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November 2008
Posts: 1119
Location: Michigan | My bros-in-law and I get together every month or so to play our guitars (my Ovations are very popular) but every now and then one of us needs a break so I thought it would be a good idea to pick up a Cajon. After seeing the prices (not that they are not worth it) I felt that owning a wood shop I should make one myself (standard size 12x12x18). It came out pretty nice and went over well. Due to my tinkering nature and endless quest to make a better wheel I have come up with what I call the "Big Cajon..eh?". It is 3 inches larger and a couple of inches taller giving it 30-40% more volume, with a metal back to give a more movement of the air. I have to say I was pretty amazed at the volume and variation in tone you can get from it. It can sound like a standard Cajon but it you hit the tapa low enough and hard enough it almost sounds like a kettle drum. Now we can all get a break when our little fingers get weary. Pics below:
With carry handle.
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March 2002
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Location: NJ | Whaddya' use as a snare?? |
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Posts: 4996
Location: Phoenix AZ | AWESOME !!! |
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Posts: 5881
Location: Colorado Rocky Mountains | Originally posted by cliff:
Whaddya' use as a snare?? That was my question as well. |
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March 2005
Posts: 2791
Location: Atlanta, GA. | Excellent, Rich!
I'm suprised nobody has made one out of fiberglass just to piss-off the "wood box snobs". |
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April 2004
Posts: 13303
Location: Latitude 39.56819, Longitude -105.080066 | cool.
any pics of the inside guts? |
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December 2006
Posts: 6268
Location: Florida Central Gulf Coast | Nice job, Rich!
Pup? |
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November 2008
Posts: 1119
Location: Michigan | Originally posted by ProfessorBB:
Originally posted by cliff:
Whaddya' use as a snare?? That was my question as well.
http://www.guitarcenter.com/Gibraltar-20-Strand-Strainer-for-14---S...
I cut it length and width wise with tin snips so that the snares were lose like a bad hairdo giving me 4 pieces. I took 2 of them and screwed them to the inside top about 2 inches from the tapa frame and 4 inches in from the side and let them bend over the tapa frame and then affixed the tapa bending down the snare hairs. Difficult to expain so I will try to add some photos when I get home, but it seem to work pretty well and I did not have to mess with guitar strings. |
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Joined:
November 2008
Posts: 1119
Location: Michigan | Ok here is a photo of the inside to hopefully explain my previous post regarding the snares. As you can see I cut the above piece in half 2 ways. I think I might try to get another and cut it just in half through the 20 strands and have it basically twice as wide. Anyway I hope you get the picture.
The tricky part was getting a good seal on the steel back since the it was only .020 thick. That is another story.
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September 2003
Posts: 9301
Location: south east Michigan | nice |
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January 2002
Posts: 14127
Location: 6 String Ranch | doesn't that handle dampen the true vibrations and hinder the sound? |
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November 2008
Posts: 1119
Location: Michigan | Originally posted by Beal:
doesn't that handle dampen the true vibrations and hinder the sound? Nope, I noticed no difference. The tapa is the thin piece on the front, and the metal on the back reverbs some of the sound but the sides where the handle is are just the box. They should be sturdy and dense to reflect the sound. |
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April 2004
Posts: 13303
Location: Latitude 39.56819, Longitude -105.080066 | how bout a sound file.
this is a really neat project and I would love to hear how it sounds. |
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November 2008
Posts: 1119
Location: Michigan | Here is a link from my cheap camera. The audio sounds tiny but you can tell the difference from the standard one and the Biggie. Forgive the baggy pants and poor tapping, I was just trying to get a quick sample.
http://ovationfanclub.ning.com/video/cajon-1 |
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April 2004
Posts: 13303
Location: Latitude 39.56819, Longitude -105.080066 | Interesting.
The smaller one definitely sounded tighter and more bongo like. It would certainly cut through the mix.
The bigger one had a looser sound to it.
Seems like when I played the slanted front LP that if fell somewhere in the middle.
That was a GREAT job making those two but I definitely preferred the sound of the smaller one. |
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Joined:
November 2008
Posts: 1119
Location: Michigan | Hey, I appreciate your comments about the cajons. Your thoughts mirror mine. I built the bigger one because our music director at church wanted a bigger sound that we would hopefully not have to mic for certain applications.
I am not a percussionist so it is difficult for me to hit it exactly. I am going to have my nephew who is the family musical genius take a look at both of them and make some suggestions.
I found that by puttng a brace across the back of the metal side it tightens it up a lot but at the sacrifice of volume. You definitly have to be careful with that one that you don't tap to low on the box otherwise it gets sloppy. I still have to figure that out, but that is what makes it fun for me.
The interesting thing about the big one is that you can tap up high and get very little snare, but as you go down 3 to 4 inches the snare shows up well and then dissapears lower. The small cajon has the snare sound anywhere you tap. I am not sure if this is an advantage or not.
Thanks for all the feedback, I am always open to suggestions. |
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March 2005
Posts: 12761
Location: Boise, Idaho | I built one this winter, after thinking about using up a 16 x 48 inch piece of oak plywood I had left over. Four 12 inch pieces forced the dimensions, with a pressed board bottom and a front made out of leftover paneling from the basement walls. For the snare, I used guitar strings at an angle, but haven't figured out a method of tightening them. Sounds OK without.
It gets far more use as a place to set my beer. |
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OT...The Big Cajon...eh?