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Notebook

How to make
Castanets

July 1984

1

Legend

Castanets are an ancient musical instrument, often used for street
musicians in bands and orchestras. In Spain as a general rule are
used in folk dances: Jotas, Malagueñas, Sevillanas... The Castanets in
some Spaniard regions are known as sticks.

To make them, can be used light wood as ilex (quercus ilex), almond
(prunus dulcis), oak (quercus robur), beech (fagus sylvatica), or dark
woods as ebony (diospyros crassiflora), african blackwood (dalbergia
melanoxylon) and cocobolo (dalbergia retusa).

The tools required are: a coping saw, two rasps, a file, two chisels,
four gouges, two drill bits, two clamps, a drill and sandpaper.

Once made and sanded, the next step is the polished, often matt,
this is achieved with beeswax and turpentine in double boiler.

With this preparation Castanets are waxed, next day burnish to rub
the piece it will highlight the natural color of wood.

Then the two halves are joined with a cord. According taste, ends
can be completed, with tassels and ribbons of color.

2

Process steps:

1st step
Draw a template of the model and size we want to do. Picture 1
represents the model and the natural size of the castanets for adults.
It’s usually made with thin cardboard.

2nd step
Getting the proper lumber.

3

3rd step
After selecting the timber we must do a piece with the following
measures. (Picture 2)

4th step
Trace the centre of the piece, and use the template to draw on both
sides and the ends the Castanets, to be able to hold the piece with
the clamps at the opposite end. (Picture3)

4

5th step
Using half-round gouges, proceed to empty the Castanets, then you
must sand them, taking advantage that the piece is clamped.
(Picture 4)

6th step
After put some card boards to avoid damage the piece, hold it in the
workbench vise. Use the coping saw to cut all the Castanets, then
smooth it with a rasp, ending the task with a fine file. (Picture 5)

5

7th step
Make the centre of the holes with a punch, then use the drill and a
2,5 mm drill bit, to make two holes that serve as a guide. Finally
make the definitive holes with 4.5 mm drill bit.

8th step
Mark sidelines, they serve as reference for the depth of sawing.
Sidelines and real measures in Picture 6.

6

9th step
Hold the piece in the workbench, leaving free the part to cut, until
reaching the depth of 6 mm. With a 32 half-round gouge and a
mallet, devastate from smaller at greater depth, from the apex of
the mulch to the bottom of saw cut or line of 6mm, this recess is
smoothed with a extra fine rasp and the with a fine file. (Picture 7)

7

10th step
Use a ruler to redial the lines we have done away with by making
the recess, this is the central line and the parallel to the saw cut.
After, that use the template to draw the Castanets, trying to look
perfect the vertex of the triangle of mulch. Then, to avoid deforming
the sides of the triangle of mulch, mark them with the 30 mm
chisel. It will make a slit with the V4 gouge, on the outside of the
mulch, a millimeter of the strokes, to be able go lowering on the
mulch trying to avoid damaging the triangle, this operation (of mark
with the chisel the triangle) will serve as may be necessary, try to do
it with delicacy to not breaking the Castanets, already second is
more comfortable to use 20 mm chisel.
The operations to make the triangle are usually 3 or 4, we will use
the 20 mm chisel. The back of the mulch is rounded with a 32
half-round gouge. We end this task with the help of a rasp and a
fine file. (Picture 8)

11th step
With a rasp round of 8 mm trench 1 ½ mm deep along the line
parallel to the saw cut, then with the 22 curved gouge be devastate
from the apex of the triangle of Mulch toward the mulch’s neck of
the Castanets , end this operation with a medium-fine file. (Picture
9)

8

Neck

12th step
Completed the steps above, is given back to the piece to hold them
onto the workbench, the working area of Castanets must stay off
bench , with a fine half-round file, must lower the lateral to obtain
more sound. Once ended sand it with 6 number sandpaper. (Picture
10)

