PVC Recorder

Always wanted to make your own recorder? me too. check out this tasty musical instrument.
steps 1-7 = photo instructable
step 8 = video instructable

+The PVC Recorder uses 3/4" diameter, 1/16" wall PVC. Pipe length is variable. A foot length is a good place to start.

+ about an inch of 7/8" or 15/16" dowel rod.

+ a saw, a drill, a file, tinsnips.

cut a small length of pvc, about 1" long. Then use the snips and cut once along the length of pipe.

cut a pice of dowel rod the same length as the pvc-jaws (piece 1)

with the longer piece of pvc, snip out a ~ .25" x 1.25" rectangle out of and end of the pipe. The length of the cut should be the length of the wood stopper + ~.25".

flatten out any hanging edges with a file.

put the woodstopper inside the end of the long pvc tube, on the side with the gap.

put the pvc-jaws over the end of the pvc with the woodstopper. Push the woodstopper and pvc-jaws around so that a proper gap is in place.

Blow into the recorder. It should sound like a recorder.



The recorder might not work on the first toot. If so, mess with the placement of the wood-stopper and pvc jaw on the long pipe - The air hole size is crucial for a working wind instrument. tinker and test!

Also, use a file to smooth (don't "round") the edges of the wood stopper and pvc. Smoother surfaces make for better air flow over the surfaces.

If the woodstopper is moving around too much inside the pvc tube, stick some duct tape on the stopper to widen the stopper.

in my experience, tinkering just to get sound shouldn't take more than a few minutes.

drill some holes in the long pvc pipe to add notes to the pvc recorder. You can do alot of reading and measuring and get western notes, or you can drill haphazardly and get cool stuff.