How to Make Cymbal Mallets

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By Kochava R. Greene
eHow Contributing Writer

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Cymbal mallets with yarn heads

Although most drum kits, finished drums and cymbals come with ready-to-play cymbal mallets, it's also very easy to make basic cymbal mallets yourself. By making your own cymbal mallets, you can experiment with materials, weight and designs that might be useful for custom sound creation. In this article, you'll learn how to make basic cymbal mallets.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

1/2-inch dowels
Squash ball
Quilting cotton or yarn
Liquid furniture polish
Saw
Sandpaper
Super glue
Varnish/paint (optional)

Step 1

Cut the dowels with the saw to be 16 inches each. Sand the ends and sides so that they are smooth.
Step 2

Cut a small hole in two squash balls and insert the dowels. Glue the dowels and the squash balls where the dowel enters the ball and let dry.
Step 3

Apply glue to the squash ball. Wrap the quilting cotton or yarn around the squash ball evenly, starting at the base--where the ball and stick meet--and working to the top of the ball. Coat the cotton with the liquid furniture polish to keep it from flocking. Allow the polish to dry.
Step 4

Varnish or paint the sticks as desired.