Subject: chime metal?

From: [email-masked] (Hans Spencer)
Date: Wed, 10 May 1995 13:49:43 -0500

I am a composer (non-metalcrafter) looking for a source for metal for
making musical chimes.  Some chimes are made with solid cylinders of metal
while others are made with hollow tubes.  After doing some research in
libraries, music stores, and bookstores, I haven't found anything.  Does
anyone have any ideas?

-Hans Spencer
[email-masked]

---

From: [email-masked] (Mark L'E. Connery)
Date: 10 May 1995 16:21:03 -0700

> libraries, music stores, and bookstores, I haven't found anything.  Does

  Hans:
  Last year, I had the chance, (be still my heart) to re-plumb, and 
up-grade the elderly house I live in.  And as part of the job was going 
to be less than pleasant, for a change, I decided to let a "professional" 
do it, (well, the nasty part!)
  In his truck were a number of bits and pieces of copper pipe, ranging 
>from  the usual 1/2" or 3/4" household water supply, to some 4" to 5" 
commercial water supply.  
  Most of the pieces were less than a foot long, and have made a 
delightful sounding wind chime.
  It might be a bit expensive, but try going to the largest commercial 
plumber in your area.

---

From: [email-masked] (Steven Rezsutek)
Date: 12 May 1995 14:23:48 GMT

[email-masked] (Mark Kinsler ) writes:

   [...] making some pretty decent-sounding tubulars out of 
   steel EMT electrical conduit.  

I passed this on to Hans earlier via email, but I figured I'd post as
well.  I've made a couple of wind chimes, mostly as "experiments", out
of old bicycle frame tubes.  The better sounding ones were the seamless
"cro-mo" variety [probably 4130 or similar].  The dept. store bike tubes,
a.k.a. "hi-ten" [1020?], didn't have as clear or sweet a tone.

I don't know how these stack up in absoulte terms compared to materials
others have mentioned. 

Steve

-- 
............usenet is neither true nor false...it's television.............
  Steven Rezsutek                       [email-masked]
  Nyma / GSFC Code 735.2                             Vox: +1 301 286 0897
  NASA Goddard Space Flight Center                    Greenbelt MD  20771

---

From: [email-masked] (Daryl Bender)
Date: 10 May 1995 20:31:09 GMT

Most of the metal chimes I've seen are solid or hollow aluminum. I don't
think your metal type is too important HOWEVER your LENGTH must be such
that the metal resonates when struck (being a composer you most likely know
this). I even have a 2" brass tube at home that just happen to be cut off
at the right length for this to happen.

In article <[email-masked]>, [email-masked] (Hans

-- 
Working but not speaking for BNR

---

From: [email-masked] (Mark Anderson)
Date: 12 May 1995 18:57:04 GMT

: Most of the metal chimes I've seen are solid or hollow aluminum. I don't
: think your metal type is too important HOWEVER your LENGTH must be such
: that the metal resonates when struck (being a composer you most likely know
: this). I even have a 2" brass tube at home that just happen to be cut off
: at the right length for this to happen.

Err, sorry but everything reasonates when struck.  A 1" long 1/4-20 bolt
will resonate when dropped (it goes ping ;-)).  The lenght does
determine the frequency (pitch) of resonance, but so does the diameter,
mass per unit length, what its made of, how much you had to drink with
lunch...

If you hold any tube at the midpoint, it theoretically should resonate
when struck.  Remember, when people say theoretically, they mean not
really.

mark anderson
standard disclaimers.

---

From: [email-masked] (ErnieLeim)
Date: 10 May 1995 23:12:39 -0400

Chime Metal?
Chimes can be made out of any resonant metal . 
Steel , brass, bronze, aluminum, and titanium are all good candidates.
Phosphor bronze has a really nice tone , hence it's use in French horns.
Titanium has a very high and persistent ring that is very distinctive.
Cor-Ten steel is used by a few chime companies back east since you don't
have to paint it.
Brass is used for most tubular doorbells and bronze is used for large
churchbells.
The metal with the most lasting ring that I've ever heard is Invar Steel
it is used for laboratory guage bars since it doesn't change dimension if
you change the temp., but it also rings like nothing else.
Pure copper is a bit soft but their are chimes made out of copper tubing.
hope this helps.

