Dusty Strings TriStander Quick start guide

Back of Dulcimer
Figure 1: Dulcimer Anatomy
and Bracket/Wedge Placement
for Drilling
Pinblock
Top Rail
Bottom Rail
Pinblock
1" for Dusty
dulcimers
1"for Dusty
dulcimers
Bottom rail brackets (use plastic wedge for drilling).
is side of wedge should be parallel to the bottom rail
Installation
e parts you should have in the box:
ree wooden brackets•
Two plastic wedges•
Four 2” screws•
Eight 1¼” screws•
ree leather patches•
ree legs (full kit only)•
e other tools and sup-
plies you will need:
Electric Drill•
Masking tape•
1/8-inch drill bit•
Phillips-head screw driver•
Awl or center punch•
Barge cement or contact cement (optional)•
Set-up
Lay your dulcimer string side down on a padded table top. is
will not harm your instrument as long as you are reasonably
careful.
TriStander
TM
Hammered Dulcimer Support System
Installation and Use
If you are installing the TriStander yourself, please read the installation instructions carefully before you start. If your dulcimer came
to you with the TriStander already installed, go to the Using the TriStander System section for instructions and tips on setting up the
system.
“18”
Center Bracket (use wooden bracket for marking screw holes)
General Notes
e three wooden brackets are interchangeable.•
Figure 1 shows the typical frame parts of a dulcimer. If•
possible, the brackets should be placed close enough to the
edge so that the screws sink into the rails and/or pinblocks
as shown. is is not a requirement, however.
e two bottom rail corner brackets use the plastic wedges•
for the proper tilt angle.
Marking and drilling the screw holes for the center wooden
bracket
Position the top rail wooden bracket in the center of the top
rail as shown in gure 1. It may or may not cover the original
leg insert. Regardless, the insert won’t be needed any longer.
For best results, securely tape it in position using masking tape.
Using an awl, carefully mark the center of the mounting holes
in the back of the dulcimer.
Now you can drill the pilot holes with the ⅛” drill bit to a
depth of about 1 inch. Blow away the chips and screw down
the bracket using the 1¼” screws supplied. When nished, it
should look like gure 2.
18
18

2
Using the TriStander System
1. Tightening the Legs. To adjust a leg section, ip open the
latch and extend the section to the desired length. en ip the
latch closed to tighten, making sure the handle is pressed all the
way down (see gure 5). Before attaching the leg to your dulci-
mer, it is always a good idea to put some pressure on it to make
sure all the latches are secure. e legs are designed to hold at
least 60 lbs of weight without slipping. If you nd that one seg-
ment slips even when the latch is all the way closed, you can use
a 2.5 mm hex wrench to tighten the latch screw (see gure 6).
Try a very small adjustment (a quarter turn or less), and then
test again. Overtightening the screw and then forcing the latch
closed could damage the mechanism, so you want it just tight
enough to hold securely under a reasonable amount of pressure.
2. Attaching the Legs. Place the adjusted legs on the oor
within reach. Set your dulcimer on a carpet, on its case, or
other padded surface. With one hand, tip the dulcimer up on
its top rail with the back facing you and screw the center leg
into the bracket with your free hand. Or, you can straddle the
instrument with your legs to hold it upright while you screw
in the center leg. With this leg attached, the dulcimer will now
stay upright on its own, allowing easy attachment of the corner
two legs. read the legs in carefully and smoothly to avoid
damaging the studs by cross-threading. en it is ready for you
to stand it upright. If you have a dulcimer with a hand hold
or handle on the bottom rail side, you can set the dulcimer
upright this way: Li on the handle with one hand and push
the back away from you with the other hand. Plant the center
back leg on the oor and step backwards until the front legs
touch the oor. Taking the legs o is just the reverse of putting
them on.
Drilling the screw holes for the two bottom rail brackets
with wedges
e remaining two wooden brackets will each use a plastic
wedge underneath them (see gure 3). It is important to note
that these wedges will be used as the guides for drilling the
angled holes. Unlike with the top center bracket, these screw
hole locations will not be marked with an awl prior to drilling,
and will not be drilled perpendicular to the back.
Using masking tape again, securely fasten the wedges in their
proper nal locations on your dulcimer’s back, along the bot-
tom rail. Refer to gure 1 and the General Notes for guidance.
For Dusty Strings dulcimers, set the corner wedges 1 inch in
from the edges of the pinblocks as shown in gure 1. Make
sure the face of the wedge showing the number 18 is facing up
towards you.
Now, using the holes in the secured wedges as guides, insert the
⅛” drill bit and, following the exact angle of the guide holes,
drill the pilot holes in the dulcimer back to a depth of about 1
inch. It is perfectly ne and expected that you will drill right
through the back panel on several of these pilot holes.
Now you can remove the tape, clear the wood chips away, and
fasten the brackets and wedges using the supplied screws, as
shown in gure 3. Use the 2” screws for the thicker side of the
wedge. Remember that the “18” should face away from the
dulcimer and towards the wooden bracket.
Figure 5: Latch open & closed Figure 6: Latch screw
Figure 2: Center Bracket
Figure 3: Corner Bracket with Wedge
Figure 4: Installed TriStander

