Idleness Is The Devil's Workshop

My guns are off to my grands, son. All power tools seem to be missing and I have a considerable amount of empty time in which to do nothing

Casting about for a project I came up with the idea of recreating a Bullroarer, an Autralian Aborigine Noisemaker that I thought might be of interest to a specific kid in the Hallowe'en Season.
I have been playing with a variety of grit sand papers and a wooden lathe and have discovered what extended fussing and gradually lowering the abrasive nature of the papers and then craping with a small razor blade how you can turn the wood into feeling like velvet.
On my Kit built T/C rifle I now realize that, being anxious to get out to range I tended to pretty much skip any extra effort on the gun stock which I now realize went into service a lot heavier and rougher than was necessary for a good-looking rifle..

I didn't like the rather yellow piece of wood that came with the kit and stained it a nice walnut color but I could have reduced a lot of its weight with some care though vigorous sanding.

Well it's too late now, but I fiddled about with my lath of I think Southern yellow pine and have turned it into a beautiful piece of wood and a rather simple Bullroarer.

Dutch

I had one of those as a boy and had great fun with it. Makes a very loud roar as it spins about. I’m sure he’ll get a kick out of it!!

Used to make them as a young boy. I don't remember where the idea came from, but I assumed Africa, since lots of African Americans around GA.

I wish you could post a picture of what you built. There was an article in the Backwoodsman magazine a few years ago about a man who used a 5 gallon bucket with a rosened string ran through the bottom and it "roared" when you ran your fingers down the string.

He used it to play jokes on his neighbors to make them think there was a strange animal in the woods.

A Bullroarer is a thin, flat board with a string or cord tied at one end of it.

They are usually tapered so the end opposite the string gradually comes to a point.
Also, the top and bottom surfaces are shaped somewhat like an airplane wing with sharp leading and trailing edges.

While holding the string or cord in one hand, the Bullroarer is swung around and around at increasing/decreasing speeds.

This swinging causes the Bullroarer to spin rapidly creating a roaring sound which varies in pitch and loudness.

It was originally used by some primitive people to send messages over long distances.

Here's a link to a video showing one in action.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ODGE2f7gLQ

And, another one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KP4znMBWGxs

I haven't made one of those in years. In fact I had forgotten all about them. Thanks Dutch. :hatsoff:

They were also used by some Native American tribes like the Navaho and Apache.

I just use a leaf blower to irritate my neighbors....

So the American aborigine uses a leak blower to make noise heard in irritated distant ears.

A bullroarer is the only thing a shut in old man can make with only sandpaper as a wood working tool.

I ought one on ebay for a template and my effort was equally noisy but neither as loud as the one my memory tells me I made in the early 40's.
My memory lies a bit, I have come to believe about 70year old events and things.
I'm going to see if a bigger, wider bull roarer is louder or just heavier.

Tsk

Dutch

I grew up playing with them as a kid that my dad would make when we went camping. We had great fun running though the woods making spooky sounds!

We call them a "ruun ruun"

Thanks Zonie.

Dutch I grew up in the St. Louis area and come home for visits at times. I lived on the Illinois side, not far from Fort de Charters.

I've been to Fort De Charteris for one of their rendezvous a time or two.
As I drove up the first time and saw all the good golks in their varied costumes and primitive shelter the thought went through my head,"My God, homeless people and they're armed.

Mostly I was greatly impressed on how all these people got along with each other and cooperated to make the event a happy one

If you are ever in the more central St. Louis area, give me a call and maybe a visit..

I no longer have wheels so have same movability as the Plymouth Rock

I have few (none) local black powder people but have had visitors from varios parts of the country and one who drive down from Quebec.

One of the nicer thing of the rifle range was the people you met there

Dutch

Yup, Smokey, I can tell you are local to the area near Prairie du Rocher. Locals refer to the old French fort as Fort Charters. Most maps of the period have the Fort named Fort Charters. As a British Grenadier, I refer to the Fort as Fort Cavendish as it was renamed by Captain Stirling of the 42nd. Fort Cavendish did not stick and for the colonials and Americans that came to the area, the name Charters seemed more fitting to the English tongue.

Smokey, I hope to see you at Fort de Chartres some time in the future.

Enjoy your new flint rifle and keep using your percussion rifles. All forms of making white smoke from black powder are a great pass time.

Smokey,
I made a narrow Roarer out of a lathe. I also purchased two to use as templates. For some reason, while they all work. mine seems to work best but that is not at all as loud as the one in my faulty memory..


When you are out in the parking lot spinnig as hard as you can, passersby appear to hesitate and look like they are expecting men in white coats.

