Re: Mallets: Yarn Wrapped or Crocheted?

[Nancy Kirkner]

Hi, Ellen, I wrote an article about mallets on www.solobells.com that
you may find helpful. It includes a table with the mix of mallets
used by a large community bell choir ringing on Malmarks, as well as
what I learned about mallets from a local percussionist.

Best -

Nancy Kirkner, Seattle
solobells.com

On Mar 6, 1:17 pm, Ellen Wilson <elnsi...@gmail.com> wrote:
> What are the pros and cons of Yarn wrapped mallets and Crocheted mallets
> heads?  I need to replace our current yarn wrapped mallets and would like
> input on the mallet choices of others.  Thanks for your help!

[Ellen Wilson]

Thank you Nancy.  This is a good article on mallets.  I'm still wondering what the differences are between yarn wrapped and crocheted, though.  A bell director friend of mine has the same question.  Do the crocheted head mallets last longer than yarn wrapped? Do they, in general, have a brighter and crisper sound than yarn wrapped?  Do people combine yarn wrapped sets with crocheted to even out the timbre?  Yarn wrapped on upper bells for a warmer sound, crocheted for battery and lower bells to make them a bit brighter - or vice versa - ?  Are there any other considerations that I haven't thought of to the reasons one would use yarn wrapped over crochet  - or the other way around?  Thanks!

[Nancy Kirkner]

Hi, Ellen, glad you liked the article. I'll answer what I can from my
own (mostly solo) experience, and hope that others with more
experience leading choirs will offer their perspective. If for some
reason no one else answers, you might call your local Malmark rep (or
the Malmark office) and ask their input. Let us know what you find
out.

- Do the crocheted head mallets last longer than yarn wrapped? No
experience with this. Mallet life is also a function of how thick the
yarn is in the first place, and how the mallets are cared for.
- Do people combine yarn wrapped sets with crocheted to even out the
timbre?  Yes
- Are there any other considerations that I haven't thought of to the
reasons one would use yarn wrapped over crochet or the other way
around?  Acoustics of the room; blending sound to get the effect you
want. The resulting size of the mallet head affects how precisely you
can target the fundamental on smaller bells. That can also happen
with large mallet cores and/or multiple yarn wraps, not just
crocheted. Often people will just order the mallets that their bell
manufacturer suggests, or use mallets included in a package deal.

Thoughts from others about the rest of Ellen's good questions? I'd
love to know too.

Best -

Nancy Kirkner
Seattle
www.solobells.com

[Heitz Handbells]

Well I was going to wait, but this is my experience as a ringer, director, and vendor.

- Do the crocheted head mallets last longer than yarn wrapped? Yes, often.  Of course that depends on who you have malleting.  Kids are a bit more aggressive despite excellent training and mallets often get "whacked" in the wrong places.  I've noticed that for wrapped mallets, the yarn can break or cut, especially in the lower battery area.

- Do people combine yarn wrapped sets with crocheted to even out the timbre? Yes  Definitely.  At my store, I have all three types of mallets for people to try out.  Now, I can't sell the Schullies, but people can try them and see what they like.  Many of the "professional" groups work for different sounds in different parts of their groups and may have different choices of mallets for different sounds.

- I personally don't like the sound of the crocheted in the lower battery.  I don't know why.  It's a quieter, duller sound (sorry) and the wrapped yarns sound sharper.  'Course my director prefers sharper sounds.  Our adult church group uses all three of the major mallets for different bells.

And yes, people use what the manufacturer suggests.  Sometimes they stay that way and sometimes they change.

 

Carol

 

Carol A. Scheel, Norm P. Heitz
Heitz Handbells and Music LLC
612-208-1741
1 (877 or 866) 426-3235
www.heitzhandbells.com

From: Nancy Kirkner <bell....@gmail.com>
To: Handbell-l <handb...@googlegroups.com>
Sent: Friday, March 8, 2013 10:06 AM
Subject: [HB-L] Re: Mallets: Yarn Wrapped or Crocheted?

http://www.solobells.com/

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[Marcia Payne WOOTEN]

I have only used the Malmark mallets, but one advantage I think for the crocheted heads, is that when a zealous ringer misses the mark and whacks the mallet on the edge and it splits wide open, you can crochet a new cover for the mallet. This has happened a couple of times and members of our "Chicks with Sticks" group (ladies of the church who knit or crochet prayer shawls) have come to the rescue. You cannot tell the difference between the original cover and the ones that they crochet - they are good!!! This has happened to the yellow (C4, D4) mallets and one of the dark blue (G3-B3) mallets. The trick is finding the correct weight of yarn to match what is on the original mallet.

 

P.S. This happened early on when our bells were new, and not lately, but I am getting ready to teach our elementary/middle school groups to use the mallets, so I'll have to be vigilant to make sure that the ringers don't get too enthusiastic. ;-)

 

mpw

On Wed, Mar 6, 2013 at 4:17 PM, Ellen Wilson <elns...@gmail.com> wrote:

What are the pros and cons of Yarn wrapped mallets and Crocheted mallets heads?  I need to replace our current yarn wrapped mallets and would like input on the mallet choices of others.  Thanks for your help!

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[Ken and Linda Lamb]

Can your crochet-ers give directions for crocheting the mallet heads?  And what weight of yarn to use? 
 
Thanks,
Linda Lamb
 

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Date: Fri, 8 Mar 2013 20:52:21 -0500
Subject: Re: [HB-L] Mallets: Yarn Wrapped or Crocheted?
From: mpwo...@gmail.com
To: handb...@googlegroups.com

[Marcia Payne WOOTEN]

I will check to see if someone can write out the instructions. I think that they just looked at it and did it  (like I said, they're good). As far as the weight, I took the old, unravelled cover to Walmart and matched the color and weight as best I could just using a standard polyester yarn. The trickier ones are the light blue and red because I think that they are a cotton yarn and the strand is thinner. You may have to visit a yarn shop for those types and sizes.

 

Project for Sunday morning - talk to Chicks with Sticks and get the pattern. :-)

mpw

[Ellen Wilson]

Thank you for the information....it's very helpful!

[Ellen Wilson]

We have a crochet/knitting groups at our church,too.  Great idea to use them to refurbish your mallets!! :-)  Good luck with your young ringers!!!

[Ellen Wilson]

Thanks for the extra info!

[Ellen Wilson]

I will look forward to seeing the pattern instructions, too.  I'm also wondering if hand crocheted covers could be made to replace worn out yarn wrapped heads? hmm.  Any thoughts?
-Ellen

[Marcia Payne WOOTEN]

Re: crocheted mallet covers. The crochet "guru-ettes" didn't have a written pattern and said that each mallet cover has to be crocheted to size, but here are the basics.

1. Chain stitch 3 or 4, and then stitch back into the chain to make a circle.

2. Then do regular  single crochet around and around adding in stitches as necessary to make the "cap".

3. Fit cap to mallet head, then start decreasing (dropping stitches) and finish off by pulling yarn through the base to tie it off.

 

I apologize for the "impreciseness" of the instructions, but the lady who crocheted the covers just looked at it and did it.  If you save the cover (or what's left of it) and show it to you crocheter, they should be able to copy it.

Hope this helps a little bit.

mpw

[Ken and Linda Lamb]

Thanks!  I'm the crocheter, and the directions make perfect sense.  I may have to try it soon.
 
Linda Lamb
 

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Date: Tue, 12 Mar 2013 21:25:12 -0400