Parts and restoration
Scroll down for
- Strings / wires
- Canes / beaters / sticks
- Woodwork and gilding
- Paper
- Dulcimer makers and restorers
Each section contains contacts and / or suppliers, although these are subject to change of course.
Strings/wires
The strings on a traditional East Anglian dulcimer, often referred to as wires, are generally made of steel, with some of the older instruments having brass wire on the bass side. Brass looks more attractive but it stretches and so is more difficult to keep in tune.
The gauge of these strings varies, but they are often graduated, with 9 gauge for the longest, 8 gauge in the middle and 7 gauge for the shortest, although some players do use the same gauge throughout. These gauges are piano wire thicknesses and the actual sizes can be seen on this chart:
| Wire gauge (MWG) | mm | inches |
| 7 | 0.45 | .018 |
| 8 | 0.50 | .020 |
| 9 | 0.55 | .022 |
If an old instrument is being restrung then the existing strings can be measured with a micrometer to obtain the diameter and the corresponding gauge.
Music wire can be bought from various suppliers online, but the best supplier we found in England was the long-established firm of Heckscher’s.
Heckscher Piano Parts– Three Bridge Mill, Twyford, Buckinghamshire, MK18 4DY. 01296 254474
They also stock various other parts such as tuning keys and pegs for keyboard instruments which can be of use to dulcimer players.
Canes, beaters, sticks (not “hammers”!)
For the traditional style cane beaters, you can try and make your own – the kind of rattan used for chimney sweep’s brushes and lobster pots is ideal! You have to split it, steam it in order to bend it into shape (build a former first to get the shape consistent). When it has dried out, you then fasten with a thread and bind it – first with cotton or a fine twine, and then finish with wool. I have been known to make the occasional pair myself, as have a few others, so do ask!
You can buy lengths of rattan from cane furniture or craft suppliers, here are a couple to try. You need something like the tohiti or manau canes to split – I have a piece here about 14mm diameter which has been split in to several pieces. More investigation needed!
The Cane Store – Mill Farm, Mill Lane, Crewe, CW2 5NX. Tel: 01975 651386
Somerset Willow Growers – Bon Accord, Bussex Farm, Westonzoyland, Nr Bridgwater, Somerset, TA7 0EU. 01278 691540
There are many images of East Anglian style canes, sticks and beaters in the Design section of this website.
Woodwork and gilding
If you acquire an old dulcimer, you will need to inspect the instrument and the case for woodworm and / or the common furniture beetle (anobium punctatum) and treat accordingly. You may also find traces of the “woolly bear” (anthrenus verbscii) which is a pest for textiles and sometimes paper.
Old instruments often have cracks across the sound board or base, which look quite worrying. However they are often quite stable as the instruments are sturdily built with braces running under the bridges, and the cracks don’t seem to deteriorate or affect the sound quality. They are often where the glue between two pieces of wood has dried out over the years, and they don’t need to be filled or fixed back together.
For bridges or sound-hole inserts, you will need to find a friendly wood-turner to work with you. To replace existing veneers, again you may need specialist help – furniture restorers may be able to advise with this aspect.
Supplies for painting on gilt decoration are easily available online in small quantities from a number of craft suppliers.
In my files I have a sheet of stencils for the most popular of the gilded designs found around the sound holes. I’m afraid I don’t know the provenance of this, but it’s evidently intended for public use, and doesn’t seem to be available elsewhere, so here is a downloadable PDF. If anyone knows where this came from and whose work it is, please let me know and of course we will credit them! If you fancy a bit of free hand work, there’s plenty of inspiration on the Design pages.
Paper
Old dulcimers often had a sheet of paper on the back – covering up the join in the base. Some had coloured paper stuck inside, visible through the sound holes. Several (Billy Bennington’s being a notable example) had wallpaper inside the case.
You might want to choose something that fits in aesthetically from a specialist supplier such as Shepherd’s of London.
30 Gillingham St, Pimlico, London SW1V 1HU. 020 7233 9999
https://store.bookbinding.co.uk/store/
Dulcimer makers and restorers
Richard Blake has probably restored (and played) more historic dulcimers than anyone else! He doesn’t work on them professionally, but is hugely experienced and always willing to advise on the restoration of East Anglian dulcimers.
26 Church lane Hindolveston NR20 5BT. 07909 571103 blakedulcimistatgmail.com (just replace “at” with the usual symbol)
Last but not least, there are several dulcimer makers working in the UK, for example Tim Manning and Alec Anness. I think it’s fair to say that they are more interested in building from scratch than restoring old dulcimers, but Alec in particular has worked on East Anglian style dulcimers in the past and does understand about offset bridges and cane beaters even though that may not be his preferred system. He can also supply you with wrest pins, strings and a tuning key/lever to fit.
Alec Anness Dulcimers 7 Ely Road, Sutton, Ely, Cambridgeshire CB6 2QD. 01353 863442 / 07837 507425
If you are having trouble tuning or restringing your instrument, there are a couple of very informative videos posted on YouTube by Russell Cook of MasterWorks in Oklahoma. Although working on an American dulcimer with continuous bridges, the advice is good for East Anglian tuned instruments too. The ones on fine tuning across the bridges. and changing strings are particularly good.
Thanks to George Monger for his assistance on the conservation aspects of this page.
If you want any further guidance about spare parts, repairs or renovation, you are welcome to contact us and we can put you in touch with people with experience and skills to advise you.
All material on this website is copyright. Anyone wishing to quote or use this original research should credit it to Katie Howson and cite this website as the source. Please see our Terms and Conditions page for more information, and do contact me if you wish to use any of the contents in any way. Thank you.