How thin should it be to accommodate the belt hook?

Thanks.

Hi Steve S

I had some made over here in the UK.
1/2 inch thick, which is tight enough with a little wiggle room. I added a strip of foam in the belt hooks inner gap as a little cushion which helps when in use.

Dont forget the "Lapdog", its rather nice.

Also "D Bro" has a nice very usable and cheap DIY design, the plans should still be around this site somewhere.

The people that did Tony Levins "Funky Fingers" are expandinghandsmusic.com do one called a
CS-LapBar. This ones also great value.

I hope that helps!

Cheers from the UK

Steve R

Take the pdf plan from D-bro. Give it to local carpenter.
10 min. And your done.

https://stickist.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=8204

I went with "big box store" poplar plank, double screws, and polyurethane glue. It's solid, and 1/2" is a good thickness. As a DIY project you can't beat the price, even if you buy all of the materials outright. May not be as adjustable as the Lapdog, or (depending upon your construction skills) as polished as the Expanding Hands model, but for those of us starting out the end product definitely will be good-enough to get going.

Heh. I have a complete woodworking shop in the basement. No need to out-source this!!

Great - Thanks!



That does look nice, but for now, I don't yet have my own stick so the one I'm making is for use with one I'm being loaned for the Stick Workshop next month.



Yes, in fact the drawing I made was based on theirs. Looks like I guessed right on that dimension!

A few years ago, before I got a Lap Dawg, I made one using a 1" thick (+/-) piece of board, tracing the "wings": of a wooden clothes hanger. In the middle I ended up drilling/routing a channel in which the belt hook went. This meant that the instrument tilted at the angle the belt hook was at - which could work for some folks, maybe not others.
Good luck!

I assume this design addresses that angle issue. Admittedly a slavish copy, and I didn't have any fancy spalted wood in the offcut bin, but it should do the job.

First coat of finish drying...

Nice, that's really lovely!

Well, can't claim credit for the design - I "borrowed" it from the lap bar that Expanding Hands Music sells. Theirs are prettier, as they use some nicer wood. I just grabbed a couple of random pieces of maple and cherry from the bin of offcuts in the shop.