Homemade mallets

[Ray]

Jim,

When I got my mallet kat I began using cymbal mallets I made myself. The shafts are half inch on most of the ones I've made. I got some keyboard mallets off ebay, nothing fancy. I just wanted to see what the whole difference was like, balance and feel-wise. I am assuming the 5/16" shaft on these mallets is fairly standard. Man, what a difference. All top heavy in the feel. Obviously drum sticks go for different widths and balances throughout. The ones I chose are a simple hard rubber mallet. They were inexpensive. I didn't want to go for anything special at this point.

In coming to your site, I also saw the book on making mallets. Bingo! I'm going to get a copy of the book. DIY is always the path I will take first. But I wanted to ask if keyboard mallets come in widths greater than 5/16" or is that the standard all players use? Considering I'll be playing drums all the time, as well, I am hoping to make mallets that fall somewhere in between in shaft diameter.

The Malletkat being the device it is, I could use drum sticks if I wanted to, but I want to get more authentic than that.

Perhaps there is a history/theory of mallets being so thin? 

[Jim McCarthy]

Hi Ray
Yes - I have certainly found that making your own mallets saves HEAPS of cash and ultimately gives you a much wider range of options and understanding as well. The 8mm or 5/16 IS certainly a standard but I have seen shafts both thinner and thicker. Usually only mallets for glockenspiel or something similar would use thinner shafts. Thicker shafts are not all that common but more so. Sometimes cane shafts are a fraction over 8mm - about 9mm (11/32) but that is more about cane being a natural and tapered product. I have a set of six two-tone graduated mallets which I made especially for a certain piece of music many years ago called "Rhythmic caprice" by Leigh H. Stevens. The piece involves a fair bit of strong playing over the edges of the bars so the thicker shafts - 10mm (6/16ths) got more sound from the timber contact alone as well as being less likely to break just under the mallet head - always a risk with that type of playing - especially with the "marimshots"!! - others who have performed the piece will know what I mean!

The reasons for the standards are both practical and historical in a sense. It is discussed in a fair bit of detail in the mallet making guide but essentially a thinner mallet is MUCH easier to hold two of in one hand. Also of course the cane handles which were preferred even more earlier on - are available only in certain standard sizes, and there is a big relationship between acceptable degree of fleaxibility for a mallet shaft, and its length and diameter - especially cane! These days it's more about 4 mallets. Try holding four drum sticks in ANY accepted grip and you soon run into problems!

Also - the length of shaft vs weight of mallet head is discussed a fair bit in the guide. It often comes down to muscular development, required span, and how far up the shaft you actually grip.

[Ray]

4 mallets. Of course. Didn't think of that aspect. Although, I don't know if it is the size of my hands or what, but it's actually more comfortable for me to hold 2 - 1/2" shafts than 5/16". The 5/16" just flop around. But that is probably as much lack of knowing grip and technique.

On to the DIY guide.

[Jim McCarthy]

Well anything is possible Ray - I mean everyone is a little different, but it probably is more to do with lack of experience a you say - that's not a criticism of course btw. In fact I can very much see how the thicker  shafts would seem easier in some circumstances. The real problem comes when adjusting the gap between mallet heads quickly - especially the smaller gaps.
Jim

[Sefeinimb]

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