How To Build A Miniature Drum

 

Hi everyone.  One of my other passions besides woodworking is designing and selling punch needle patterns. I just finished this Revolutionary Soldier and I needed to put him on some sort of base. I really wanted him to be standing on a drum. I searched online for antique drum pictures and figured in my mind how I would make one using my Proxxon Tools.  I think it turned out awesome!  Follow along with me and I'll show you how I made it :-)

Tools & Supplies

   Proxxon Micro Bandsaw

   Proxxon Delta Sander

   Proxxon Rotary Tool

   Scrap 2" x  6" pine

   Thin strip of balsa wood

   Tiny Tacks

   One 2 1/2" wood screw

   Embroidery Floss  Gold color

   Plaid Paint  Navy, Red, Beige

   ModPodge

   Printed Eagle

First I figured out how large I wanted the finished drum to be and drew my pattern on the scrap 2x6" pine.  Using the Micro Bandsaw I cut out 2 circles. 

Next I glued the two circles together and let dry.  After they were dry I drilled a 2 1/2" screw in the bottom just to insure they wouldn't come apart.

Using the Delta sander I sanded around the outside making it smooth and seamless.

Next using the Micro bandsaw I cut two 1/2" strips of the thin balsa wood.  I measured around the drum base to figure out how long they needed to be.  These strips will be the bands  at the top and bottom of the drum.

Now comes the fun part!  I looked up on the internet how to bend wood.  I put a skillet on my stove with water in it. Brought the water to a boil and laid  the two wood strips across.  I let them steam maybe 10 minutes then took them off and bent them around a mug.  The wood was very pliable.  I held it in place with rubber bands and let dry.

After the strips were dry they held their shape and I was able to tack them on the drum base.  I made sure to leave half of the band stick up above and below the base.

 

Next I painted the drum.  the body I painted navy. The bands I painted red and I put a tiny line of cream just under the bands. The top I painted cream.  Let dry.  After it was dry I dry brushed a little black and mustard paint here and there to make it look old.

I found a picture of a vintage eagle on Pinterest. I printed it out and carefully cut out two of them.  One for the back and one for the front. I applied the to the drum using Modpodge.  After dry I coated the whole drum with Modpodge.

Lastly I drilled 10 tiny holes around the bands.  I then fed my embroidery floss through the holes going top to bottom and tied it off in the back. 

The drum is complete but now I had to drill two holes in the top so my soldier could be attached.  I used two shish kebab sticks and placed them in the holes. I then ran each of the sticks up the legs of my soldier to make him stand.  

This was a fun project and I learned a lot!  Thanks for following along with me.... Colleen :-)