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Didj Dude's El Cheap-O
Didgeridoo It Your Self Instructions

Build your own El Cheap-O Didgeridoo

Materials
What's the best size tube?
Length is somewhat important.
Mouth Piece.
How big should my mouth piece hole be?

What's it made from?

The majority of my current experience in building didges is with non wood materials. The materials section will reflect this. As my experience grows, so will this page.
The main body of the didge is a tube. The "real" ones are hollowed out eucalyptus tree branches. However… many types of tubes of reasonable dimensions and material can be used. The most readily available material tends to be the plastic plastic pipe used in plumbing. There are three maim types of plastic pipe that readily available. ABS (Acrylonitryle-Butadine-Styrene), PVC (poly vinyl chloride) and CPVC (chlorinated poly vinyl chloride) pipe. ABS is not rated for house-hold water supply plumbing. Both PVC and CPVC are rated for house-hold water supply use. There has been much discussion on the use OF these materials, particulary on the health safety issues. The sticking point seems to be the rating for water supply usage. The main reason for the rating that I could find has to do with burst strength of the pipe, not any toxicity of the material. ABS loses strength under heat and pressure faster then PVC or CPVC. PVC is rated for cold water use. CPVC is PVC with added chlorides and is rated for hot water usage. PVC comes in at least three wall thicknesses or schedules. Schedule 80 is thick wall, schedule 40 is medium wall and CLASS 120 is thin wall.

Available Plastic Pipe Material
Material	Color	Usability	Approx. cost for 4'
ABS	Black	good	$2
PCV 120	White	good	$2
PVC 40	White	fair	$2
PVC 80	Grey	poor	$3
CPVC	Cream	good	$6

Bamboo is another usable material. Its shape lends it self to didges quite readily. It is hard to find usable pieces though. Since there are many types of bamboo, not just any piece will do. The bamboo has to be dried with some care and precautions taken to prevent it from splitting. It has to have a good, uniform wall thickness as well. I have only tried to make two bamboo didges myself and have had less then usable results. I will keep trying and post the results as they happen. Wood is the native material for didges and still makes the best instruments. There are various ways to make a wood didge. The French bread technique is to split the blank length wise, remove the desired amount of material, then glue the pieces back together. making a strip didge is like making a wooden barrel. One more method is to bore a hole the full length of the blank.

What's the best size tube?

Bigger is not better. The larger the tube, the lower the lip vibration to make proper sound and the greater the difficulty to articulate the sound. A 2" dia.. by 60" long tube takes a lot of wind. Many of the subtleties of sound are lost to the beginning player. But it does make a good fog horn. For 2" diameter use a 2" to 1 ½" female/female reducer coupling can be used for the mouth end.

Length is somewhat important.

The Didge is an instrument and as such can be tuned. Tuning on a straight tube didge is acomplished by changing the tube length, tube bore or both. Simple physics formulas at work.

NOTE: These equations are for a tube with a uniform inside diameter.

Designing for length L = { V / 4(F) } - .6(r)

Designing for frequency (pitch) f = V / [ 4 * { L+.6(r) } ] or roughly f = V / (4*L)

Where V = velocity of sound=13543.3 in./s
L = length of the tube in inches
r = radius of the tube in inches
f = frequency of the pitch

The L + 0.6(r) term yields the effective length of the tube.
For a thin walled tube like a didge, the standing wave node at the bell end actually lies outside the tube at a distance of approximately .6(r).

Pitch for given length of uniform diameter tube
To find the length for a given inside diameter use the correction factors below.

Pitch or Key Frequency(Hz) Length (in)

A 55 61.56

A# 58.3 58.08

B 61.7 54.88

C 65.4 51.77

C# 69.3 48.86

D 73.4 46.13

D# 77.8 43.52

E 82.4 41.09

F 87.3 38.78

F# 92.5 36.60

G 97.99 34.55

G# 103.82 32.61

Correction factors for various diameter bores.
Subtract the tube bore correction factor from the tube length listed above.

