Our cardboard (corrugated paper) dulcimer kit is just what you've been trying to find! All of the paper parts are cut out, and ready to glue. The fingerboard is made of a solid hardwood (typically hickory, ash, or walnut), and is slotted for nut, bridge, and frets, and also has holes pre-drilled to accomodate the machine heads. Our kits have a fingerboard with a 27" VSL (Vibrating String Length).
Detailed instructions are provided, and this kit should take you about two hours to build. You'll need the following tools: a small hammer (for tapping in the frets and anchor pins); a drill with #49 bit (for drilling the holes for the anchor pins and machine head screws); a small Phillips head screwdriver (for installing the machine head screws); a piece of sandpaper, either 120 grit or 220 grit (for fitting the nut and bridge pieces); a pair of wire cutters (for trimming the frets and cutting the strings to length); and a flat file (for finishing the ends of the frets). You'll also need to provide some white or yellow glue (for assembling the cardboard parts).
People ask us how our cardboard dulcimers sound. They are the best cardboard dulcimers we've ever heard. The Folkcraft cardboard dulcimers have a sweet mellow sound. They don't have the volume of a cherry or walnut dulcimer, though. If you want a loud instrument, choose something in solid wood.