3
Dusty Strings
3450 16th Ave. W., Seattle, WA 98119 • 206-634-1656 • Fax [phone] • www.dustystrings.com
3. Playing Angle. You can vary the center back leg length to
nd the angle of the instrument that is most comfortable for
you. A range of angles are available, but there are limits to how
far you can go without compromising stability. Extreme angles
in any direction (if any leg is leaning more than 90° outwards)
will cause the instrument to be unstable (see gure 7).
4. Leg Length Settings. Each person will have a slightly dif-
ferent height and tilt that is most comfortable for them. It is
helpful to adjust the legs to the desired length before screwing
them into the brackets. Here are some likely lengths to use as a
starting point: for sit-down playing, try setting the front legs to
23"and the center back leg to 32". For stand-up playing, try 32"
for the front legs and 40"for the back leg.
5. Marking Your Leg Settings. Aer experimenting with leg
lengths to nd your most comfortable standing and/or sitting
positions, it is handy to mark the legs so you don’t have to
measure them to set up the dulcimer in the future. Just make a
pencil line around each leg where it disappears under the latch
ring. e legs can then be collapsed for transport and easily
extended again to the pencil lines for playing.
6. Case Protection. While most gig bags are exible enough to
hold the dulcimer with the brackets attached, the brackets can
create wear points in the case lining. We’ve enclosed protective
leather patches to be glued in at the places where each of the leg
brackets contacts the lining of the case. We’ve found that barge
cement or contact cement (available at most hardware stores)
works well.
Other TriStander Features
1. Uneven Surfaces. Playing outside on hillsides or uneven ter-
rain is easy using the TriStander system. Simply adjust the leg
lengths to make the bottom rail of your dulcimer level.
2. Resonance. e TriStander allows the back of your dulci-
mer to vibrate more freely than a conventional stand does. It
will also transfer the vibration to the oor better. On carpeted
oors, you may hear no dierence. But on hardwood, tile, or
linoleum oors, most dulcimers will sound noticeably louder
and more resonant with the TriStander.
3. Stability. With the legs adjusted properly, your dulcimer
will be extremely stable, very dicult to tip over, and literally
impossible to knock o its stand!
4. Portability. e lightweight legs collapse to about 16 inches
in length. ey will conveniently t inside the leg compart-
ment or accessory pocket of any Dusty Strings case. You can
now carry everything you need in one hand, or better yet, one
shoulder strap. is will leave your hands free for opening
doors, signing autographs, shaking hands . . .
5. Multiple Dulcimers. It is not uncommon for dulcimer
players to own more than one dulcimer. If you are one of those
folks, you may want to have the TriStander versatility with all
your dulcimers. You can order extra sets of brackets from your
dealer or directly from Dusty Strings.
Warranty
e TriStander legs and brackets are warrantied for one year
against defects in materials and crasmanship. You may be
asked to provide proof of purchase if you need to make a war-
ranty claim. Legs that show signs of over-tightening are not
covered under warranty, but there may be replacement parts
available. Please do not hesitate to call us if you encounter
any problems or if you have any questions about using your
TriStander System.
Rev. 6/15/20
Figure 7: Playing Angles
90°or less
Center leg
Corner leg
More than
90°
Corner leg
Center leg
Slight Angle
Not OK
OK
90°or less More than
90°
Center leg
Center leg
Corner leg
Corner leg
Not OK
OK
Sharp Angle