I have a few Brookside precut pots that I don't know what do to with. They are 3.25 purple heart, 3.25 padauk and 3.5" zebrawood. When I first made them, I used copper in the padauk and aluminum in the other two. Well to be honest, they do not sound good at all. I used class sound boards on all 3. My question is, should I put new soundboards and surfaces in them? I have them empty and clean of old glue as of now, or should I just forget about them and move on?
If you were to retry something, what combos would you go with?
If you are ready to put them in the wood stove there is nothing to lose by reclaiming the pots and experimenting a bit. Just write it down. The best way to learn is to fail and then find a bit of success.
I've suddenly found a "thing" for scratch boxes and am having a blast making up a variety of wood combos, soundboards (thickness, shape, wood, other materials, etc.) and striker. I have learned a huge amount. When a call just sucks I can experiment with it. Some are saved and many became kindling or ornaments.
I don't make pot calls, but if I were you I'd try another sound board. I'm assuming you got the copper and alluminum discs from Brookside as well? If so, they should be the right thickness. I build troughs out of slate and it's pretty reliable. I guess I'd probably try slate over a walnut sound board. If you've never seen Ken's Custom Sawing, they offer some pre-cut soundboards as well as various kits and blanks. Again, I don't turn pots and I'm no expert on the matter. I would definitely try another surface and see what the result was before I scrap them. Let me know how it works out.