How to Make a Didgeridoo - Didgeridoo Making Workshop

[TheRockinCactus]

made mine from a sour cherry tree, ants ate the middle out pretty good, i went in with a drill to knock out the middle, little by little it was ready to play. I think it can be done out of anything.

[didgdog1]

Ants in the UK don't have as tough teeth as where you are based. All my cherry is solid right through. Regarding which wood to use, I agree with you, I use pretty much anything that comes off a tree and utilise each type of wood's unique characteristics for the sound I am trying to achieve.

[TheRockinCactus]

@didgdog1 you ever in hungary, stop by for some sour cherry wood, had to cut down a tree so I got a few more good Didgeridoo size branches, even have a few other types of tree branches from hard wood.

[didgdog1]

Thanks for your offer RockinCactus. I may just take you up on that if I come your way. Not sure what the airline would say, but a friend of mine did manage to bring me a 10kg piece of Eucalyptus back from South Africa which I made into a beautiful didge.

[2dollarkevin]

the hard part is getting the wood..... but i´ve found a big and large.... .. bamboo, or bambu sorry for my english, in a park.. : D

[didgdog1]

@2dollarkevin Go for it!!!

[jsjgreen]

Hi Clive! This popped up on my youtube account as I guess it saw that I had emailed you before. We stayed at your lovely B&B last summer for our Anniversary and you gave us a lesson on the didge! Great to see this, might try my own! Naomi used the cardboard pipes in her lesson about Oz!

[luvmonkey666]

Hi i make didges outta bamboo. And have been wanted to use branches for a while. If I don't have a saw like in the video could I just put a knife in the middle and hit it with a hammer to cut it in half?

[didgdog1]

@luvmonkey666 Hi, to ensure it remains airtight once the two halves have been glued back together, you want to get as neat and clean a join as possible. I kind of imagine splitting it would leave a lot of ragged edges. Better to do what I did before I bought my bandsaw, go down to your nearest carpenter's workshop and ask him if he will cut it for you on his saw.

[Cre8iveSignWorks]

@luvmonkey666

ive made a couple of dozen didges out of agave

and i split mine with a knife and hammer down the middle.

i think ive only had 1 that didnt split all the way through to the end....

but it can be a trap if the timber log or grain is not straight or full of knots.

[didgdog1]

@Cre8iveSignWorks Many thanks for your comment. It is great to get other peoples experiences of didge-making. Agave is not a wood I have ever used, so it is really good to get some expertise from someone who has. I am sure this will also be relevant to luvmonkey666 and bamboo didge-making

[didgdog1]

@driftwoodbeech Thank you. Nice to get some feedback.

[driftwoodbeech]

Great stuff and some nice looking sticks..

[didgdog1]

@driftwoodbeech Thank you. They also sound good too.

[YourTearsDontFall606]

Your meant to let termites naturally hollow it out

[didgdog1]

@YourTearsDontFall606 We are a bit short of termites in central England.

[YourTearsDontFall606]

@didgdog1

Ohkay didnt know

[zachchristiansen]

@didgdog1 Do you apply any sort of finish to the didge?  Wouldn't the inside get all moldy and gross if you didn't?

[didgdog1]

@zachchristiansen I like to use natural oils. To avoid fungal growth, after playing, I always lean my didges against something to ensure a free flow of air through them so they dry out thoroughly. Never had a problem.

[zachchristiansen]

@didgdog1 Thanks a bunch! I'll do that!

[zachchristiansen]

What wood is he using?

His Didge is awesome, by the way.

[didgdog1]

@zachchristiansen Hi Zac, many thanks for taking the time to comment. I use a variety of woods, mainly Yew, Ash, Poplar and Chestnut. The didge with the really flared horn is made from Poplar, from a branch that was ripped off a tree during a storm.

[One2oneNutrition]

Good article, I put it on my facebook page......maybe put it in my newsletter.....could be a laugh......