Last week I decided that I needed a new washboard, after all I only have four. The fact is that I have now been spoiled by my Zinc King National 703, before which my only reference was the old super heavy duty Swiss scrubboard that I first picked up. Made of birch wood the whole thing is as strong as they come, a fact that unfortunately does not translate into exciting sound.
The Zinc King however sounds great and is really fun to play because of it’s small size, almost a toy. They are antiques however and after 3-4 months of serious playing I have rubbed through the edges off a few ridges, but the real problem is that they simply are not long enough to really be nice for the wild scratching of fast rhythms and are better suited for tapping.
Eventually I’ll need to get a rubboard, but for the moment it seemed important to try out one of the musical washboards made by the Columbus Washboard Company in Logan, Ohio. This is the only company still making washboards in the US and are highly regarded by washboard players.
And rightly so! Since Tuesday I’m having a hard time putting it down and as you can see, have already added all my little spices.
I ordered a pine and zinc and a teak and stainless steal board – both with the traditional spiral crimp – but received two boards made from pine. Just as well Bill tells me, buying teak is a no-no; destroying the amazon and all that! The spiral crimp ribbing is perfect, the thimbles just fly!
They don’t sound the same at all, the zinc seems to resonate a lot more and the stainless steal is sharper, it’s the one I’ve been using the most.
My only complaint is that it it just a bit too wide for my own comfort, probably because I’m used to the Zinc King, but still an 8” × 11” would be best.