ACOUSTIC/ ELECTRONIC KAZOO

If you can hum, you can play a Kazoo. I built this one to fit into a harmonica holder so I could play along with my guitar. (Great for those Bob Dylan harmonica solos if you can’t play harmonica) Electrifying it was just a bonus. It can be plugged into a guitar amp and has its own volume control.

Box: 3mm Baltic birch plywood, 3/8”x 3/8” pine strip, Wood glue, All purpose glue, Food safe finishing oil, Wax paper/ Aluminum foil/ Parchment paper / Glossy gift wrap (or other non- porous resonator material) 2 round head 1/2”wood screws

Electronics: 2 peizo transducers, 1 mini 250K potentiometer, 1 female 1/8” audio socket, 1- 6’-1/8” audio cable-male to male, 1- 1/8”to 1/4” male adapter plug, resin core solder, knob to fit potentiometer

Tools: Fine tooth handsaw (band saw preferred) 1.5” Forstner bit, various small drill bits, sandpaper, pencil, square, drill (drill press preferred) soldering iron, utility knife, scissors.

Layout and cut 2 pieces of plywood 4” X 5”

Cut and glue the pine strip around the perimeter of one piece. Use wood glue. This is the bottom.

Find the centre of the second plywood piece and drill it with the 1.5” Forstner bit. This is the top.

Cut a piece of plywood 2” X 3”. Find its centre and drill it with the 1.5” Forstner bit. This is the resonator cap.

Put the resonator cap over the top so the holes line up and drill 2 small (1/16”) pilot holes on either side

Drill a hole in the centre of one 4” end of the bottom to fit the female socket.

Drill a hole (7/32”) on each side of the socket hole.

Drill about 4 (7/32”) holes in a line in the centre of the other 4” end of the bottom. Use the utility knife and sandpaper to widen these holes into a slot. This is the end you will hum into.

Drill a hole in the bottom near the socket hole for the potentiometer.

Sand everything. Put the lid on temporarily and sand off the sharp edges top and bottom of the humming end.

Glue the socket and transducers in place with all purpose glue. Install the potentiometer with its included nut. Before final assembly, apply the food safe finish according to instructions. This is optional but it makes it look good and ensures it is safe for mouth contact. Solder connections according to the schematic diagram. When done, plug in the audio cable and adapter. Plug into your guitar amplifier and tap the transducers and box. If you hear the sounds you’ve done it right. Test the volume control as well. Now you are ready to close it up.

NOTE: Guitar amps are monaural. If you are using a stereo socket as I did, wire the 2 negative leads together and it will perform as monaural.

Glue the top in place. Install the knob. When dry, cut a piece of the resonator material slightly larger than the resonator cap. Screw the cap in place with the wood screws keeping the resonator material tight. Trim the excess material with the utility knife. Hum into it to see if it works. (Don’t be afraid to experiment with other resonator materials, eg: parchment paper, cigarette paper, etc. I found aluminum foil worked well for me but heavy duty glossy gift wrap gave the best sound of all.) Plug into your amp and have fun.