Sorry Reggie, you're right, it was Banjo Ray who suggested the Clove Hitch and groove, whereas I advocate the fixed loop and screw-hook.

What you got wrong was assigning the string as the hypotenuse in your Pythagorus formula as this wouldn't put any tension on the string and therefore make it un=playable.

Your picture should actually look like this: http://s239.photobucket.com/albums/ff28/paulvis/?action=view¤t=T-Boxes1-23.jpg

Hmm not posted links before so I don't know if that will work.

And again I agree that your friend's drum-head bass is going to sound a lot better than most of the traditional upside-down bass boxes, such as you've heard other people play, thumping away with the string tied to the floor of the box/tub.

They're probably not bad players they're just not playing very good basses.

But you ain't heard me and mine yet and I maintain that my radical cross-string design will give a drum skin a fair old run for it's money and is by it's very nature a more accessible, easier, cheaper, more Tea-Chesty-Traditional way of achieving this kind of sound, and without having to source and cannibalise another musical instrument.

Enough talking though, you have to compare for yourself, so go and listen to the kind of sounds I'm talking about at my Bass-Ek Instinct video-clips on how to make a Tea-Chest Bass sound really good:
http://www.youtube.com/nervouspaulvis#p/u/5/ZjYmwFXCnCk

And you can hear me playing the thing on a proper studio recording - with added percussive pieces tied to my wrist and ankles - at

www.myspace.com/bloweevils/music

Pretty darn sensitive I think you'll agree but as you can hear we play at quite a lick compared to most jug bands - raw jump boogie blooze indeed - and I think this style of playing would take it's toll on most drum skins even if reinforced with leather patches etc, far quicker than it does on the cross-strings.

It isn't always playing them that can tear the skin either, I lost a skin to my harp player's size 11 boot once, not at a gig thank goodness, but should that ever happen to your friend, for whatever reason, where be your drum-head bass player then?

Off stage searching for a roll of gaffa tape and then heading to the music shop…

Me, I just carry a roll of string in my pocket and should a cross-string break (maybe once in two years) I can get it fixed and playing again before the end of the song.

I love the digital spoons idea though, brilliant, I've had bird's chirping, telephones ringing and helicopters flying out of my T-Box before now but the wah-wah peddle to get tone shifting for melodies is pure - what did Foolstroupe Robin say?

Serendipitous Genius.

Yeah Man