Imay have to find something else to fill my time.

Duttch

Dutch, my sister lives in the central part of the city. Next time I am near I’ll message you, I’d love to visit! I’m sure you will have great luck with your roarer. The one I had was purchased from the gift shop at Cahokia Mounds, and was exceptionally entertaining! Your grandson will love it.

Grenadier1758, I hope to see you there, too! I actually went for the first time ever a couple of years ago. I purchased the most delightful bag and horn from a maker there, first name of “Doug” as I recall but cannot remember his last name. I absolutely loved the few hours I stayed there and have been pining to return, it is minutes from where I grew up in Randolph county and where my parents live still.

Uncle Sam has displaced me from such interesting locations for muzzle loading culture! I currently live in Las Vegas, and am headed to the Middle East for a deployment very soon.

Take care, all. How I miss the shores of the mighty Mississippi!

Smokry, The bull roarer was intended for the son of the single mom you saved me from a major misdiagnoses that was going to put me in a looney bin for the rest of my days.

My grandson who is about 29 is interested in good sized sail boats.

Is Grenadier in this area (St. Louis)?
I am available most of the time with exceptions of Mon-Wed & Fri day times when I'm hooked to the life preserving Dialysis machine

Dutch Schoultz

Yes, Dutch, I am in the St. Louis area.

I have invited you to come to activities hosted by my Gun Club, the J. P. Gemmer Muzzle Loading Gun Club. We can make arrangements for you to have transportation to come to one of our matches or other social gatherings. Our members would like to meet you. Sunday, October 7 is the date of our next match. Do you want a ride?

GRENADIER,
INDEED YOU HAVE MADE SEVERAL OFFERS TO FETCH ME TO YOUR MEETINGS.
I USED TO LECTURE TO CLASSES OF 165 OR MORE AT WASHINGTON UNIV. BUT I ACTUALLY DO BETTER WITH INDIVIDUALS AND QUITE SMALL GROUPS. \
SINCE I LOST MY WHEELS LAST DECEMBER I HAVE BECOME A BIT SHY ABOUT TRAVELING WHICH I CAN;T EXPLAIN.

THE MOST INTERESTING MEET i ever attended was a well below zero event in a paste January about 15 or 20 years ago in 7 degree temperature. The fellowship and cooperation of that group was educational for me and my son who set fire to himself standing way too close to a fire.I had no idea a ML fired round ball would creat a round hole in cast iron frying pan suspended about 50 yards down range.

Although I knew how cold it was I didn't really feel that cold while in the middle of the activities
I have thought of setting up in a local bar to hear confessions of hot soapy water cleaning, wad use and insistence on only striped ticking for patches,but am afraid no one would show up..

I am far more boring in person than in print.

The Jefferson Memorial on the north central side of Forest Park used to have a large room devoted to someone's enormous rifle collection which contained, as far as I could see, only one muzzleloader set aside in a special glass case.
The ML was made by mr. Gemmer pin the olden days and was a wonder to see creating lust to hold.
I wonder if that collection still exists since all guns have been declared "Icky" by the powers that be. Wfat most impressed me about the rifle was rear aperture sights match with a globe front sight.

I assume all members of the Gemmer club have visited that shrine and genuflected in respect for a real work of art.

Dutch

We still talk about that particularly cold Rendezvous. Standing by the fire steam would roil off the fire side of our clothes and icicles would form on the back.

We have seen othercHawken and Gemmer rifles. I don't recall that Gemmer ride at the Missouri History Museum.

Maybe I'll have to schedule a visit to try to talk you into coming to our range.

Great to see that you are doing so well.

My guns are off to my grandson. All power tools seem to be missing and I have a considerable amount of empty time in which to do nothing

Casting about for a project I came up with the idea of recreating a Bullroarer, an Autralian Aborigine Noisemaker that I thought might be of interest to a specific kid in the Hallowe'en Season.
I have been playing with a variety of grit sand papers and a wooden lathe and have discovered what extended fussing and gradually lowering the abrasive nature of the papers and then craping with a small razor blade how you can turn the wood into feeling like velvet.
On my Kit built T/C rifle I now realize that, being anxious to get out to range I tended to pretty much skip any extra effort on the gun stock which I now realize went into service a lot heavier and rougher than was necessary for a good-looking rifle..

I didn't like the rather yellow piece of wood that came with the kit and stained it a nice walnut color but I could have reduced a lot of its weight with some care though vigorous sanding.

Well it's too late now, but I fiddled about with my lath of I think Southern yellow pine and have turned it into a beautiful piece of wood and a rather simple Bullroarer.

Dutch[/QUOTE]