A simple solution is to convert an existing old guitar into a Sarod guitar. In other words, the best of both worlds. The idea is not new. I did it back in 2007 (read article here) but it got very quiet about that project. I don’t know why. Now there is a new attempt..:

Frederik VdB brought me his Morgan guitar on which he decided not to play anymore. One of the reasons was a solid crack in the soundboard. That had to be repaired first.

Then all the frets had to be removed and the empty slots filled with homemade wood dust paste. The surface was scraped and sanded firmly and finely. All pores were filled and it became smooth, almost like a mirror.

In place of the guitar’s E & A strings will be 2 cikari strings. These are tuned high (D4 & D5) and need a shorter scale. Therefore, by analogy with a sitar, I have integrated cikari pins on the fretboard. One at half spacing and one at 3/4th spacing. A small eye is mounted behind the pin at half distance that pulls the string down enough so that it stays well on the pin.

Because the cikari strings are always struck together, they are also shorter together. This is easy to see from the bridge. The D4 string makes a small bend. 😉

Sarod Guitar specifications & tuning chart:

Scale = 65cm

1. steel wire 0.36mm / N°5 tuned to MA (= G 3)
2. bronze wire 0.46mm / N°26 tuned to SA (= D 3)
3. bronze wire 0.75mm / N° 22 tuned to lower PA (= A 2)
4. nickel flatwound string 1,27mm / tuned to lower SA (= D 2)
5. steel wire 0.23mm / N° 0 tuned to SA (= D 4)
6. steel wire 0.21mm / N° 00 tuned to higher SA (= D 5)

Read here about another Sarod Guitar modification (2007).

The most notable results are 7 sitars and 1 surbahar where he replaced the traditional gourd and tabli with a lute-style resonator and soundboard. He also explored other materials and used Elforyn, ebony, spruce and maple, among others. He experimented with leftovers of exotic hardwoods to make new bridges.

But his soul and work now lives on among us thanks to the magnificent work of Matyas Wolter. He has created a wonderful website on the work of our dear Dieter Zarnitz. It has become a beautiful tribute to his work, excellently documented and solidly provided with masterful sound clips and photos. A must see !!!

Visit the website here: https://matyasitar.de/dieter-zarnitz-instruments/

A person encounters all sorts of things in life, and so too in the sitar world. I knew that there are children’s sitars (mini sitar or baby sitar) that can also be played, but I had never seen such a gem before. What would you call it? A tiny toy sitar? But it seems more then only a toy designed to me, which you can then actually play on (if you want to). Calling it a “Tom Thumb sitar” sounds good, I guess…. 😉

Anyway, the little instrument did need some cleaning and repair work before anything could be done with it. The bridge was missing and a few tuning pegs were broken. Other than that, it wasn’t too bad. So, I made a new bridge out of a tarav bridge and found some old matching tarav kuntis.

Tom Thumb has 10 pardas, 5 taravs and possibly up to 7 main strings. The scale is only 36cms, the body is 55cms long and the tabli 14cms wide. The neck is only 5.4cms wide. The ‘tumba’ is probably all wood, with a good bit of plastering to get it nice and round. Otherwise complete with simple decoration on celluloid, just like its big brothers & sisters!

Tom Thumb sitar string set / tuning chart (example):

1. steel wire 0,28mm / N°2 tuned to A#4
2. bronze wire 0,37mm / N°28 tuned to C#3
3. bronze wire 0,46mm / N°26 tuned to G#3
4. steel wire 0,23mm / N°0  tuned to G#4
5. steel wire 0,19mm / N°000 tuned to C#5
6. steel wire 0,19mm / N°000 tuned to C#6
Taravs: steel wire 0,19mm / N°000

She has undergone a full restoration and is ready to please another sitar player. She is also very suitable for the committed beginner.

Now for sale on this site (click here).

I made a new set of narkas, this time from the wood of an old broomstick (aspen wood). They are done in different colours and a new SiTAR FAcToRY logo is burnt on them. My dear neighbour girl Felien Swillen is very handy with a small wood burner. She burnt the new logo into the wood with razor-sharp precision. The result is impressive.

The mouth of the narka is inlaid with recycled African buffalo leather. This way, the kuntis are not damaged. The outside is finished with shellac polish.

Read a report on making a stagghorn narka here.

Here then is a photo report of the work carried out:

More neck bend repair can be found here.

The jack connector will be built a bit further up the tumba to achieve more comfortable accessibility.

Because the tumba is rather thin and weak, I make a rounded wooden support that is glued firmly to the inside of the tumba. This way, the connection can take a bit of rough handling….

Then the two transducers are glued to the tabli on the inside. I provide a small piece of white cotton soaked in white wood glue to secure the wiring.
Once this assembly is successful, the various tumba parts are glued until the puzzle is complete. However, one small piece is missing. The hole is filled with a mixture of wood dust, plaster and wood glue.

This is followed by further finishing of the tumba with colour and the whole instrument is given another coat of finishing shellac polish.

The pardas are polished and re-tied, kuntis are cleaned and treated with chalk, new strings put on and jawari done… and there we go.

Read here an article about mounting K&K Big Twin internal external

Read here an article about mounting K&K Pure 12-String internal

First, I drilled a hole in the taardaan and then drilled through into the tumba accordingly. Then a small hole was drilled in the tabli to route the wires to the connector.

Finally, the two transducers were glued in place, the retaining wires routed through the holes and soldered to the connector, the taardaan put back in place and the strings put back on. Done!

Here is the result. Joël is very happy with it!

Sound sample: 

Play Slimbucker™ Jazz guitar pickup on AER Compact 60 amp

Specifications of the Slimbucker™ Jazz guitar pickup:

Alnico bar magnet / DC = 8K / humbucker made by Kent Armstrong.

Size :   0,95cm (.375”) thick – 6,8cm (2.68”) long – 2,8cm (1.10”) wide.

Strings made by Pyramid:

Silver plated steel Baj & Pancham .012 (0,30mm)
Silver plated steel Cikari & Taravs .009 (0,23mm)
Nickel flatwound Jora .018 (0,46mm)
Nickel flatwound Laraj .022 (0,56mm)
Nickel flatwound Kharaj .030 (0,76mm)