A PVC telescopic Didge, great for when your travelling or when you are jamming and need the right key to fit with the other instruments or song. They can have an excellent sound as well depending on wall thickness, the thicker the better.
Your didge can be in two, three, or four lengths. The more lengths the greater the amount of backpressure and playability possibilities. Using PVC piping, look for the thickest wall available, the smallest diameter being 23- 25mm. If larger then 25mm it will be much more difficult to make a sound when the didge is fully extended. A thicker wall will produce a better sound ie 4mm. Try to get pipes with a difference of 1-2mm between the larger pipes inside diameter and the smallers outer diameter. The bigger the difference between the diameters the more taper you must make. A total fully extended length can be up to 2.5m.
STEP 1: Cut the pipe into equal lengths, if using two pieces, then 900mm to 1 m, if three lengths, then 700-800mm,if four then 500-600mm. Too long and you won't be able to get a sound out! Make sure the ends are square and flat and clean off any rough edges with a file .
STEP 2: Knock out the bottom of a glass bottle by dropping a heavy rod through the neck, use gloves. Next heat the largest diameter pipe at one end over the gas stove, turning the pipe above the flame so as not to blacken the end, you only want the very end to go soft. (CAUTION, PVC WHEN BURNED PRODUCES A HIGHLY TOXIC SMOKE, SO VENTILLATE THE ROOM WELL) Next push the soft end into the bottle so that the end will taper inwards against the taper of the bottle. Remove and quickly slide the smaller diameter pipe down the larger length until it pushes the soft taper out to the right diameter, quickly cool end with a cloth soaked in water. If you using more than two pieces do the same to the others as well but not the smallest diameter pipe.
STEP 3: Now to flare the opposite end of the pipes, this operation is carried out on all the lengths. The largest diameter can be flared out to the max as this acts like a trumpet flare. Heat the end of the smallest pipe over the gas stove until the very end has become soft, then push it over the top of a glass bottle so that its end flares outwards, then quickly slide the smaller diameter into the larger until the flare reduces to the right diameter, quickly cool with wet cloth. Do this with all the piecesStep 4: You can now slide all the pieces into each other. The mouth piece can be made by heating its end and flaring it outwards over the bottle then flattening the flare over a flat surface. The whole length can now be sanded with a very coarse sand paper to scratch into a more natural looking surface and then be sprayed with a matt paint, black or brown and the largest diameter pipe can be decorated with your artwork. You may want to knotch bands at intervals to mark out the keys of notes in conjunction with a tuner. Vasolene can be used to ease sliding, but these instruments aren't designed to slide freely like a trombone .
Note: This process is designed, tried and tested many times by myself and given to you freely, so much bad karma and a thousand curses to any bugger who takes this idea and turns it into financial profit for themself.....
How to make a Telescopic Didge
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