Updated: November 3, 2005
Roping Method 2 (Double Lateral Rope)

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A step-by-step guide to a second method of roping an ikigala drum.
 
Supplies & Tools

Rope
Any strong, non-stretching rope (avoid pure nylon) works. In the cold months, I use static climbing rope with a kevlar core (there is also shock rope; don't use this because it stretches). 5mm (3/8") seems to be a good size. I got my most recent rope from Rhythm Traders. They have solid colors made sprecifically for drum making.
Rhythm Traders

Most of the year, my choice is natural hemp, as in the photo above. I change it to synthetic to get tighter heads in the winter. If you are interested in using hemp on your drum, here are some links to websites for ordering.
Scientific Nature Hemp Emporium
 Dragonwing
TerraWear.

Tools

  • A clamp to hold laces and rope in place while tightening.
  • X-Acto knife
  • Spray bottle filled with water for keeping the hide heads damp.


Roping Method

Roping the Head to the Drum

We start this part of the ikigala construction process assuming you have already cut out and prepared the heads for mounting. The photos in this series, like most of the tiny photos on this page, are thumbnails. Click them for a larger image.
Now it's time for the vertical rope. Tie a bowline knot in one end of the rope. I have not done this in the photo at right. I will replace the image someday. Pass the other end of the rope over the anchoring rope, and pull it all the way through until the bowline knot seats against the rawhide rope.
Working to the right or left, whatever strikes your fancy, pass the vertical rope down through the bottom rawhide anchor rope. While you are working, spray the heads to keep them wet. Make sure the vertical rope wraps over the anchoring rope the same way on the top and bottom. I pass it under the anchoring rope and over the top.
Continue lacing the drum with the vertical rope in a zig-zag pattern all the way around until you reach the bowline knot.
Pass the end of the vertical rope through the bowline knot and back down towards the bottom of the drum. Again, I didn't use a bowline when I did the work at right, so you'll have to imagine it.
Pass the end of the vertical rope around the rawhide anchoring rope and back up the the other end of the vertical rope. Tie them together tightly.
The vertical rope is now finished, and the drum is ready for the tuning rope.

Inserting the Lateral Tuning Ropes

The photos in this series, like most of the tiny photos on this page, are thumbnails. Click them for a larger image.

The drum used for this demonstration has a 40cm (16") diameter, 60cm (24") deep shell. The color is two coats of Minwax's Polyshades "Olde Maple".
Start by anchoring the top tuning rope about 1/3 from the top of the drum, under a tight vertical rope.
Pass the rope over two adjacent vertical ropes that are attached to the same anchoring point at the bottom, and diverge from eachother at the top. Then pass it under these ropes.
Wrap the rope all the way around the verticals until it is pointing the same direction it started. It looks like the rope has crossed itself, but it is not crossed.
Pull the rope snug. It should draw the two verticals together a little.
Now pass the rope over the next two adjacent vertical ropes that are attached to the same anchoring point at the bottom, and diverge from eachother at the top. Then pass it under these ropes.
Wrap the rope all the way around the verticals until it is pointing the same direction it started, just as you did the first one.
Continue around the drum, gathering vertical ropes and wrapping the lateral tuning rope around them. Your drum should start to look like the one at right.
Once you have reached the beginning point again, pull the tuning rope tight enough to allow extra rope to tie a knot.
Tie a pretty knot as I have done in the photo. Your first lateral tuning rope is finished.
At this point, your drum should look like the one at right. The ropes anchored at the bottom should be close and almost parallel to eachother until they reach the tuning rope. There, they should spread apart, forming a Y shape.
Now, we'll move on to the second lateral tuning rope. Start this one by anchoring it about 1/3 of the way from bottom of the drum. Run the rope over two adjacent vertical ropes that are spread far apart, not the ones drawn together.
Again, like above, wrap the lateral completely around the two verticals until it runs in its original direction.
Then, draw it a little snug, pulling the ropes together a bit.
As you did with the first rope, keep going around the drum, gathering the widely-spaced vertical ropes together.
Tie the two ends together, once you have wrapped all of the verticals on the drum.
As you did with the first rope, keep going around the drum, gathering the widely-spaced vertical ropes together.
Go around the drum tightening both the top and bottom lateral tuning ropes. It's best to tighten each one a few times, a little at a time. That will tighten the heads more evenly. The finished drum is at right.

Now, there are two ways to tighten the drum. One is to pull the lateral tuning ropes very tight, pulling the verticals as close to eachother as possible. The other is to pull the lateral tuning ropes apart from eachother, towards the top and bottom of the drum.

See "Tuning you Ikigala" below.

 


Tuning your Ikigala

Let us not forget that you will want to keep your drum tuned. They will steadily get lower in pitch as the heads stretch out, especially shortly after they are built. In fact, you will want to tighten them a couple of times as you break them in.

The easiest way to tighten an ikigala is by simply pulling the horizontal tuning ropes tighter. If they are already fully tight, try to pull them towards the closest head. They will porbably be too tight to do this, so it is easier to loosen the tuning ropes, pull them closer to their respective heads, then retighten them. The closer these ropes are to the ends of the drum, the tighter the heads will be.

You can go even farther by soaking the heads in water. You can use wet towels or throw the drum in a swimming pool. Then pull the ropes tight. Probably, you will have to do this at least twice before the heads are stretched out. The drying time will be the same as for the original construction, so you will need to tune your drum three or four days before playing it again. A more time-consuming, but more effective, way is to remove all of the ropes, and soaking the heads by submersion.

For a quick tightening (one or two day's drying), you can just wet the center of the head. When it dries, it will tighten up a bit.

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