide, not pressed and then

moved. For fine control I hold the top

line of the blade fairly still and kind of

sweep the blade in a scraping arc toward

me. The blade then comes off the skin as

the arc comes toward me. I can

practically pick off a few hair in this

way. Often I turn the knife parallel to

the edge and use that sweeping motion(like the arrow), so the blade lifts just as

it reaches the edge.

Once any fuzz is removed, some broad

sideways scrapes can clear any

remaining stubble quickly. When

properly done, this method of wet

shaving and then dry cleanup will

produce a goat skin perfectly clean inabout ten minutes total time. It also

leaves the fine top skin layer with the

color. You can use chemical hair

removal, but I believe it affects the

sound quality, if not the skin life.


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A little light sanding finishes the job.

Always take care at the edges, then broad passes in the middle. Don't sand

away the beautiful color! Some

blemishes, scars, or weak spots may

have been revealed after shaving. Now

is the time to do any head repair.

Here is the finished djembe head. Take a

minute and admire the fine job you did!

It was a little scary but the best part of

the job.

Time to tune up the djembe. Find your

vertical rope end knot, and verify which

direction you need to pull from to take

all the slack AWAY from the loop. In

our case it means work slack out to the

left. I start with the second "down rope".

That is the left of the pair of ropes

through the first cradle knot to the left ofthe one with the loop knot on the top

ring. I use the Rope Wizard but you can

use a wooden stick, see Mounting the

Goat Skin Head .


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I use a needle nose vise grip with either

some duct tape on the teeth, or the teethdulled with a grinder. Be careful to not

scar the rope, or damage the skin at the

hide ring. Pinch the cradle rope and the

vertical down rope together to lock them

against slip.

Put just enough tool on to grab the rope.

You hold tension on the rope until you

get it locked with the vise grips. I often

lean forward as I am stradling the

trumpet, and tuck the end of the rope

wizard under my arm pit. That way I

keep tension on the down rope and have

two hands free to move the locking

pliers. A good quality pliers makes the

process much easier. I've tried angle

needle nose and stub nose and for me

regular needle nose works best.


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I then leave the pliers on while I move

my pry bar, and don't move the locking

pliers till I've got tension on the next

down rope. Using this method you NO

back slip of the rope at all. The ropes

should have been pulled pretty tight

when the head was mounted so with therope wizard you can pull pretty firmly. I

can drop the skin about a 1/4 inch with a

pull like this. I try to be just darn firm

pulling about the first third of the drum

so I don't skew the head too much with

this powerful tool. the last half I am

pulling against already tight rope so I

pull about as hard as I can. By the time I

am half done this drum sounds good

already, a good sign.

I get these vertical ropes tight in one

round. That takes judgment, experience,

and this tool. Using a stick you may

need to go round twice, and it is easier

to keep the head level that way. Now I

am back to the end loop and the last pull

tightens the rope through that loop knot.


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Even though I have leverage on my side

at this last pull I still use the pliers and

lock the rope as it leaves the loop knot.Even starting with tight vertical ropes, I

have taken out about 18 inches of slack

rope in one round. That saves me a row

and a half of tuning diamonds in the

Mali weave process.

Now I re-tie the half hitch at the bottom

and remove the pliers. This drum sounds

great right now. If I'll be traveling I

leave it like this till someone wants to

really hear it. If you pluck these vertical

ropes they sound like harp strings. Note

how the extra rope is right at the very

bottom ready to start the Mali weave

process. I start moving right with the

first pair of ropes away from the loop

knot pair. Just a personal preference, left

would work too. I save the loop knot forthe last in the row to weave. It can be

the most stubborn to pull, so hey, put it

off to the end!


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Look at rope pairs here. I always cross

the ropes that almost touch as the pass

through the same loop of the bottom

cradle as pairs for the first row. It does

very little tightening, but the row goes

fast and easy and stays very low to the

bottom cradle. When you are FINDING

the pair of ropes you are using

ALWAYS look at the top ring. Once

you get started the ropes cross here and

there on the way down and finding the

two ropes of a pair can be confusing.

Here the pairs of the whole first row of

weave are the two ropes that pass

through one cradle knot on the top ring.

This makes a wide space up top toweave the rope.

Now you need to learn this tuning

mantra:

- Under Pair

- Dive back between

- Over top

- Under next pair

At far left see the vertical rope end halfhitch, Next the first pair have been

crossed. and the second pair are

threaded and ready to be pulled. Always

do each mantra part by itself and up near

the top ring where there is more room,

then slide each part all the way down the

pairs as far as it will go as you remove

slack and snug up. Always pull down

toward the trumpet slightly, at an angle

tangent to the drum. This way it pulls

easiest and stays neatly as low as

possible. Low allows more rows of

weave, though if your drum is cranked

like this one, you will never finish the

second row!


