Show me your dinner gong/bell/triangle

[ausfire]

Had a request for a dinner triangle thing. Chose some 8mm stainless for the first try but the resonance was less than I expected. Looks nice, but a bit tinny. A larger one made from a higher tensile steel about 12mm had a pretty loud ring.

Anyway, got to thinking … who made triangles the boss of dinner bells? Why don't you see other shapes? (Maybe triangles are the easiest to make.) And what steel is the best? Tried a few different steels - mild, stainless, wrought, but found that by far the best was spring steel from an old car coil spring. Rather than straighten it out and make a triangle, the curls themselves make a very strident bell.

The picture shows a couple of my experimental 'gongs' and my testing set up. The heavy coil spring stock had the most satisfactory resonance. These are just test ones - obviously they could be enhanced with scrolls, twists etc.

I would really like to see others' designs for dinner triangles/gongs/bells, whatever you like to call them. And what other factors have you found that affect resonance? Whether the steel is quenched to a brittleness, or allowed to normalise, the length of the vibrating 'arms', thickness of metal, etc. The method of hanging is important too. A light twine or fine leather strip works well but chains don't.

 

[pnut]

Make sure the arms are different lengths so when you run the clapper around the inside each arm makes a slightly different ring

Pnut

[ausfire]

But doesn't the whole piece vibrate to make the sound, rather than each arm independently? Something to try though. Thanks.

 

[pnut]

Every one I've looked at the arms were all different lengths.  I haven't checked out a large number  of them but I've seen about ten so it seems like they were made that way intentionally. The only reason I could come up with for it was so it would make a distinct ring on each arm. Hopefully someone else will chime in because it wouldn't be the first time I have been mistaken. Oh yeah I like the different shapes you've used. Something different is always welcome and I agree , who did make the triangle the boss of dinner bell shapes? 

Pnut

 

Edited January 4, 2020 by pnut

[Mr Moose]

Ausfire. The 3 different lengths are like playing a cord on a guitar.  While the whole thing does vibrate,  the different lengths causes a different harmonic.  

 As for the shape, I would think it is a case of function before form. A flat "bell" takes up very little space.  

[CrazyGoatLady]

I've read about making the arms different lengths for different tones. I bent mine at equal lengths. It'll wake up the dead and that was what was wanted. I've seen them shaped into ovals, round and even heart shaped. The triangle just seems traditional to me, because that's what I always picture hanging up at a farmstead or ranch. But I think they can be made however you want to. I think the only limit should be your imagination as long at it does what it's intended for and that's to ring. As far as quenching, I couldn't tell any difference. 

[dickb]

Made from an eighteen inch jack hammer bit . Not too fancy, but you can hear it a block and a half away.

[CrazyGoatLady]

Sounds successful to me 

[Kevin Olson]

3.5 foot x 1 inch tent stake. The kind that are used on Big tents. I wish I would have heated and quench it for a sharper sound but I did not and it sounds very good anyway. Rail spike hanger and the clapper is an inner tierod from a rack and pinion.     https://youtu.be/pt2Uv3oGxT0

[Irondragon Forge ClayWorks]

I think the triangle became boss because of the circular motion of the bar/clapper ringing as fast or slow as needed. In the olden days the triangle was used for more than signaling dinner, depending upon how fast the ring was. As an example to signal a fire or danger different speeds of ringing. Of course I may have just made that up.

[BillyBones]

I think the same, the circular motion was easier to use. 

Any way, yall inspired me so today i made a dinner bell and here it is 

3/8 round A36, not real loud but rings nicely. 

[CrazyGoatLady]

I bet your right Irondragon. 

Nice one Billy. I like how you put the loop on the bottom corner. Maybe just the stock size on not being as loud. I use 1/2". 

[ausfire]

Thank you all for the pictures and comments. I think the 1/2" stock seems the best, and the higher tensile, the better. I'm inspired to make a whopper out of a torsion bar.

[pnut]

I think that running the clapper in a circle is correct. That and a triangle is the simplest shape you can ring like that. Three bends and you're done. 

Pnut

 

[Hans Richter]

A very nice collection of noise makers. My compliments to all makers and thanks again for the inspiration to Ausfire.
I myself have never made a triangle so far. But this one is on my wish list like so many other things. In attachment only pictures of the Bells that I have made so far. To start with the dinner bell of 2 inch tube that I make on demos but also use as a give awway. One of these bells is used by Lisa to call me out of the workshop from the back door when it's dinner time.
An oxygen gas cylinder was used as a bell in the sculpture 'Ypres 17/18' and it is intended that the clapper be gently struck 700,000 times for each fallen soldier there (now happening in a technical school where the sculpture is exhibited).
I made horse shoe bells for the Steampunk 'Firefighter lamps'. Here I had to make a lot of effort to make it sound. The material turned out to be too soft after being slowly cooled down to get a pure sound out of it. Through the reheating (red heat) of bell and clapper, and the quenching in oil, I was able to remedy this in a little.
After inspiration from our IFI brother PSA, now and then also working on wind chimes. These usually arise from thick-walled CO2 fire extinguishers and scrap that is available. In this case, conveyor chains, punching caps, ball bearings, insulators, etc.

Have a nice sunday all, Cheers, Hans

[Daswulf]

Aus, theres an idea, with the coil spring. Ever drop one? The ring good.

The chisel bit would be a good dinger. 

Hans, lots of nice work there.

I made this heart shaped dinner bell for my mom years ago. I'm up for a sunday dinner so I figured I'd get a picture while I'm here. It is functional but she just has it hanging in the kitchen by the door with some other stuff. 

 

[BillyBones]

CGL, thanks. All the dinner bells i have ever seen has the ring in a bottom corner, i just thought that is how it should be. 

Hans, very nice.

Das, also very nice. Dinner with mom, how can ya go wrong, unless of course she makes biscuits like Elley May.  

[CrazyGoatLady]

BillyBones, hmm you're right. I like that you can hang your clapper on it there. I made mine to slide on the bottom bar and hang from there. Excuse my malfunction! 

And Das, that's a nice shape on yours. Like it a lot

[arkie]

A dinner bell should be shaped like a bell, no?

 

[CrazyGoatLady]

Clever! I like it

[Daswulf]

Billy, my moms cooking is always something not to miss. Nice dinner bell as well. I will say I usually just hang the dinger from a bottom flat and have the loop and opening at the top. 

I like the bell shaped dinner bell Arkie. 

Aus, a big one from tortion bar would be a beast.

[KYCATS]

Das love the heart.Here's the only one I've made. 1/2 mild. 

[ThomasPowers]

I have the old cst iron dinner bell from my Grandfather's farm.  I was going to mount it at the backdoor to the house so my wife can call me out of the shop; but these days...so no I plan to mount it in the shop and run a cord so shecan ring it remotely.

I have a bunchy of bells from welding cylinders and even have made sets from the valve covers---which have sold pretty well, each "brand" has a different sound and folks pick the one they like best.