We purchased a Voyageur cherry kit when they Musicmakers decided to discontinue this model. I had had my eye on this particular harp for a while, and the sale pushed me to make the purchase. The instructions were good, but I would not recommend this to a novice woodworker. My husband, luckily for me, had the skills and tools to get it done. It was a fun project to work on together. The finished harp is beautiful! The most challenging part was the lever installation. I chose Loveland levers, and Musicmakers did send a Loveland template for this harp - but it was WAY off on the placement for most of the levers. The lever installation was frustrating! And I cannot say they are perfectly positioned, but good enough for my level of playing (I am NOT a professional). The sound is beautiful, except for a bit of a thunky sound for one or two of the strings, which I wish I could figure out how to fix. Harpkit.com was quick to respond to questions, which I was thankful for. The response for my questions regarding the lever placement & installation were not as helpful as they could have been. Notes to self - if I ever do another harp build, I will remember to - build the harp, install the strings, PLAY PLAY PLAY and TUNE TUNE TUNE for many weeks before installing the levers. The levers are hard enough to install w/out worrying about the strings and harp body constantly adjusting to their new existence as a Voyageur harp.

I've just finished making the Voyageur harp, and I'm absolutely delighted with it. It is beautiful, easy to play, and has a gorgeous, full, rich, well-balanced sound that would fill any venue. I'm 62 years old, a luthier, and a lifetime musician with many years of experience with woodworking. This is not a kit for a beginner woodworker, but if you have the experience, the tools, (and copious number and variety of clamps!) the kit goes together easily. Not including the levers, it took about 50 hours to complete, including the varnish. The kit was exceptionally well-packed. The instructions were clear and easy to follow. There is a series of YouTube videos that are indispensable but take care to follow the provided instruction book rather than the videos. There are discrepancies, and you need to follow the written instructions. Before you begin each new part of the project, take care to count the number of screws, eyelets, etc. as no extras are provided. Check the provided drill bits to make sure they are the correct size for the screws provided, etc. *** You will want to request an extra brass fitting for your hand drill for installing the tuning pins. It's a very difficult job, made harder by the fact that the soft brass fitting tends to split/break. This was my experience as well as that of several others in my online harp group who have made these harps. Installing the levers is a delicate, detailed, precision effort that takes far longer than it should due to the poor quality, ill-fitting paper template provided. This would be such an easy fix, but Musicmakers doesn't seem interested in correcting it. The screws provided are extremely soft and it's easy to wring the head off of one if it is over-tightened or spun too quickly with the drill. Again, the kit contains no extras. My work-around was to use a small socket wrench instead of the power drill. For these reasons, installing the levers took about 20 hours, including having to re-drill the screw holes several times (template problem) to ensure that they were perfectly positioned. I adore the finished instrument and have no doubt that I'll love it just as much in 10 years, but the kit did present some challenges.

I design, build, and play small wire strung harps. Three years ago I got a surprise extended gig which required a large harp. Went to price a new floor harp. Ow! Decided to rent one for three months. Ow! I always buy my folk harp parts from Music Makers so I looked at their kits. The Voyageur looked perfect for the job. The cost was competitive with the aforementioned alternatives but this selection would leave me with a large harp forever. I have an extensive woodshop and so it came together easily thanks to the thoughtful directions. It is robust, plays easily, attracts a crowd always and has a great and loud sound. I did not have the time to do a perfect finish job but it does make for a look that is both folksy and a bit "hand hewn". Added an internal 4 point pick up for group jamming, special effects and recording and have never regretted a second of my time with "Lurch". He pays his own way and rarely goes out of tune. This harp is portable as claimed, but it is a bit of a pain to load and I am glad I opted out of the mirror finish.

