Make a quilting hoop drum

Sunset, May, 1994 by Peter O. Whiteley

It's loud, lightweight, and easy to build

THE HYPNOTIC pounding of drums that sets the beat for most Native American dances is a pulsing heritage handed down from generation to generation. The drumming tradition is going strong at the Quinault Indian Reservation on Washington's Olympic Peninsula, thanks in part to Ed Praxel, a teacher at Queets-Clearwater School. He has designed some easy-to-build drums that his students make from decidedly untraditional materials and then decorate with their own hand-painted designs.

The slender circular drums start with a 14-inch-diameter quilting hoop (actually one hoop inside another). You'll find hoops of various sizes at many craft and sewing supply stores. (A 14-inch hoop usually costs $5 or less.) Select a hoop with a wooden handle (not metal L-brackets) on the outside.

The "skin" of the drum comes from a more esoteric source--the heat-shrink Dacron fabric is sold at airplane supply stores. You can order it by the yard ($7.30 plus shipping) from Aircraft Spruce & Specialty Co. (800/824-1930; specify item 09-00500). It comes in a 66-inch-wide bolt, so you'll get enough fabric for eight drums from each yard. Some model airplane stores sell lighter-weight heat-shrink fabric, which makes for a less resonant drum. You can also use more readily available rip-stop nylon (sold at most fabric stores), but it's harder to tension as tightly.

To make the drum, you'll also need white glue, a piece of scrap wood (pine or fir), fine sandpaper, clear urethane finish, a 1-inch paintbrush, a fine-toothed saw, a drill, a household iron, and a craft knife. The drumstick requires a length of 3/8-inch dowel. a 1-inch-diameter rubber toy ball, a 6-inch square of lightweight leather, a leather shoelace, and heavy thread.

HOW TO MAKE THE DRUM

Start by sanding the inner and outer hoops smooth. Cut a 17-inch square of the Dacron (or nylon).

Cut and sand the piece of scrap wood to fit snugly in the space between the ends of the outer hoop when they're drawn tight. Drill a hole through it to align with the holes in the handle.

Squeeze and spread a bead of glue on opposing faces of the two hoops. Place the inner hoop on a flat surface and overlay the fabric square so the sides overhang evenly. Spread the outer hoop as wide as possible and slip it over the material, then glue the small block of wood in the handle. Using the wing nut, tighten the outer hoop while gently pulling the material so it is drawn snugly across the hoop (don't overtighten).

To heat-shrink the drumhead. set an iron at 200 |degrees~ and pass it repeatedly over the fabric to draw it tight.

Use a craft knife (or a single-edge razor blade) to trim the fabric flush with the boltore edge of the hoop.

Seal the wood and the fabric with clear urethane. After it dries, remove wing nut and run a leather shoelace through the hole in the handle.

To inake the drumstick, drill a 3/16-inch hole through the dowel, 1/2 inch from one end. Drill a 3/8-inch hole halfway through the toy ball and glue it onto the other end of the dowel. Cut a 6-inch circle from the leather square, wrap it tight around the ball, and hold it in place with a piece of leather shoelace. String a longer piece through the hole to make a handle.

If you wish to decorate the drumhead with a pattern, use acrylic paint, permanent markers, or paint pens before sealing.