MacDaid bodhrans are the finest American made 18" bodhran I've ever owned. I've played a lot of 18" drums, and I don't like to compare them to one another. All I know is that I only own one 18" bodhran now, and it's a MacDaid.
Robert Davidson started producing bodhrans to sell in 1996. After much trial and error, and design changes he put together a totally stable and thoroughly reliable drum. Twice in our business dealings did Bob go above and beyond the call in my opinion. The first was during the initial buying process, I explained that while I was interested in his drums I wasn't in a position to go buying all the drums I might be interested in. Bob's way of getting me to really consider his drums was to make me an offer I couldn't refuse. He had just begun to add tuning rings to his design, and was looking for players opinion of how the design worked. So we did a little trade, Bob would make and send me a drum, and I would play it for a month. If I liked it, I'd buy it at regular price, and if not, I'd return it at no charge. Either way I'd give him my thoughts on the drum and the tuning mechanism.
After 30 days on the MacDaid I was hooked, sturdy construction, great sound, reliable tuning, everything I wanted at the time. Due to unforseeable circumstances I was unable to purchase the drum as agreed. So I told Bob what I thought of his drum, and mailed it back to him, with my apologies for not being able to afford it. He told me to let him know when I could afford it and he'd send me a drum then. After a few months I scraped together the cash and told Bob to make me a new drum. He surprised me by sending me the same bodhran he had made for me months earlier. He had held onto that one because it was the one I had broken in and had fallen for. That kind of customer care earns big points in my book.
The second instance of top notch customer care I experienced with MacDaid bodhrans was just a few months later. After playing my MacDaid 3 to 5 times a week at gigs and sessions, and taking it out and paying the local ren faire (in ARIZONA) I found the one design flaw in the drum. The tuning blocks were sheathed with brass sleeves to receive brass screws. I found that after too much tuning they had a tendency to bind, and then strip out. After having lost the use of 2 of the 5 tuners on the drum I contacted Bob. He had me remove and send him the damaged tuners. A couple of weeks later I received a complete set of new and improved tuning boxes with instructions on how to switch them out with the old ones. The design is really ingenius, I call it a "screw-through-screw" tuner, as it consists of a wood block fitted with a horizontal steel screw, which is then drilled and tapped to accomodate a second steel screw threaded from the top of the block, through the screw to apply pressure to the tuning ring (see picture at left). The steel on steel design is pretty much strip-proof. The new tuners arrived at my home, from Virginia, at no charge whatsoever.
The MacDaid bodhran features an 18" diameter x 3 1/2" deep frame with a 9/16" wall thickness. The frame is routed for skin and hardwood tack strip. Goat skin head. Oak stain and hand rubbed urethane finish. The frame itself is actually 12 thin laminated layers of wood each laid in opposite directions. This cross layering provides extraordinary strength and stability. As opposed to many other drums which are made of a single steam bent piece of hardwood, lap jointed, or of bent plywood, usually three ply and lap jointed. The problem there is that a single joint means that the frame has a weak-point inherent in the design. The thin layered frame means there is NO weak-point at all.
No cross piece is required, a BIG plus for me, as I don't like cross bars at all. A cross piece IS provided for the use of a player who may want it. The dowel is inset in the frame so that neither screws nor glue are needed. It can be removed without tools in a few moments. A 1/2 inch groove is routed in the outside of the frame to receive the skin and hardwood retainer strap. The skin and strap are stapled and tacked. The tacks are decorative round head upholstery tacks with an antiqued appearance.
The sound produced by MacDaid bodhrans is what I would describe as very "traditional". Round, warm, full, and very pleasant both to play and to listen to. The skin is very resiliant, and with the proper combination of tuning and watering, I've managed to produce a range of very nice sounds in just about every weather condition short of pouring rain.
All in all, MacDaids are (in my opinion) the finest American made 18" bodhran out there. And at a very reasonable $285 plus S/H, they are quite a bargain considering the amount of work that goes into each drum.
Sadly, if you haven't gotten your MacDaid by now, you may never get the chance. Robert Davidson was taken from us in November of 2002, by liver cancer. A beautiful memorial to him can be found here. If you'd like to purchase parts and pieces to try and build your own bodhran go by the MacDaid website (link below). Roberts death came as quite a blow to everyone who knew him or purchased one of his fine instruments. Keep your eye out for anyone wishing to sell off their MacDaid as there are fewer than 80 of them floating around the world. Though if others find his drums to be as fine as I do, your chances are pretty slim.
The Bodhranii.org tribute to Robert Davidson
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