Our daughter started with a 26-string Harpsicle last year, and quickly outgrew it. A nice L&H or DS was going to be too expensive. I had just finished a DIY electric guitar kit, so I Googled DIY harp kits to find the Voyageur. Compared to similarly priced harps, the Voyageur's YouTube Sound Sample was an instant favorite with the whole family. I'm no woodworking expert, although I love DIY in general and own a decent amount of tools. I spent close to 50 hours over 9 days (4 full weekends, 5 work-day evenings), due to it being my first time on a project of this degree of detail. I could do it much faster if I were to build another. The instructions were very clear, and the videos were a great help. I had to call in when I made a mistake on trimming the soundboard, and Jacob was very helpful in resolving my concerns. Most hardware parts came with spares (which I thankfully didn't need). However, the package was missing a tuning pin and the rosettes that I had ordered with the carving. They took care of it immediately over the phone, and shipped them out the same day. Excellent customer service! I used 7 coats of MinWax Wipe-on Poly (clear, gloss) for the finish, and it came out beautifully. Both my wife and daughter are pleased with the outcome. We can't wait for the strings to stabilize in tuning! The sound quality is just like the sound sample video. When played forte, the very powerful sound can even be faintly heard across the street, with the windows closed. It's such a huge upgrade from a Harpsicle! Thanks for the great harp kit, and I look forward to building the hammered dulcimer kit next!

My husband, Fritz built this harp for me. He had previously build two of your harps, the Limerick and the Regency from your blueprints. When I first told him about the Voyageur and that is was only available in "kit" form he was not totally enthusiastic about building it. Perhaps, it was not enough of a challenge for his craftsman's nature. But I have to tell you that now he is very impressed with your product and brags about it to friends. The hardest part was painting my harp because I dearly wanted a purple harp. We actually ended up having friends of ours paint it at their auto body shop! I was lucky enough to find a local artist who was willing to do the design on the soundboard. Now that it is finished the harp is gorgeous and the sound is enchanting. Thank you so much for all your help.

Thank you so much for producing such a quality instrument in a kit! My harp kit became a family project: husband, Gary was the assembler, son-in law, Rusty, the sander, daughter, Tracy, was quality control... She made her Dad follow the instructions to the tee! I watched my harp quickly take shape and after it was all together it was wonderful to begin to put the strings each on and tune it up for a first hearing. Not only is the Voyager beautiful to look at but beautiful to hear. Thanks you for making the kit with easy to follow instructions and so affordable. I play professionally for weddings, dinner parties, funeral grieving services around Christmas time, and for many church events in my area. I got my start about 12 years ago when I purchased the cherry Limerick lap harp with wire strings from Musicmakers as my first harp. I still play it often, but now really enjoy the deep, rich tones of the Voyager harp. People always comment on how beautiful the music of the harp is and they are truly blessed by it's sounds. After I tell them I bought it from a kit and my family built it ..they are more amazed! I am a 54 wife and mother and a music student at Henderson State University. After graduation in December 2008, I plan on teaching voice and harp in my home studio. I don't have to even think of where I will buy my studio harp instruments or kits: it's going to be from Musicmakers!

I ordered a Voyageur harp a little while ago and finally had a chance to start it this last week. I have 35 years of woodworking experience. I've built furniture, sea kayaks, cabinets, woodturnings. You name it. I've sold a lot of custom furniture. None has ever been from a kit. Kits are for wimps. (I'm eating my words as I write this) Your work is better than mine. Your tolerances are tighter. Your roughwork is cleaner, better measured and more predictably square than almost anything I've built. I pride myself on my exactness. I think you just might have beat me there too. So far the only adjustments I've had to make is some edge planeing on the soundboard to fit it. The soundboard was a bit large. Perhaps a 1\16th over. Anyone could have used a belt sander or even hand sanded it down. I've got the sound box together and most of the sanding done. I am chomping at the bit to get it strung and get to playing!

My husband finished the harp, we've strung it and it looks gorgeous! The grain and color on the cherry wood is beautiful! I've played guitar most of my life, mainly classical, so I'm quite familiar with nylon strings. Stringing it wasn't all that difficult although it took the better part of 3 hours to get it done and I only snapped one string in the process due to my stupidity. It's starting to hold a tune and I'm looking forward to begin playing.