Collingwood Cymbals

A few thoughts about cymbal making & the social media age: https://www.patreon.com/collingwoodcymbals/posts/social-media-and-166106981 ..Free to read for all!

Learn about cymbal-making with me and a bunch of other makers & cymbal nerds from around the world. https://www.patreon.com/collingwoodcymbals Beginner to pro, deep dives & passing interests all welcome. Tomorrow's online group meet is open to all Patreon members, as is the growing library of 500+ posts covering what you need to know as a cymbalsmith. Tutorials, interviews, essays... get involved!

Following a bit of a sanity-retreat from much of social media and the dreaded-but-necessary "content", I'm stepping back into Patreon https://www.patreon.com/collingwoodcymbals with some renewed energy and will be running the August Group Cymbalsmith Meeting via Google Meet this coming Wednesday, August 5th. Open to all subscribed Patreon members, whether actively making cymbals, just interested, or anything inbetween.

New tiers and training levels will be added very soon, signing up now gives access to the 500+ posts to date including video tutorials, interviews, concepts, insights and so on.

Cymbal making courses on the way! September onwards, various levels, various topics. Drop me a line if interested, announcing details soon!

https://www.makeyourowncymbal.com/

Yesterday Billy came from Birmingham to make a 21" Jazz Ride, it was a hot day for swinging hammers, but what a result! Thanks Billy.

Book your session or buy a gift voucher for a loved one: https://www.makeyourowncymbal.com/

See you in Liverpool!

A new Patreon post aimed at those wanting to learn more about cymbal making, whether out of passing interest, or a desire to learn the craft in-depth. https://www.patreon.com/collingwoodcymbals/posts/tell-me-what-you-165058761

The post is public, take a look and let me know if you have any thoughts! I'll paste the post in full below:

*****

Hi all, having had a rest from social media and the dreaded-but-necessary 'content', I've been restructuring my business and taking a look at what I do and how I do it.

I'll always be a "cymbal maker", but I feel like I've moved away from making, selling, pushing etc. etc. as a brand, and more firmly towards teaching, events, community work and mentorship.

My cymbal making will take place in what I'll see as my own time, and my experiements will inform my teaching. Of course, if the things sell - great! But many of you have probably noticed the challenges of that if you've been concentrating on or angling towards business, and I'm just not built for it! Kudos to those who are.

With that in mind, I want to express gratitude to those who have stuck around here on Patreon, and I'd like to step back in but with more structure and content which is geared towards what you actually want. Those who've known me long enough will be aware of my osciallations by now - my way of building, tearing apart, building, tearing apart... I've been making some form of peace with that for nearly 50 years, and through getting to know myself better after some pretty intense years in the not-too-distant past, it's what's taken me to the realisation that I'm happiest helping folk by teaching, challenging, messing around and generally acting like a do**us as often as possible.

So tell me - what do you want more of? What do you want less of? Are the monthly meetings a draw for you? Regular lessons? Video tutorials? Whether or not you trust me to deliver and commit is another issue, but I'm excited as I move into a new phase of life as a basher-of-bronze!

I'd also like to approach the topic of what it costs you.

I've had a fair few folk telling me I should charge more for what I do. On a personal level, that really is a boost, and I appreciate it. But the reality is that when I do, nothing changes, at best.

Pricing of cymbals is a hot topic among us crazy cats, and it more-or-less always comes back to self-worth in terms of confidence, time, experience, market forces... it's almost impossible to figure out without making at least a few arbitrary decisions. In my mind, that negates most of the arguments in favour of what just feels right. In a couple hundred years, it'll be a case of "Dust! Wind! Dude!" for all of us (name the film). So, I'm going to set up some tiers again based on feedback (if I get any) and just keep doing what I enjoy.

Some of you are paying for regular lessons but not using the online time, instead building up time to use against my day rate for in-person lessons when I'm in your neck of the worldwide woods. This is totally cool, however you want to use your time is fine by me!

So feel free to tell me what you'd like - and what flavour. For example, if you like the video tutorials, do you like them narrated with explanation? Do you like the wild concepts that get you thinking? Do you like my erotic drawings? Or is a spread enough for you? Would clearer categories help find a useful post? How often would you like online lessons? Do you prefer using your time when you need it rather than a schedule? How about printed lessons / guides? Construction guides for anvils, for example? Resources? Should I just shut up and get on with it?

Thanks!

Gonna start putting cymbals in prize draws, here's this month's: https://www.collingwoodcymbals.com/product/clap-stack-prize-draw-entry