Kit - Kovac Children's Experimental Harp - The Basic Pine Harp, 26 Strings (No Wood)

Build your own inexpensive, John Kovac-designed 26-string folk harp, the Basic Pine Harp, from our complete plans and kit set. Includes full-sized cut-out templates with instructions & specifications for your harp! WOOD NOT INCLUDED in this BASIC Kit! (But it is easy to obtain from your local home & hardware retailer or lumber company.) (Adult supervision is recommended since sharp saws and various paints or wood stains will be used to create the harp.) _____________________________________________________________________________________________ This original Kovac model Pine Harp is a Paraguayan-inspired, lightweight, and compact 26-string folk harp for DIY enthusiasts on a budget who want to get into harping inexpensively and sooner rather than later.  The Pine Harp is where you provide the wood while we provide the complete plans, instructions, & specifications, hardware & strings. The harp is based on using widely available, ordinary, or higher-quality pine.  Be sure there are no holes or knots that might fall out later & weaken the critical structure of the harp. This is a relatively fast and very easy project to get a harp student, whether a beginning adult or child, up and running, playing the harp with very little upfront expense or investment into uncertain, future musicians. (Pine harps do not have the resonance typical of folk harps due to the fact there is no sound box.) The Pine Harp's strings are a bit lighter in string tension & closer spacing.  The harp's scale starts at its low C and ends about 3.5 Octaves above it (G). Plans with Full-size templates are included. We include a supplemental instructional DVD to assist in assembly using your own provided choice of wood. The DVD-formatted disc also has a section on tuning and playing by ear. The DVD is not necessary to build your harp. The Pine Harp is simple to put together & can be assembled in about a day or so using basic hand tools. Stringing & tuning will take several hours more. Surface finishing could take a day or two longer, depending on your chosen finish & method of application. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ See John Kovac's classic Pine Harp Demo Video #1 on YouTube. Here is Demo Video #2. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ The plan set includes: Complete Kit Assembly Instructions with Full-Sized Templates Supplemental Instructional DVD Parts include: 26 Nylon Monofilament Strings (offered in red Cs/blue Fs only) 26 String Beads (for knots) 26 String Tuning Machines, Chrome, White Knobs All Necessary Component Hardware per plans 2 Rubber Feet with Screws 1 String Winder The customer is to provide all wood, finishes, glues, non-standard hardware, assembly, etc. Electronic Note e-Tuners are highly recommended and are available at an optional cost.  See our Harp Resources pages for further resources _____________________________________________________________________________________________  Samples of the plans & included kit materials:     The hardware below may show optional parts, etc.    Optional Tuner Shown Below:   Note: These plans are offered in their as-is, original & historical format. Some easy, linear extrapolation of the templates may be required at a few points. See our notice here. Please note our shipping policy for all kits:  S/H Policy _____________________________________________________________________________________________ NOTE: Yes, it is OK to add your own sound-box to the back of the harp's soundboard, where the strings attach. The larger the box, the louder the harp will sound; it will resonate more, and the bass will become deeper. Only, be sure to include something to take it off or other so you can get access to the strings. Email us for suggestions. You can also upgrade the quality of the wood (but, not suggested without using a sound-box). Recognized tonewoods are better if you plan to upgrade from pine or white wood (not hardwoods). Using more stable tonewoods than pine will give the harp a much better sound and durability for many more years. However, many have used the default pine successfully. Properly built, the harp will last a good long while. Or, if not now, you can take the harp apart in the future and upgrade to higher quality, more durable tonewoods later, reusing its existing strings & hardware. As a builder, I'd recommend you consider using paint &/or a clear surface finish (like spray lacquer or a brushed Polycrylic [stronger], for example) for this type of suggested softwood (pine). This is because pine will very often NOT take stains, etc., even if using wood pre-stain preparations, no matter how well sanded, etc. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ Go to Harp Resources Page If you make a mistake on your harp, even if not caused by us, please notify us right away, and we will see how we can help you to complete your harp. You never know how we might be able to help you, which is our goal: for you to be successful in your harp building & playing! We won't abandon you in your harp-building process after the purchase, either. Let's work together!