Learn Ten Critical Things You Should Expect In A Quality Custom Music Box
Custom Handcrafted
We realize our customers want to make the best decision when selecting a custom music box of high quality. Therefore, we have written the key features of our quality custom music box. This way, you may make a comparison if you wish, before you buy.
Most importantly, all of our music boxes are individually custom handcrafted a few at a time with skilled craftsmanship. Made in Walla Walla, Washington.
In contrast to our boxes, you will find that our competitions box may be manufactured in a large factory. A large manufacturer will make multiple boxes of the same type. Is this a bad thing? No but it does remove the personal touch and extra care we take to create fine music boxes as your gift.
Solid Brass Hinges
Each custom music box we create contains hinges made of 1/8 inch solid brass and are coated with a clear lacquer finish. You can be sure this ensures long lasting beauty and sound structural integrity.
On the other hand, we have observed that most of our competitors use thin steel hinges. These hinges are brass plated. As a result they may not provide sufficient lid support over the long term.
Solid Hardwood
Domestic and exotic solid hardwoods is what we use for all our custom music boxes. Since this is exactly as the old music box master craftsmen did.
Undoubtedly, the competitions box will look nice but it could be made of a softer wood and possibly from MDF (Medium Density Fiberboard) These wood substitutes are subject to warping and swelling in high humidity.
Most manufactures cover these wood substitutes (MDF) with a thin veneer of wood or plastic. Burl wood veneer is popular today and is quite attractive. Therefore, we do offer a less expensive Jewelry Music Box box made in Sorrento Italy with a burl wood veneer covering.
However, in our opinion, our traditional music box created with solid Domestic and Exotic hardwood provides unmatched beauty and sound. We believe it is the best custom music box sold today.
Lacquer Finish
Our finish coat for these unique music boxes is five layers of clear satin Lacquer with light sanding between coats. Lacquer finishes are derived from organic plant resins mixed with a solvent drying agent.
To elaborate, the advantages over other finish coats is that it is fast drying, does not create a color change when drying, has good wear resistance, is long lasting, stain resistant and will not oxidize and become brittle,
The competitions musical box may use a different finish product with fewer coats of finish. Of course this does not mean their finish is bad but it may not have as many positive features as a lacquer finish.
Quality Sound
It is very important to obtain quality sound resonance and tonal quality through the bottom board of your handcrafted music box. We achieve this as the old Master craftsmen did by using solid hardwood having a thickness between 3/16 to 1/4 inch. As a result, our resonance boards require additional time to craft.
Many music box manufacturers have opted to take an easier method for their bottom board. Since plywood and MDF are inexpensive and are readily available from a factory in the form of 1/4 inch readymade sheets. By the same token, the competitions box may use a thicker bottom which has an even greater reduction in the sound quality.
You really shouldn't compromise on sound quality. After all, isn't that what makes unique music boxes? Quality sound!
Sankyo 72 Note Music Movement
We install the superb Sankyo 72 note Orpheus music box music movement in each custom music box. This movement has a five octave range and plays for as long as five minutes on a single winding.
You are sure to enjoy unmatched listening experience when Sankyo's movement is paired with our custom music box. Sankyo of Japan is considered as having one of the best movements in today's marketplace.
In the final analysis, this should qualify our box as the best custom music box available today, hands down.
Custom Trim
You will notice that our handmade Music box comes with custom cut trim and feet made of solid hardwood. A great deal of time and effort is involved in this process. This is a point often overlooked by most music box shoppers.
Many of our competitions boxes have no trim and simple metal feet making them much less expensive to create.
Master Craftsman Methods
Our custom music box and lid joinery follows the old master craftsman techniques. Whereby, the lid joinery is rail and style (having a tongue and groove) and is mitered at the corners.
Our box sides have mitered corners and the bottom resonator board is edge dadoed. All joints are glued with Titebond III Glue and securely clamped for a permanent bond.
These construction methods are extremely time consuming thereby increasing both quality and cost to our music boxes
The competitions boxes may differ in construction.
Origanal Marquetry
Especially Walla Walla uses only original marquetry artwork on our custom music box.
Marquetry is a very labor intensive art craft where thin 1 mm solid wood pieces are cut to certain sizes and shapes then fit together to create an artistic picture or design.
Many Music Box makers today substitute original marquetry for laminate reproductions to reduce the cost of the music box.
To illustrate, the difference is similar to buying a copy of an original artist painting rather than buying the artists original work.
Compare To Our Competition
We create and sell a quality, high end custom music box that you will be proud to own, display and play. Compare the features and price of our music box and 72 note music movement to any of our competitions box and you will discover that for equal quality, in most every case, we will have the best price and value.
The below website links will open in a new window. It will be easy to return back here when you are ready to buy. These are the seven most popular music box websites (besides ours of course).