9

13th step
Then mark a line on the two holes of the Castanets, brush top of
them and it is parallel to another path that will be one millimeter
beyond the end of the Castanets, on this last stroke use the coping
saw to cut 4 mm deep, then with the help of a 10 mm chisel
proceed to downgrade to top from the stroke out there on the two
holes to the bottom of the cut of 4 mm of depth, then smooth the
recess with the file, it fine to slightly rounded angle that was us
participate together with the two holes-after drawing the Castanets
again on labour completed, before releasing the piece, with the
mountain range of DIY separates the Castanets of the rest of the
wood, must continue the last court that we have made to separate
completely the Castanets. (Picture 11)

14th step
Mount the piece or Castanets we have separated from the rest of the
wood in the Bank screw, having released in advance said screw a few
caps or squadrons made of about 2 mm thick cardboard to avoid

10

damaging the piece, also we will put between the mulch and spine of
the Castanets and the squadron of cardboard a piece of 3 mm thick
Board by 70 mm wide and 30 mm height, so that do the subject to
do so equally and the piece is not check with which would be
damaged. The position of subject of the piece is put the mulch and
spine of the Castanets to the operator that is going to work. Once
subject, with the mountain range of DIY is cut approximately more
strokes and triangle-shaped the central curve cut once we end up
with the fine rasp average cane and finally with the fine file of
average cane around the contour of the Castanets left visible
traces. Then it is removed from the screw of the Castanets Bank to
put in place a wood of 23 cm long by 5 cm. wide by 1 inch thick,
which stands out the Bank about 10 cm screw that help us support
to provide with the operation of the finish of the Castanets, take the
piece with his left hand support on the wood in the position to keep
up and in front of the operator the mulch and spine of the
Castanets, to subsequently with a 8 mm round rasp of make a slit or
channel of minor to major from the centre of the piece, starting
from her Sheepdog holes until you reach the edge of the opposite side
then continuing with the thin half-round file rounding the edges of
the ears or head of the Castanets of the same face, and once
completed this operation we turn sand completely the Castanets
with number 6 sandpaper. (Picture 12)

11

15th step
Once finished the previous phase, we will give color and brightness to
the Castanets. If we want them in dark or black color, we'll apply
them walnut stain, this is achieved by mixing walnut stain with
water until the desired tone, then apply beeswax, we will obtain
gloss finish rubbing them with a piece of towel or with a grass
scrubber, seeing as it highlights the natural color of wood.

Method for the preparation of the stain, if you want to colorize:
 In a glass bowl put water, gradually adding walnut stain
to achieve the desired tone.

Formula for wax:
 3 parts of beeswax
 5 parts of pure turpentine.
 Dissolve the beeswax in turpentine, heating in double
boiler.

13

16th step

As a final stage, come together every two halves with the cord, the
ends can be completed according to taste, with tassels or color full
ribbons.
For the complicated picture of the knot, I refrain from doing now
and give more details. The cord is especially for Castanets and they
exist in some colors, the most common is black, the approximate
diameter of the size for an adult is 4 mm. See Annex 2. To find out
the names of the parts making up the Castanets, see Annex 1.

I will end these notes, hoping to be useful in a timely manner.

The author and writer
José Torregrosa Moltó

July 1984

14

Annex 1

How I call the parts accord my way of the parts that make up the
Castanets. (Picture 13)

Head, ears, neck, mulch, spine, edge, recess, holes or eyes, hollow,
mouth, anvil.

15

Annex 2

Special slipknot for Castanets.
For a pair of Castanets, cut two pieces of cord 42 cm long each,
then pass one of the ends across the four holes of the Castanets,
leaving at one of the ends of the cord, 14 cm of excess, at this end
at a distance of 7 cm, we do the slipknot with the other end of the
cord. (Picture 14)

16

Note 1 7/8/1985

Important note

Today I saw a TV report about "The Castanets of Lucero Tena", she
took a Briefcase full of Castanets, indispensable instrument for her
profession of dancer.

She said that they were made of Ebony, African Black-wood and
Cocobolo, she also had some IVORY Castanets.

17

Note 2 9/20/1987

Important note

Today, I spoke with a gentleman at the Sanctuary of Our Lady of
Hope (Calasparra, Murcia), referring to make Castanets type Region
of Murcia, which I saw and I had in my hands, and he told me that
the best are made of wood from plum and cherry, he also tended to
pine wood, but these tended to crack, he said that the best are sold
in Murcia for 3,500 pesetas.

18

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