Strumsticks

Bretton · Post by **Bretton** » Tue Jun 29, 2004 9:17 am

Hi. I've decided to buy a stringed instrument and the McNally Strumstick (http://www.strumstick.com/) seems to be closest to what I want.

1. Do any of you play one of these? Do you like it?

2. Do you know of other similar instruments that are available? I like the 3 string idea but wonder if there's something with a larger body available. I do want something held like a guitar, not a lap dulcimer.

I've been playing around with a cheap baritone Ukulele with three strings (I removed one) and have been enjoying it.

Thanks for any info or comments!

-Brett

emmline · Post by **emmline** » Tue Jun 29, 2004 9:26 am

I've seen these at the American Craft Council shows in Baltimore. I'm interested in hearing the answer to the above question.

Daryl · Post by **Daryl** » Tue Jun 29, 2004 9:45 am

I've played with them (strum sticks) a little at the local folk instrument shop. The clerk said she thought they compared more to a dulcimer than a guitar.

Don't know much about them other than that, though. They are intriguing, and they seemed fun when I was playing around in the store, but I'd already begun trying to tame the guitar, and that's plenty of challenge for the time being!

I, too, would like to hear from someone who's spent more time with these.

Daryl

avanutria · Post by **avanutria** » Tue Jun 29, 2004 9:56 am

If you can forgive the background image, here is a page about backpacker guitars:

http://www.tachyonlabs.com/mbackpacker.html

A bunch of links at the bottom. I don't play strings but I believe WyoBadger (remember him?) has one of these or something similar.

Daryl · Post by **Daryl** » Tue Jun 29, 2004 9:57 am

I couldn't resist going to the web site and taking a look -- and a listen.

http://www.strumstick.com/

Personally, I like its "folksy" look and sound. To me, the demos sound like something between a mandolin and a banjo. I hadn't heard anyone really play one before, and McNally's demos do indeed make it appealing!

Great. Just what I need: another temptation.... :roll:

glauber · Post by **glauber** » Tue Jun 29, 2004 10:02 am

It sounds like a mountain dulcimer, to me.

chas · Post by **chas** » Tue Jun 29, 2004 10:04 am

I don't own one, but have fooled with them quite a bit. Every one I've seen has been a variation on the mountain dulcimer theme. I'm a MD player, so I've always played them either across my lap, or ocasionally held vertically like a sitar. Although I think they're really designed to be MD surrogates, I don't see any reason you can't get the appropriate strings and play one like a guitar. (As has been mentioned, there's always the backpacker guitar idea, too.)

OutOfBreath · Post by **OutOfBreath** » Tue Jun 29, 2004 10:09 am

I haven't owned one, but I've played around with some. They are basically a bodiless dulcimer. They are louder than you'd expect, but probably not as loud as you'd like.

I've never bought one because I just can't bring myself to pay the asking price for something that's basically a single stick of wood and some frets. I guess I'm just cheap

glauber · Post by **glauber** » Tue Jun 29, 2004 10:12 am

Well, they're cheaper than a typical mountain dulcimer. They look like an interesting way to get started with a MD type instrument.

OutOfBreath · Post by **OutOfBreath** » Tue Jun 29, 2004 10:45 am

You can usually find a decent (not fancy, but decent) MD on eBay for about what you'll pay for a new Strumstick (unless you have a lot cheaper source for them than I've seen).

If you're really looking to cut corners until you decide if you like the instrument, do a google search and see if anyone is still making the cardboard student dulcimers. These were pretty cheap and were popular a few years ago. They sound better and last longer than you'd expect. I even saw a used one on eBay the other day. It's basically a hardwood dulcimer fretwood on a cardboard box. It will be louder than the Strumstick and if your ultimate goal is an MD then the shape (flat, in your lap) will get you accustomed to the back and forth horizontal strumming and picking action. That was the hardest part for me of going between guitar and dulcimer was getting a smooth horizontal motion.

On the other hand, if you're looking for an MD sound with a guitar type of hold, go with the Strumstick but be prepared to mic it for anything but solos.

Edited to add: Several years ago I converted one of my electric guitars to dulcimer. I pulled off the extra frets, made a custom saddle so I could string both of the melody strings through one saddle, and so on. The problem was that there was too much sustain (this is exactly the opposite of the problem one usually encounters with MDs).

I eventually refretted it and converted it back to a guitar, but for a while the "Stratimer" was pretty cool.

Chuck_Clark · Post by **Chuck_Clark** » Tue Jun 29, 2004 11:31 am

glauber wrote:It sounds like a mountain dulcimer, to me.

Agreed. The body shape is initially deceptive, but the tuning and sound clips all but scream "mountain dulcimer".

IDAwHOa · Post by **IDAwHOa** » Tue Jun 29, 2004 12:42 pm

Ends about 5:30 pacific:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... 05519&rd=1

missy · Post by **missy** » Tue Jun 29, 2004 12:48 pm

the strumstick IS a mountain dulcimer, or at least fretted the same (diatonic), but is played upright like a guitar, and is strung "backwards" from a dulcimer. Where as a "regular" dulcimer is strung so that the bass string is away from you and the melody string is near you, the strumstick is opposite, so you fret the melody string and only occasionally reach across and grab the middle or bass string.
Other posters are correct - there isn't much "body" to these, so there's not a lot of volume, and the bass sound suffers a lot from lack of vibrating air space.

If you are interested in dulcimers, I can recommend a great "student" model that sells for $100. Check the following website, and give me a yell if you have questions:
http://www.strothers.com/sweet_woods.htm
And yes, that is our website - we are hosting for Dave. We own four of the student dulcimers that we loan out (along with a bass, a baritone, a low G, and a fully chromatic on a student base).

Missy

glauber · Post by **glauber** » Tue Jun 29, 2004 1:12 pm

Darnit, Missy, i may have to buy one of these now!

Does it come with all that's needed, or would one still need to buy the dojinger that's used to fret the notes? Is it played with a guitar pick?

Walden · Post by **Walden** » Tue Jun 29, 2004 2:26 pm

My thinking is that they are essentially a diatonically fretted bouzouki (bearing in mind that the more traditional bouzoukia had 3 courses). The stringing is opposite of dulcimer, but they are played on the same principle, the idea being a simple, satisfying, instrument like the dulcimer, but that you can play with the mobility of a lute-family instrument.

There are actually several makers, besides just the Strumstick brand, including Olympia Dulcimer Company.

Anyway, I suggest running a search of the Everything Dulcimer board: http://everythingdulcimer.com/discussion/ , which has lots of folks who are familiar with Strumsticks and the like. Here's a thread on the topic: http://everythingdulcimer.com/discussio ... age=1#1421 ...actually you maybe started that thread.