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Now a brief break for a rant.

Always pull diamonds safely. These first ones you can just grab the rope and pull, they aren't that hard.

As they get harder you can hurt yourself! First protect your hands. Either use a rope gripping tool or

gloves, or wrap the rope around a stick and then pull on that as a handle. Rope can really damage hands!

Always pull angling down and tangent to the drum. It simply is easier. To protect your arms and backfrom injury do this: Put the drum on some carpet and sideways against your couch. Rotate the weave you

are pulling so the rope is slightly away from you sitting on the floor, and the rope comes right at you on a

tangent. Put one bare foot near the top ring, and one on the trumpet, pinning the drum so it can't move.

Get a hold of the rope as near the weave as possible. You are probably leaning forward, knees bent to do

this, like trying to grab your ankles. Now just like rowing a boat you push back with your thigh muscles,

lean back with your back, and help out with your arms. Using this method I have seen 100 pound teenage

girls with no upper body strength fully tune the largest djembe....and without injury! I have pulled arm

muscles that can take weeks to heal being careless or in a hurry, please be careful !

Now some of you are saying, wait what is with this weave mantra, he has it all backwards! Yes if you

search the net you will find many references to the opposite mantra (I don't even want to say it, but it

begins with "over two"). It is true that that method has one advantage. The knots of the weave are harderto pull out or open. That is also a disadvantage! Most traditional drum builders I have met use "my"

mantra, and here is why. By going under first, you are pulling one rope OVER another, this is both

physically easier(see 100 LB girl), and damages the bowl finish less. It is easier to keep the rows low and

tidy, using this method. If you finish the mantra with "under the next pair" that pressure by the next pair

to be crossed keeps these weave knots locked just as well. A major reason for me to use my mantra is I

end up working on your drum, and with this method I can easily pop a few weaves out and then grab the

weave rope and just pull it backwards unlocking multiple weaves at a time. This makes drum repair or

re-heading much faster and easier. Some will argue and say, no, the other way is best. I figure they do it

in Africa that way for a reason, and after using the "wrong", American mantra, and then trying this

method, the advantages are great. Maybe indigeoness wisdom? Well anyway, you can't tell "nobudy

nuttin", so either try this method, or work from the opposite mantra....ok, ok back to work!

Ok, I work fast. I am all the way around the first row,

and have just crossed the loop knot pair (note, I made

this easier because I kept the loop up high toward the

top ring, and because it has a minimum of knot in the

vertical. Where it doubles back to the half hitch at

bottom, no worries just treat that double rope as one

rope.) Time to start the next row. Ever seen those

drums where the weave just spirals up to infinity? avoid

that by finishing the row. Follow across and under thefirst pair you crossed to make a nice finishing

horizontal line (red)


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Now I find a rope to tuck under back to the left and this

finishes and "locks" down the row. Now when I start the

second row, I can keep it nice and low, too!

Ok, remember those rope pairs for the Weave? Now we

use the ropes that adjoin each other in separate adjoining

upper cradle knots for the pair to weave, This row is a

little harder as you are threading the rope through and

back out of the gaps now narrowed by the first pairs

crossing in row one. A needle nose pliers may help herein the threading.


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Here the "under two" part is snugged down and the rest

of the weave mantra is threaded ready to snug down.

Now the first weave of the second row is ready to pull.

Follow the red path... Note how the "under the next

pair" looks a little confusing with the far right ropescrossed. If you follow the rope up, you see it is correct.

ALWAYS find your pair at the top ring !


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The first "Diamond" of the second row is now pulled

and the rope is crossed. Look straight down from the

crossed ropes and the shape made by the rope below is

like a diamond (point up and point down). This is why

tuning is called "pulling diamonds".

I have threaded the second diamond. Another trick for

rope handling is to use a loop in the middle of your

working length for your "needle" instead of the end. It

makes for less rope handling.


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Second diamond, row two, ready to pull!

Third weave threaded, ready to pull... But you know

what? This drum sings! As I mentioned, with the

verticals pulled tight on a perfectly dry drum, it should

sound great. I usually put in the first row of weave


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You may have to finish this row, or even start the next to get your drum tuned. It all depends on how

tight you got those verticals, and the quality of your rope (how much it stretches). Row three has the

same pairs as row 1, if you get that far. Don't forget to finish the row with a straight line to the first pair

in the row and then double back down to lock the row before starting. Most people stop here, wrap their

extra rope around the trumpet just below the bowl, and cut off those annoying cradle rope ends. I havetried to include each bit of wisdom I have picked up over the years djembe building. It may seem picky

but it is ALL THESE DETAILS that make the difference between a level, well fit beautifully headed

drum, that you can keep fully tuned, and one that you ship off to me to do it "right" later.