@---------------------------------------------------------@
                    Ernie Leimkuhler                                      

                  Stagesmith Productions                                  
                                          
                 Custom Metal Fabrication                                 
               
*    ABANA   SCA     AWS    USITT   IATSE local 15, 488   *
                        Renton, WA                                        
   
*"Rich gifts wax poor when givers prove unkind" the bard  *
@---------------------------------------------------------@

---

From: [email-masked] (Mark Kinsler )
Date: Thu, 11 May 1995 01:21:52 GMT

>libraries, music stores, and bookstores, I haven't found anything.  Does

I'd experiment some.  Somebody around here in Athens, Wind-Chime Capital 
of the Free World, is making some pretty decent-sounding tubulars out of 
steel EMT electrical conduit.  This comes in sizes from 1/2" to at least 
2" and it's cheap.  I don't think that orchestral chimes use anything 
that's much more sophisticated--they're brass-plated so they look cool.  
  Solid chimes use high-carbon steel.  When I'm under the truck and 
exceedingly bored I sometimes use wrenches for chimes: when properly 
suspended they ring for a good minute.  You might consider buying a set 
of Chinese or Indian combination wrenches from your local flea market and 
using the steel shanks thereof.  Please post your discoveries.

                                      M Kinsler

---

From: [email-masked] (Daryl Bender)
Date: 12 May 1995 21:26:53 GMT

In article <[email-masked]>, [email-masked] (Mark

> when struck.  Remember, when people say theoretically, they mean not

With tubes you're trying to build a standing air wave inside, not any
length will do that. I don't have the formula handy but its also different
for open tubes and closed tubes. As for solids well...you make your wind
chime out of 1/4-20 bolts and I'll make mine out of "tuned bars" and we'll
have a sound-off. 8^)

Daryl

---

From: [email-masked] (William )
Date: 13 May 1995 06:27:46 GMT

>From  a previous posting:

From: [email-masked] (L. Lee)
Newsgroups: rec.crafts.misc,rec.crafts.metalworking
Subject: Wind chime formula summary
Date: 8 Dec 94 16:34:33

Here is a useful formula someone emailed me:

------------------------------------
I found the following formulas in Olson "Music, Physics and
Engineering", for a bar free at both ends. These are relevant to wind
chimes that sound by being knocked by a wind driven beater of some
kind. The frequency of vibration then depends mainly on the stiffness
for the material and not on the air column inside the tube

f=1.133 pi K v / (l^2)

K=sqrt(a^2 + ai^2) / 2 {radius of gyration of a hollow circular
cylinder}

Here pi=3.14159..., f is frequency (in Hz), l is length (in cm) and v
is the velocity of sound in the material of the tube wall (eg Aluminium is
5.1E5 cm/s). Note that K is different for different cross-sections (I think it is
K=a/2 for a solid circular bar). a and ai are the outer and inner radius of
the tube (in cm). I have made several of these chimes (as Christmas
presents! which is why I know this off by heart) and the above formulas appear
to be quite accurate. I guess some tuning of the tubes will be necessary if
you need to be spot on frequency, so cut them overlength.

Also note that the node points of the fundamental occur 0.2242 l away
>from  the ends of the tube; this is the best point to hang them from. The
harmonics of a tube like this are NOT simply related and the frequencies are NOT
scaled like "halving the length doubles the frequency" as the above formulas show.
Have fun.
----------------------------

The full reference to the Olson book is:

 AUTHOR:  Olson, Harry Ferdinand, 1902- 
 TITLE:   Music, physics and engineering [by] Harry F. Olson.
 EDITION: 2d ed. 
 IMPRINT: New York, Dover Publications [1967] 
 PHYSICAL FEATURES: xi, 460 p. illus., music. 22 cm. 
 NOTES:   "This Dover edition is a revised and enlarged version of the
work first published in 1952 under the title Musical engineering." 
 OTHER AUTHORS, ETC:  Olson, Harry Ferdinand, #d 1902- 
 OTHER TITLES:  Musical engineering. 
 SUBJECTS: Music -- Acoustics and physics. * Musical instruments. 
 LC CARD: 66-28730/MN/r83

---

From: [email-masked] (Barry Workman)
Date: Tue, 23 May 1995 05:32:31 GMT

[email-masked] (Ken Knaell) writes:

>In rec.crafts.metalworking, [email-masked] (ErnieLeim) writes:
>Sorry for the chop but our poster ...   you know -
>Sterling silver is also very resonant - tap a sterling spoon or fork
>on the table some time.  Some organ pipes are made out of dead soft
>tin however.
>ken
>bethesda, md

Organ pipes, however, are not struck to produce a tone.  Just as
we used to use a blade of grass to act as a reed, so it is with
tin and organ pipes.  The pipes BTW are also made from brass,
bronze, steel, and wood.  Each material gives a quality of tone
that the organ builder is looking for.  Each has its own place
in the choirs and ranks.  The tin pipes are usually the smallest.

-- 
    - Barry Workman