2" .60

1 1/2" .45"

1 1/4" .38"

NOTE: The mouthpiece can add to the lenth of the didge. On a larger diameter bore using a wax cone type mouthpiece the wax can add up to 1/2". This additional length should be taken into account when calculating the tube length.

I've checked these equations by making didges and playing into a both an analog and a digital chromatic tuner.
The results are pretty good. I've found these dimensions to work well.
1 ½" diameter PVC 40.25" long, f=13543.3/{4(40+[.6*.75])} = 82.2hz or E
1 ½" diameter PVC 49" long. (my personal fave) f =13543.3 / {4 (49+[.6 * .75])} = 69.9hz or C#
Note that this is the overall length of the didge INCLUDING the mouth piece which can add up to 1/2" in length.

Mouth Piece.

You need a mouth piece. Use bees wax if you can. Avoid peroleum based products. In the US, bees wax tends to be a golden brown in color. Bees wax can be found at most arts and crafts shops, candle stores and some hardware stores. In Australia there is a type of bees wax that is dark brown in color. It comes from small black bees called "sugarbag bees". This sugarbag wax tends to be scarce. Don't try to get it because it is "better" or to be cooler then your friends. That's being exploitative of a limited resource. For a increased cool factor use proplulus wax. It is dark brown, and said to have antiseptic properties. Get it from a honey shop.
There are a number of ways to make a mouth piece.

1. Get a hockey puck sized piece from the hardware store. They have it for waxing wood. Costs about $2 American. Put the wax disk in a pan of water and add warm tap water. DO NOT over heat. The idea is to only want to soften the wax, not melt it. When the wax is warm take it out and use your thumbs to press a hole through the center. That would the center of the big flat face, not the center of the narrow side. The narrow side is much harder to do and is only recommended for people who consider them selves quite advanced. Press the newly formed wax donut onto the mouth end of the tube. Make sure the wax seals on the inside and outside of the tube. This is one of the easiest and least messy method I know of for beginners.

2. Get some bees wax and put it in a 1 lb coffee can. Place the coffee can in a pan of hot (140o F) water a'la double boiler. Let the wax melt. Dip the end of the tube into the wax and lift out. Count to 5 to let the wax dry and do it again. It helps to rotate the tube after lifting it from the wax. This minimizes the lumps formed by drips. Be prepared to spend 10 to 15 min. dipping and drying. If done right almost no further shaping is necessary. If shaping is necessary do it while the wax is still warm. This is the method I use with great success.

3. Place some bees wax into a plastic bag and put the bag into hot water. When the wax softens, take out a walnut sized lump and roll it between the palms of your hand forming it into a long tootsie roll. Make the roll about 1/2"in diameter and long enough to make a ring on the mouth end of the didge. Gently press the still warm wax onto the didge making sure it seals on both the inside and the outside of the tube. Form a smooth round cap.

4. You can reshape a honeycomb bees wax candle, (hee hee) , but there may be (snicker) a few problems getting (sorry,…) it smooth.(no really just ignore me and go ahead.) It'll work out (sooner or later). Oh yah, don't forget to remove the wick.

Whichever method you choose, make sure the wax seals well onto the inside and outside of the tube. Get rid of all bumps and dips. The mouth piece should fit YOUR mouth. To test it, press the open end against something soft like a pillow and blow gently into the didge. Note where the leaks from the mouth seal and fix it.

Use a hair blow drier to warm the wax if you need to reshape or repair it once it is in place. (Thanks to Paul McCabe for e-mailing this tip from Norway)

Just as an aside, there are didge players who do shape the end of the tube into a mouth piece so no wax is necessary. No wax is necessary for the owner that is. Other players can't use the didge, which is pretty much the point of making a waxless mouth piece.

How big should my mouth piece hole be?

That depends on the size of your mouth and lips.... Seriously. Try about a 1.5" diameter to start with. You'll have to experiment to get the correct shape for your own personal use. Beginners tend to do well with a smaller hole and open it up as they progress. The fuller the lips the bigger the hole is my rule of thumb.

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