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Page Six - Final Touches

These two little things make a djembe heading job look really professional. They are vary simple, once

you get the hang of them. First is a method of chain stitching your extra diamond rope. Second I will

show you how to make a rope carrying handle.

Here is where we finished the drum. I never

tie the diamond row off anymore. If you

leave a weave knot threaded and snugged

down it won't come loose. To begin the

chain stitch with your extra rope, first make

a twist to form a loop.

Now push through the twisted loop, another

loop of rope. With your left hand you will

grab the side of the loop toward the top of

your drum and pull that at the same time

working the loop snug up to your drum.


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The twisted loop is now tight to the drum

and the loop you pushed through is now the

loop. Look at my hand positions. My left

index and thumb grasp the uphill side of the

rope, I keep tension away from the drum body and snug the loop up by pulling

slightly away from the drum. My left center

finger can enlarge the loop by closing

toward my palm, spreading the loop. My

right hand is the "regulator", It can shrink

the loop if it gets to big by pulling

backward.

I have just released the loop with my left

hand and as I pushed the rope toward the

loop with my right, the left reached through

and grabbed the next loop on the uphill side

and pulled back, tightening the next loop

Again reach though , grab new loop, pull

back and snug up with tension on the uphill

side of loop, The right hand acts as loop sizeregulator, and ...


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...pushes the new loop toward the last one so

the left hand can grab it and pull it through.

Once you get the hang of it you can do it asfast as : Grab, Pull, Snug ! Once you get

near the end just pull the end right

THROUGH the last loop and tighten, That

locks it. To undo, you push the end back

through the last loop and just pull and all the

chain stitches come loose like magic !

Basically this is a crochet chain stitch using

your hands as the needles. If you have a lot

of rope left it will shorten eight feet of rope

into about three feet. as in this photo, you

can also then use the chain to make a larger

chain.... With this drum I ended with about

three feet of chain so just wrapped it very

tightly just above the bottom ring and then

wrap the end around a vertical rope after you

hold the tension on it very tight. It will ride

there not blocking the view of your beautiful

trumpet, or hiding your nice Mali Weaveand out of the way.


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Let's put a rope handle on!

First take the ends from the bottom selflocking knot, stretch them up and through

the center of the top cradle and tie the two

pieces with a square knot. Normally I'll tie

the knot up top at the cradle but one rope

was just a little short so I ran the long one

through the top cradle knot and then tied it

with the other a little ways down. Leave

enough slack so your hand can easily get

under the pair.....this begins the skeleton of

your handle.

Now take the ends from the top ring, and

since these are both long enough, I thread

them through/under the cradle loops just

outside the self locking knot at bottom. You

may need to take a needle nose or awl andlift the rope there to slide these under. I have

left slack between the drum and these two

ropes too. The same amount as the other

ropes that I first tied so the if I slide my

hand under the four ropes marked red, there

is equal space for my hand. This slack

should also be enough to lift the top rope

ring up level with the playing surface so if

you have to re-head your drum someday,you

don't have to take off the handle to do it


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I have tied the ends at the bottom with a

square knot, snug up and tighten the knot.

How do you tie a square knot. Start with

crossing the ropes like tying you shoes...

right rope over left and back under. Then

finish with the opposite...Right rope underleft, and back over. When you have it

correct the two ropes (one is one rope end,

the other the part you are joining)on the left

of the knot come out together and angling

away from you, the two ropes on the right

come out angling toward you from the knot.

I also then tie a half hitch in the end of each

rope end and snug it up tight to the square

knot on each side, cut off the excess leaving

about 1/4 inch projecting and melt the end

with a lighter and smear the melted rope end

onto the half hitch with a little spit on yourfinger. That finishes and locks it. You can

also leave the end on and use it to tie

something special to your drum (ring pouch,

medicine bundle, decorations?)

I cut a piece of rope what seems absurdly

long, about 12 feet will do. I divide in half

to find the middle and just like how we

started the cradle rope knots on the top ring,

I push the loop through the cradle knot loop

and the stick both rope ends back through

the middle loop.


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The I just snug it down to the cradle rope

and I have my two ropes to use as the handle

wrap attached...six feet long each

Start the handle wrap by slipping one rope

under the four rope skeleton and tying a half

hitch. Note I have marked one rope with a

half hitch to aid me in keeping that rope

identified. The marked rope come out of the

half hitch on the "drum" side of the knot,

where the other end (left) come out facingaway from the knot. Snug this half hitch up

under the skeleton.


