How to Make Whistles Out of Tree Limbs
A walk through the woods can lead to the creation of a simple toy that never grows old---the wooden whistle, according to AllSands.com. Wooden whistles, timeless woodwind instruments, can be both easy and fun to make. The material needed to create this imaginative toy is freely available in nature. Just a few steps will put you on your way to having your own musical concert at home.
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Things You'll Need
- Striped maple or willow tree
- Saw
- Wood carving knife
- Pocket knife handle
- Water
Instructions
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1
Find a striped maple or willow tree to create a slip bark whistle. Cut a smooth branch bearing no blemishes or knots from a limb, making sure it is about 3/4-inch thick, according to Schizoaffective.org. Then cut off a straight, 7-inch-long to 10-inch-long section, designating the skinniest part of this section of branch as your whistle's mouthpiece.
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2
Create your mouthpiece. Turn the narrow section of the branch toward you, and make an upward curving cut underneath it to shape it. You're basically cutting the narrow end of the branch off at an angle. Next, cut the angle tip off so it is a little blunt.
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3
Make a tiny notch in the top of your whistle. Place the notch about an inch from the mouthpiece on the side that is not angled. Make sure the notch goes through the bark and slightly into the branch's wood. The notch will allow the air to vibrate through the instrument, producing a sound, according to Docstoc.com.
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4
Cut completely through the bark all the way around the branch from the mouthpiece to about 6 inches down. Use a pocket knife handle to tap the bark all over several times and then gently twist it and peel it off. Don't tap too hard or the bark will crack. The bark section you peeled off should contain the tiny notch. Save this for later.
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5
Cut a large deep notch on the same side of the whistle where you put the tiny notch earlier. Whittle where the tiny notch was and go down to about the center of the length of the whistle. To help, you should see a mark on the branch wood where you cut out the tiny notch in the bark before you peeled the bark off. When carving the large deep notch in the whistle, carve until you've gone about halfway through the branch.
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6
Cut a small sliver of wood between the deep notch and the mouthpiece. Make sure you don't cut too much because you can always carve out more later if not enough air is flowing through the instrument. Lubricate the whistle by dipping it in water. Then put the peeled-off bark back on the whistle, lining it up exactly where it was before.
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7
Test the whistle to make sure it works.
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Tips & Warnings
The ideal time to find a willow or striped maple that will work best for creating a whistle is in the spring or early summer.
The longer the large deep notch is in the whistle, the deeper the note that is played.
