Author: Doug

What I Did During My Summer Vacation

~ Doug ~ 2 Comments

Just a quick note to say I do indeed plan to keep this blog going, but I haven’t been up to anything dulcimer-related to share these past few months.

My old, familiar back issues slowed me down for a few months, but I was back in the shop working on a few dulcimers and began work on a prototype for a new model during May and early June. Then, while at a concert at an outdoor amphitheater, I took a tumble down some concrete steps. I don’t recommend you try this, especially the part where you come to a sudden stop at the end.

All things considered, I was remarkably lucky. About a third of my face had road rash, and I was very beat up, but there were no internal head or abdominal injuries.

I did, however, dislocate two fingers on my left hand and sprained the other fingers on both hands. My right hand is fine now, though my left hand will need more time to heal. Fortunately, my left hand is still able to play the dulcimer; it just isn’t very comfortable at the moment, but there is constant improvement as healing progresses, and I feel optimistic that all will be well. I also start hand therapy this week, and I look forward to that.

This experience has also shown me how much I depend on my non-dominant hand while handling tools, etc. Working at the bench requires more hand strength than playing the dulcimer, and my left hand isn’t quite there yet. This has meant taking a break from working on dulcimers, though I do hope to start easing back into working at the bench during the next few weeks. I miss it!

A poster of a workman showing his hands with the caption, "Your ten best tools—take care of them." No extras in stock."


Since starting this blog in 2017, I have posted almost entirely about music, lutherie, and related topics, but I may branch out a bit and share thoughts about things some readers may also find of interest.

Mainly, I just wanted folks who follow this blog to know I haven’t fallen off the planet.

I hope you are doing as well as possible, especially during the strange times we are living in.

The Lightbulb Goes On

~ Doug ~ 3 Comments
A dulcimer peghead ready to be glued to the dulcimer.

I’ve been using three tapered pegs as both a mechanical joint and decorative feature on dulcimer pegheads for a few years. The pegs alone would hold the peghead on very well, but the peghead is also fully glued to the support beneath it.

Until today, I glued on the peghead and added the tapered pegs once the glue had fully set. Due to the angles involved, this is one of the glue-ups that can get a little messy while holding the peghead in place with one hand and cleaning up glue squeeze-out with the other and avoiding letting the peghead slide out of place. I have gotten pretty good at peghead wrangling, but today, I had an “Aha!” moment.

I drilled 1/16″ holes where the pegs will go and used two 1/16″ bits as pins to hold the peghead in place, and the peghead happily stays exactly where it needs to be. Cleaning up glue is simple again, birds are singing in the trees, and all is well in my happy place.

I had hoped to be posting more regularly on this blog, and I still hope to do so. I began this blog in 2007, and sometimes I wonder if it has run its course. The primary obstacle to posting more is not having anything to say. That statement will amuse people who know me, but it does happen!

But I’m not giving up on this blog, and I will be posting as inspiration comes. I don’t want to create “content” just for the sake of creating content.

In the meantime, I often post photographs of what I’m working on via Instagram if you want to take a peek.

And thanks for continuing to follow this blog. Some of you have been with it since the beginning!

Fun With Bench Hooks!

~ Doug

After using bench hooks for many years, I recently made some using tapered shims as the stops. The idea was to make bench hooks that could be used for both planing and shooting very thin, narrow stock, as well as stock up to a half inch or so thick.

I’m very happy with how they work.

A bench hook for planing thin wood.

It takes me about 5 minutes to make one of these. I use whatever I have on hand for the base and a shim from the hardware store (I use those shims all the time!) as the stop, a few dowels, and glue.

The business side of the shim gets planed true and is square to the edge. I also plane off the saw marks on the gluing surface of the wedge.

I glued a piece of hardwood on the inside of the stop on the bench hook on the left to see if that extends its life. Time will tell.
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I regularly post about the thrills and chills of being a dulcimer maker and player on Instagram

What’s On The Bench 11/11/2025

~ Doug ~ 2 Comments
A prototype dulcimer in progress.

On the bench is a prototype dulcimer waiting for a few days of scraping, filing, sanding, and detailing.

It looks very much like the dulcimers I have been making for several years, but there are some differences in both the design and methods of construction.

On this dulcimer, the soundboard is significantly thinner than I usually go with Adirondack spruce, and the bracing is different to accommodate this.

The fingerboard is built up in laminations to keep it stable. I have laminated the fingerboards using 2 pieces stacked, and if using ebony or another exotic wood for a fingerboard, a third layer. On this dulcimer, as on the last several dulcimers I have made, I’ve also laminated side pieces to the fingerboard. To my eye, it looks nicer, and it also adds stiffness and stability without adding any extra weight. The difference on this dulcimer is the fingerboard is less tall, which makes it weigh less, and my thought is it will provide stronger transmission of the vibration of the strings through the fretboard into the soundboard.

The back has a center reinforcement strip and two light cross braces rather than the 3 or more cross braces I usually use, and it is built to have more flex than usual. As per usual, I plane an arch in the back braces and force the back flat while it gets glued on to add strength.

I’ve gone back to a smaller peghead, similar to the size I used in the past, but the block the peghead is mounted to is more massive. I like the way it looks. The spacing of the tuning machines is asymmetric, which is what I typically do, but I modified the design so drilling a hole and adding another tuner to turn a 3-string into a 4-string is possible.

