Resonator box
Resonator box
This is the second iteration of the resonator box. Initially I started with the concept of my Deagan Orchestrion Xylophone's resonator box and laid-out the bars side by side with a uniform gap between them and used nails for mounting pins on the top and nails between each bar to space them on the bottom. I essentially painted myself into a corner by making such a tight footprint, and the bars really didn't have much freedom to resonate. Eventually I took the whole thing apart and started over. I used the Deagan box more as a template and built the resonator box much more carefully. I glued piano tuners' temperament cloth to the edges, mounted the bars just at the top and let them hang loose at the bottom. I gave myself quite a bit more space between the bars and that made the whole thing easier to assemble and regulate.
I built this with box joints for a nicer look and to make up for the angles; I was just too lazy to measure and miter everything so precisely. I salvaged old organ pipes for the lumber.