How to Make a Drum Paddle With PVC Tube

Hollow PVC pipes have tonal qualities suitable for drumming.

If you are a creative musician, you likely look for new and interesting ways to make percussive tones. You can make a variable tone drum paddle with PVC pipe and have an instrument capable of making just about any tone you can think of. A PVC drum paddle will have your friends envious of your instrument building ability and once you master playing your PVC paddle, your friends will surely ask you to build one for them.

Things You'll Need

• 12 inch diameter PVC pipe
• Table saw
• Sandpaper
• PVC cleaner
• PVC glue

Instructions

1. Cut a piece of 12 inch diameter PVC pipe to a length of 24 inches with a table saw.

2. Sand the burrs off the end of the pipe with 600 grit sandpaper.

3. Clean the outside of the pipe with PVC cleaner and then clean the inside of the 12 inch diameter PVC pipe cap with PVC cleaner.

4. Apply PVC glue to the inner edge of the PVC cap and then slide the PVC cap onto one end of the PVC pipe.

5. Cut a piece of 12 inch diameter PVC pipe to a length 36 inches with the table saw. Cut down the length of the PVC pipe with the table saw to create a slit through the side wall. This allows you to collapse the pipe on itself.

6. Remove the burrs from the pipe with the 600 grit sandpaper.

7. Slide the cut pipe into the open end of the other PVC pipe as far as you can.

Tips & Warnings

• Place the 24 inch section of pipe between your legs and grip it with your thighs. Strike the side of the drum paddle with a drum stick as you move the cut section of the pipe in and out of the 24 inch section. As you move the pipe in and out, it changes the tone produced when you strike the instrument.

References

• Nate True: Building a PVC Instrument