There are some other things. I’ve moved the zero fret slightly to adjust the intonation at the first fret because, due to the compromises of equal temperament, there are certain chords using the first fret that never sound quite right to my ear. The hitch pins for the strings will go on top of the fingerboard behind the bridge, like I used to do years ago. I think it adds a bit of tension, slight though it may be, on the soundboard that adds some power but without the shorter sustain that can happen with a floating tail.

My ability to work has been more limited lately; my back issues missed me and have come to visit, and the hope is to avoid another surgery. With this comes fatigue, and on some days when my body feels up to working, my mind is sometimes a little too foggy to do accurate work with sharp tools. I have learned, repeatedly, that when I decide to work on those days, I don’t do my best work and end up doing it over, so it is best to take a break.

I’m still coming to terms with these limitations, as I have for quite a few years. Generally, I’m okay with it, and I find that though I make fewer dulcimers than I once did, it is easier to enjoy the process of making the ones I do get to make!

It has been a long time since I have built one dulcimer at a time, and I enjoy working this way. I have usually started three dulcimers at once, gotten the woodworking done, and then gone back to working on each dulcimer individually. Once this prototype is completed, I might try working on two dulcimers rather than three.

I’m no longer taking advance orders, but I do have a waiting list, so if you are interested in having one of my dulcimers, please feel free to contact me about getting on the list. As dulcimers become available, I’ll contact whoever is first on the list, and if they aren’t interested, then the second person, etc.

I do this work because I love to do it, and I plan to do it for as long as I can!



News From The Workbench

~ Doug
A dulcimer on the workbench.

There hasn’t been much news from the workbench lately, but I hope there will be more soon!

After completing three dulcimers a few months ago, I had to take a break from working in the shop on a regular basis due to some lower back issues that missed me and decided to come for a visit. I’ve been working with excellent physical therapists, and I am improving, so I am gently and cautiously getting back to the fun and adventure of making dulcimers!

In the photo is a dulcimer that came back for some repair a few weeks ago, and it was the perfect project to get my hands back in the game, requiring light work, much of which could be done seated.

I did work as I could here and there, so I started work on a few fretboards that are now ready for slotting and carving the strum hollow, joined some backs and soundboards and bent some sides, so I have most of the wood prepared for the next three or four dulcimers. I should be making some headway with the new batch fairly soon. How much and how often I can work is still unpredictable, but I’m thankful for as much as I can do.

As I am no longer taking custom orders, I’m trying to find the best way to make various options available, so I plan to build a variety of variations on the theme, and I can always add a few extra frets on request, set them up for different tunings, etc.

I am keeping a list of people who are interested in having one of my dulcimers, and as they become available, I will contact people in the order they asked to be on the list and give them the first look to see if I have made anything they would like before posting them for sale. If you would like to be on the list, please contact me.

That’s about it. After a long, very hot and humid day, there is now thunder, rain and a cool breeze. I am thankful for the small things, which are often much larger than they appear

Book Recommendation – “Tage Frid Teaches Woodworking”

~ Doug

Tage Frid Teaches Woodworking

I’m working on the design for a new model of dulcimer, and I am also looking at my tools, mostly hand tools, but also, a few basic and rather funky woodworking machines, and figuring out how to approach building the new model efficiently.

“Tage Frid Teaches Woodworking” is a book I often turn to for ideas and inspiration. Mr. Frid was an old-school woodworker. He taught his students how to accomplish most tasks with hand tools and/or the power tools available at the time so they can do whatever work was necessary with whatever tools were at hand.

The book was written long enough ago for him to recommend purchasing a table saw that can use a 10″ blade rather than an 8″ blade if possible. There’s no fluff about buying fancy, expensive gizmos, because with knowledge, skill, and ingenuity, one can do complex work with relatively simple tooling.

Bending wood and finishing are covered, again, using accessible materials and methods.

In a section on sharpening, he mentioned what he calls “a Belgian clay stone.” One day, while reading the book, I wondered what the hell a Belgian clay stone was, and after some time on the Internet, I learned he was referring to Belgian coticules, and this ignited my interest in learning about the various natural sharpening stones people around the world have used for ages, and in many places, still use daily.

The book covers everything one needs to know to turn rough wood into fine, finished objects in a small shop or a larger production facility.

A beginning woodworker or luthier might find there is a lot of information presented a bit too quickly to absorb, but there is just about everything you will need to know about woodworking tools and methods to get the job done between the covers.

There are various editions of the book, and I believe at this time all are out of print, but it is fairly easy to find them using a used book search aggregator.

The QuaranTune Summer Virtual Dulcimer Festival – June 5th – 8th, 2025

~ Doug

Doug Berch Workshops During The QuaranTune Summer Virtual Dulcimer Festival

I’ve been invited to teach 4 Workshops during the online QuaranTune Summer Virtual Dulcimer Festival.

This virtual festival began during the COVID-19 Pandemic as a way for dulcimer instructors and students to connect during a time when many people who promote and produce festivals made the responsible and life-saving decision to cancel in-person events. The festival offers workshops with instructors from around the world, including places as exotic and mysterious as Michigan!

I’ll be offering four workshops geared to several levels of ability.

As usual for me, I’ll be focusing on sharing skills and techniques that help mountain dulcimer players find their own way to greater musical expression.

You can see what classes are being offered by both myself and all the other instructors, as well as information about the festival and how to register for classes, by following this link to the QuaranTune Virtual Dulcimer Festival Site.

I hope to see some of you there!