Beater Making Masterclass — How I Make a Shaped Drum Beater

A drum is only half the instrument. The beater is what your hand actually holds — and its weight, its balance and its head decide how the drum answers. This masterclass is the full process of making the one I consider the most demanding of the three I make: the shaped, carved beater.

My name is Max. I'm from Ukraine, and I've been building shamanic drums and their beaters for over ten years. Every beater I make is made to order, and this is exactly how I make this one — start to finish, nothing left out.

Who it's for

• You have a drum and want a beater that belongs to it, not a shop-bought stick.
• You already work with wood and want the fur, the finish and the details done properly.
• You want to try making one, and you'd rather see a maker do it than guess.

What you get

• The full process on video — 37 minutes, from a bare pine batten to the finished beater. English subtitles burned into the picture.
• Written guide — PDF, 10 pages. Every measurement and every step in writing, plus a table telling you where each step sits in the video, so you can jump straight back to the part you need.

A note on language. The video is narrated in russian with English subtitles burned in. The guide is fully in English.

The materials

A pine or alder batten, a piece of fur — I use beaver — paint, and glue. Everything else is ordinary workshop tools: a jigsaw, a sander, sandpaper, scissors. No special equipment.

What you'll have at the end

Your own beater: shaped by your hand, furred, finished, and balanced for your drum. Including the one detail most people never think of — the trick that makes the fur look like it grows out of the wood rather than being glued onto it.

Making the drum itself is a separate craft — that's my full Drum Making Masterclass.

Any questions? Write me — hello@openyourdrum.com