Wind Chime pattern and/or idea help

[PSQRD]

Hey Strangers!
It has definitely been a little while since I've posted anything here. I was recently approached by someone looking to make a gift for an honorary guest. I provided some ideas but the group was pretty dead set on having a customized wind chime made. With that in mind, I pitched an idea to them (with an effort of keeping it Marine Corps related) of having a 6 piece hexagon box top with carved panels, polished brass 5.56 casings as the noise makers and a carved Kabar dangling in the middle to generate the noise. Unfortunately, they weren't too crazy about the idea with the brass for some reason and asked if I could make the noise makers from wood. Most wind chimes I have seen are made from bamboo but I feel that pieces of bamboo would make this piece look cheap so that is a no go. The other option I thought of is hollowing out another species of wood like sapele, maple, or mahogany and making dowels. The problem I have at hand is I'm limited because I have just had surgery on my right shoulder so the lathe is a no go, I'm contemplating of using the carvewright to pull this off. I'm asking if anyone has had any experience in the past with making wind chime noise makers from other wood species and how they well they sounded. I'm also asking if anyone wants to contribute their two cents with ideas for this, I'm thinking of maybe a two-sided carving that I would glue up with maybe different amounts of material carved away from the center. Don't know if the overall cost would be worth the effort that it could possibly take. Any input or help would be appreciated. A picture of a poorly constructed sketchup model is attached to give a better idea of what I meant.
Paul

[oscarl48]

That is a tough request. How about just a traditional wind chime with Navy/Marine imagery carved plates. These would be hung to form a square or triangle by ropes so wind would still catch it. The center plate could be the Marine logo.

The other suggestion would be a Japanese style wind chime where the plates would hang below a bell chamber. So pretty much reverse of the example I posted.

Nice touch on using green tipped .223 rounds! Only way to go.

P.S. Added a quick render of a Japanese style wind chime.

[PSQRD]

Thanks, I figured the green tips would be the only way to go! I think their concerns are the brass getting tarnished over time, and with the guest of honor being one of our former commandants they are being pretty particular. I think the examples you posted are awesome! I wouldn't mind doing a few two sides carvings for say maybe 3 chimes, but when a bunch came to mind plus the margin for error I became a bit worrisome of the exponential workload I might sign myself up for. These are both great examples and your 3d rendition skills for a mockup definitely far surpass mine, your time utilizing blender has paid off I see! Any idea how the japanese one works? are there chimes inside the bell shape?

[oscarl48]

For the Japanese wind chime its a clapper in the bell. The bottom part act like wind sails that make the clapper (striker) gong against the bell. You don't get the chime sounds like from the other styles of wind chimes but it was an idea. I much more prefer the traditional style of wind chimes just because the sounds they emit. My wife has like 4 wind chimes in the back patio and it sounds like a concert on a windy day.

Good luck with the project. I can't wait to see what you come up with.

I am getting faster with blender. Not necessarily better but definitely faster.