What type of wood can I use to make a xylophone? …?
Any dense hardwood would do. Tropical hardwoods usually fill the bill nicely, but can be expensive. Mesquite, ironwood, osage orange and other very dense woods should also do. Be careful to select pieces without cracks. Cracks in the wood will deaden the sound very quickly. The wood should not be supported at the ends. Rather they need to be supported about 1/4 of the length from each end. For example, if one key was 8 inches long, then it should be supported about 2″ from each end, leaving about 4″ free between the supports. That figure is approximate (it’s actually closer to 22% of the length). You should get some lengths of a hard wood and test them for the best points of support. Note that at least one of the supports for the keys must be at an angle. This site may be of help: http://www.tidewater.
