Campana: why is it nearly always made of steel ?

Forum fully dedicated to the instrument

Campana: why is it nearly always made of steel ?

Postby Beatnik07 » Mon Jul 20, 2020 11:21 am

Looking recently at a timbales catalogue, I saw that one could get them with a shell made of steel, stainless steel, bronze, brass, even aluminum.

But then as far as I know, bongo cowbells ( and generally cowbells) seem to be almost always made of steel. The only difference being the finish (black paint, clear coat, chrome plating, etc.).

I was wondering: is steel required in the cowbell manufacturing process ?
Or is it that the mechanical strength of steel is required to sustain the blows of the beater ?
Or is it that steel's musical tone, resonance, timbre are just perfectly fitting for cowbells and salsa music cowbells ?

I know that for centuries church bells, carillons (and occasionally even the bells for grazing animals !), have been made of copper alloys (bronze, brass), rather than the cheaper steel. So it would seem that copper alloys would or might offer some acoustical advantages as far as musical cowbells.
User avatar
Beatnik07
 
Posts: 166
Joined: Sat Nov 16, 2019 9:07 am
Location: Paris, France

Re: Campana: why is it nearly always made of steel ?

Postby Chtimulato » Mon Jul 20, 2020 7:31 pm

Maybe tradition ? The Cuban campanas (cowbells) were usually made out of car fenders, hence steel.

And maybe resistance / solidity too ? Or out of price reasons. Picking up an old car spare part is cheaper than building a cowbell out of bronze, brass or copper.
User avatar
Chtimulato
 
Posts: 529
Joined: Thu Oct 15, 2015 8:54 pm
Location: Heights of France

Re: Campana: why is it nearly always made of steel ?

Postby Beatnik07 » Fri Jul 24, 2020 1:44 pm

After some thinking and reading, and since the construction of a cowbell relies heavily on welding, I believe that the answer to my OP question lies in the easiness to weld steel by TIG welding, MIG welding, or even spot welding. All these techniques are well suited to industrial production (of any scale) and produce a mechanically strong and durable weld.

On the other hand brass or bronze "welding" is more "soldiering" than welding. In fact "brazing" brass might be a better name than welding brass, and in general requires a flux (joint filler).
From my reading, it appears that such a jointed brass or bronze would produce a "weld" area somewhat brittle/fragile, and have a far lower mechanical strength than a steel weld, especially considering the percussive assault resulting from using a beater on the cowbell.

So, basically, even though one could envision a brass/bronze cowbell with superior acoustical/musical properties as compared to steel, the realities of cowbell/campana manufacturing and playing make brass/bronze cowbells an unrealistic and short-lived proposition.

Please let me know of alternate explanations as well as objections. :)
User avatar
Beatnik07
 
Posts: 166
Joined: Sat Nov 16, 2019 9:07 am
Location: Paris, France

Re: Campana: why is it nearly always made of steel ?

Postby jorge » Fri Jul 24, 2020 4:15 pm

In addition to the problems with joining edges of the bell, another major problem with using brass, bronze, copper or other metals that might have a more mellow sound is that the yield strength is less than that for steel. Yield strength is how much force or stress the metal can withstand while its deformation is completely reversible, before the force causes permanent bending of the metal. I have had old LP cowbells made of softer steel that sounded great, lower pitch, but the mouths of the bells got permanently bent inward by ordinary playing with a salsa band using a wood stick or hammer handle in the 70s. One even cracked. This may be one reason we have seen the bell makers move to harder steel alloys that, in addition to being more durable, also tend to have more overtones and higher pitch and kill your ears more. But I would imagine brass or bronze bells would deform quickly with ordinary playing. If you made them much thicker for strength, the pitch would be higher and the sound would be different. If you are thinking of making bells, try it and let us know if you get something that sounds good and doesn't bend.
jorge
 
Posts: 1128
Joined: Thu Jun 15, 2006 3:47 am
Location: Teaneck, NJ


Return to Bongo

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 6 guests


cron