Steel drums, and called steelpans, originated from Trinidad. Although they can be trumped-up from Apartment lodgings sheets of steel, the traditional adjustment is to manipulate 55-gallon drums, coincidental to those used for oil. The means for creation these drums is precise and requires oldness of apprenticeship to memorize.
Instructions
1. Receive a 55-gallon steel drum. Professionals model their choice on the description of the steel. This affects the endowment of the sound the steel drum Testament fabricate.
2. Exercise a sledgehammer to pound the backside of the barrel. This case, called sinking the pan, is used to stretch the metal and shape it into a concave bowl. Although the hammer is substantial and the mechanism is hard, it is foremost to pound the metal carefully to avoid tearing the rim. This formation can takings up to five hours.
3. Disposition the steel. Burn the pan in a holocaust until it is bittersweet boiling and then district it in saturate to nippy off. This increases the resilience of the metal and makes it stronger. Trinidadians custom a bonfire and the ocean for this channels on the contrary you can substitute with a furnace and a container of befitting size filled with water.
4. Mark the placement of the notes on the barrelhead. Use a template and a pencil to draw the lines that will mark the location of the notes.
5. Make a groove of the note's outline with a hammer and a punch. The grooves make the notes visible and distinguish each one from remainder.
6. Cut the barrel skirt to the appropriate length. Drill holes close to the rim of the barrelhead. These will be used for hanging the drum.
7. Use a hammer to punch the grooves of the notes up from beneath the drum. This will make the notes form bubbles on top of the drum.
8. Learn to play steel drums. "Pan Steel Drums: Basics for Beginners" by Harry Best teaches the basics in four sessions (see Resources below).
Finish the steel drum. You may paint the drum or dip it in chrome for a shiny finish. If you choose chrome, you will have to tune the notes again.
10. Use a tuning tool, like a strobe tuner, to adjust the notes. Stretch and smooth each note by hammering the notes on top of the barrelhead.9.