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Now I tie a half hitch above the skeleton,

and note the marked rope again ends coming

out of the hitch toward the drum.

That is the pattern! a half hitch below, a half

hitch above. The key is always tie it so the

same rope (marked with a knot) come out of

the hitch the same way (on the drum side of

hitch. You will discover to do this, all you

do is lay that rope under the other when

tying the hitch. After the wrap of the half

hitch is is still under the other or on thedrum side of the knot. I just move the

marking knot along as I use up rope.


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Essentially you are tying square knots with

the "skeleton four ropes "inside" the knot.The handle wrap knots can just slide up and

down the skeleton so you snug them nice

and even and then you can just keep pushing

them up the skeleton to make a really dense

handle, or leave them looser.

I have worked all the way down skeleton to

the bottom attachment. The way to finish the

handle is to tie a half hitch in each separate

rope (you already have one in the marked

rope) and work them right up to the last

wrapping knot...I usually stop at an under

the handle one so these locking hitches are

out of the way. Again you either cut close, burn and spit smear the ends or use any

excess for tying your special stuff on!


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VOILA !

Here is the finished drum. You can see the

extra diamond rope chain stitched and

wrapped neatly around. The handle is

extremely functional and a great addition.

The only thing I'd have done differently is

used a slightly bigger hide so the skin

wrapped over and covered the rings

completely...so for that flaw it only gets an

8.5 out of 10....well so it goes! As an

instrument this drum is excellent, greattuned djembe sound.


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Repair tips for the wood djembe drum

These tips can help you attempt to make your

own repairs. If you can't eat it, love it, or PLAY

it,... What Good is

it?

Tips for repairing wood:

• To fill voids, use "Plastic Wood" wood

putty - it is sandable and takes stain or

• Belt sand some wood off the bottom of

drum, mix dust with white glue

• Large loose but clean cracks - spread crack

and work white glue thoroughly into crack

using a piece of plastic shopping bag see-sawed through the crack to work the glue

in. Then clamp with loop clamp, or wrap

with loop of drum rope and use a hammer

to tighten like a tourniquet

• Fine cracks - fill with five minute epoxy

and dremel excess off when dry.

Tips for repairing drum skin:

• Fill pin holes, and small cracks, nicks, or

cuts with Super Glue Gel - lightly sand

flush when dry

• Patch over large holes and tears with a

scrap of goat skin super glued thoroughly

under the area

• A blob of "Shoe Goo" , shoe repair product

under a damaged area can delay repairs

• Calf or Cow skin tears can be stopped from

opening further by reinforcing tear ends

with a blob of "Shoe Goo"


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What to look for in an African Djembe

A Djembe is a hand made instrument whether

imported or stave built in the USA. This page contains

my personal ideas based on only 15 years of building

and playing drums. If you have a different experience

or opinion, please let me know! As with any

instrument it's quality will be determined by three

main factors:

1. Design

2.

Material selection

3. Craftsmanship

Akajou Wood,

Guinea djembe

* Note the timing belt

non-slip protector on the bottom!

Design

Any goblet shaped drum will have a rangeof tones similar to a djembe. If what you

are looking for is the sound of the

traditional West African Djembe, then look

for the design forms of the three main

countries holding that classic tradition;

Guinea, Mali, Ivory Coast. Other regional

countries produce djembes (From Senegal

to Nigeria) but few use or understand the

traditional design principals. Since the

djembe has grown in popularity, nearly any

country from Pakistan to Indonesia to Bali

which has skilled wood carvers now

produce djembes. These countries carvers

don't come from the same culture as

djembe music does, and hence are often

improperly designed as an instrument for

West African Music. If you want the sound

heard on master recordings look to the

source.

Guinea produces some of the Worlds

finest djembes, as well as some of the

world's master players. Guinea djembes areknown for their deep bowl, often half the

height of the drum or more. The bowl has a

fairly vertical side until rapidly curving in

to meet the trumpet or stem. Looking

inside the bowl, the contour sharply at

bottom curves to make a nearly horizontal

shelf at the trumpet. The opening is fairly

wide, between 1/3 and 1/2 of the playing

surface diameter. The trumpet is fairly

straight but widening slightly to the base.

Guinea is still blessed with ample forested

areas and there are three main hardwoods preferred; Akajou, Khadi, Lenke or Lenge.

