Don't discard the inner bamboo sticks...!

[Inigo]

When cutting triangular bamboo sticks to make needles, one usually gets the outer 'shelled' part of the bamboo, leaving the 'surplus' inner sticks for the trash. Eventually I decided to give a try to those 'inner surplus' sticks, cutting some needles out from them. I've noticed that these 'inner' needles, if cut cleanly, with adequate length and thickness, and having good looking straight bamboo fibres, also produce good bamboo needles. Recently I've been trying those with good results. They seem to last slightly less than an 'outer' needle, but they also go through soft records reasonably well, and sometimes several sides may be played without repointing. One of these days I'll post a video of some tests using these 'inner' needles...

[poodling around]

When cutting triangular bamboo sticks to make needles, one usually gets the outer 'shelled' part of the bamboo, leaving the 'surplus' inner sticks for the trash. Eventually I decided to give a try to those 'inner surplus' sticks, cutting some needles out from them. I've noticed that these 'inner' needles, if cut cleanly, with adequate length and thickness, and having good looking straight bamboo fibres, also produce good bamboo needles. Recently I've been trying those with good results. They seem to last slightly less than an 'outer' needle, but they also go through soft records reasonably well, and sometimes several sides may be played without repointing. One of these days I'll post a video of some tests using these 'inner' needles...

Very interesting information.

I will give that a go later today.

I love making and always use bamboo needles and hope you do post a video on this.

[Inigo]

Precisely yesternight I was in the mood for recording, with my mobile phone. Ok it's not the state-of-the-art, but is my only digital camera available, and it's handy and easy to use. Besides that, I feel it doesn't record very bad; with this tiny micro the sound it takes seems fair in the youtube videos I've already loaded in my channel:
https://youtu.be/uhtY3VXt2CE
Anyway, I'm testing another recording app that allows to use the external tiny micro, which I set at the horn's mouth. But this is another story... Let's go back to the thread.
Yesterday I recorded a couple of videos using one of these 'inner' bamboo needles with no 'shell' side. I used one that is just as thick as the 5B soundbox admits, a good straight stick, which produces a very good sound. I recorded a pair of Sidney Torch organ medleys, both sides of a spanish Columbia dubbing of which was originally Decca F.8019, the Torch Parade no 6.
See them and judge by yourself...
NEW EDIT: The link above leads directly tho the first of the two recent videos testing these needles.
Still you will consider discarding HALF of the bamboo sticks when cutting them out for needles...?