Newest rattle

[Christopher Fletcher]

Hello all, this is my newest creation. It is an offset turned/carved "J" baby rattle. The baby's name is Joshua and their family name also starts with a J, so I thought what better heirloom to pass down. It was 10/4 cherry wiped with BLO and now curing. I'll spray it with shellac and let cure before I hand it over. Thanks for looking!

[Christopher Fletcher]

Oh, and it also is filled with brown rice.

[Don McManus]

Pretty cool! Does brown rice work better for some reason? or was that just "what was in the pantry" when you made it :)?

[Christopher Fletcher]

I tested beans, bb's, rice, and lentils. Beans were a little too big to move around inside the cavity and produce good sound. The BB's sound best, but are a bit dangerous if the rattle somehow breaks open. The brown rice sounded a little louder to my ear than did regular rice. Maybe the husk on the brown rice makes the difference. I don't know, but it's cheap and works well enough.