Trumpets are often carved with chevron,

angular or gear like bands


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Shell design considerations

If you look inside a well carved drum trumpet

you'll see a spiral of even gouge marks and an even

thickness. Hardwoods are usually less than an inch

thick, softer woods between 1-2inches. Theory has is

that a too smooth inside, whether because of lathe

turning, sanding, or stave construction, is inferior in

sound production than the gentle spiral of hand carved

tool marks. Balaphone wood is often so brittle that the

carving is crude, but the density makes up for it in

superior sound. The bottom edge should be beveled so

it doesn't chip, and the playing edge is best with the

tapered roundness of your thumbnail in profile. I

believe the density of hard wood more often offers

superior sound, yet many Ivory Coast drums of Irokosound great. I will haul a heavy drum anywhere if I

love it, but commonly advise people that if weight is

an issue get a light drum! Better you have it along!

Rope and Rings

Rings are usually of either light weight

rebar, or 1/4 steel rod. A snug fit to the

trumpet leaves the maximum room for

tuning diamonds. A snug fit at the head

makes for easier tuning, reduces possibilityof head slippage or damage, and secures

maximum head life. Hand made wire,

wrapped into cable can be used but is not

preferred. Copper tubing, or thinner than

1/4 inch steel just aren't strong enough.

Generally there is a "rope" ring and a

"hide" ring at top. A three ring system with

a blank ring between to more securely grab

the hide is touted as superior. It does work

well but no better than a well built two top

ring system.


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I prefer a double weave polyester rope from 5/32 to 3/16" for djembes. You can pay a premium for

"low stretch" ropes, but the difference between a good quality polyester rope is only a percent or two

of stretch and strength is not as issue. A ropes "hand" is how soft, flexible, and durable the outside

cover is. Not too important unless you are a builder. Avoid polypropylene or nylon ropes. Almost

universally drums from Africa come with "kambala" style rope. This is a black, barely adequate

polyester rope. It can cut easy and should most often be replaced if you change heads. Sometimes a

lighter rope is used on the rope rings. That can be OK, just check to be sure it seems large and strong

enough. Look for any signs of rope wear or weakness.

Skin or Head

A good quality goat skin head is critical. Djembes

need to be tuned tight enough that a finger pressed in

the middle of the skin will barely deflect it. Sometimes

defects like bot marks(scars or thin spots from insect

bites) or whip marks (line scars) have no effect, other

times they are where a tear will start. Guinea skinstend to be exceedingly tough and relatively thin. They

can be tightened unbelievably tight for a piercing slap.

Mali and Ivory Coast skins are "softer" and hence have

a softer sound to me. They are often white or brown,

where Guinea skins range more to black or brown with

black dorsal stripe. A lot of folks want a spotted skin

(as on Mamady Keita's book cover ), beautiful but no

relation to sound quality! Common wisdom is a female

goat is best, but the main issue is that the skin be of

relatively consistent thickness across the spine. Male

(billy) Goats often have very thick skin along the

spine, and a sometimes powerful smell that makesthem less preferred. A Pakistani or domestic goat skin

is likely chemically treated and as such the hair

follicles have been burned out leaving a sponge like

surface. I believe the density of a shaved, untreated

head is best. I prefer Guinea but again there is no rule

here but actual sound produced. Also know this, A

professional djembe players hand is like your foot,

heavy with callous. They can make your drum sound

better than you ever can, both because of technique

and hand density! Mainly, look for a skin that is

without nicks or scar flaws, or any weak spots. It

should not have any folds where it passes through the

rings, and a smooth even wood bearing edge will help

extend head life. Whether it is hair, on or off, or

wrapped over the rings or cut flush is all personal

preference. A very heavy skin will give you a very dry

slap with little over tones but it is very hard to fully

tune and it is like hitting a board to play.


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Summary, ....

So what exactly do I look for?

The main thing is to look at overall craftmanship,

that is the clue to the value of an instrument. To

prioritize here is my call:

Important Djembe Factors :

Is the wood sound and free of

major cracks and blemishes?

(Remember this you cannot change!

)

Is the overall design and shape

appropriate?

(A tiny bowl on a big stem, a sharp

playing edge, or a severely

restricted trumpet opening will

never allow proper djembe sound.)

Is the head assembled with care

and craftsmanship?

(Are the rings snug? Is the skinwrapped smoothly and not pulled

over an inch down or unevenly?)

Is the skin of good quality and

free of defects?

Is the drum carved thin enough

to be easily transported?

Is the rope of adequate size and

quality?

(Is it frayed or cut? Rope can be

easily replaced)

How does the drum feel and

sound to you? (Can this drum be your music

buddy for some time to come?)

Does the drum give you the sense

of overall craftsmanship?


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head an african djembe drum

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