Anybody know anything about hand bells?

I think most bells like this have an iron clapper, usually hanging from a long single link "chain". I would have thought that where it's struck before would be fairly apparent. Isn't this visible?

Tim

The ones I have seen on working hand bells were iron. If it has been used, there ought to be marks on the inside of the bell showing where the old one used to hit. Otherwise, I would try around the start of the flare.

Colin Bignell

In article , robgraham scribeth thus

Umm..

Just give these people a bell;), they may well advise you..

Well I know someone who once did with a similar query and they were very helpful...

Somewhere near you, there should be a bell-ringing group. Find it, and start there. Then you will be able to investigate real working bells.

In article , tony sayer scribeth thus

Soz!! also meant to mention...

Good place to start looking is:

Enter the town and it will give you details of the diocesan guld (website). Follw that and you'll find details of all the ringing groups in the area, and contacts.

brass more excpebsive than iron, but makes better sound. bell rings, clapper does not ring.

ergo bell of brass, clapper of iron.

Are you talking about a hand bell or a handbell? They are not the same.

The former is something you might find on a shop counter to summon attention - and will have a loose clapper which can move in all directions.

The second is one of a set of percussion instruments for playing tunes. This will have a hinged clapper with some damping in its movement so as to only play a single note each time it is shaken. See

The answer to your question will probably depend on which type you have.

robgraham scribbled...

I've got a handbell that has a large nut & bolt as the 'ringer'. Still loud enough to wake the dead.

mouth diameter and 50mm deep.

I can turn up an clapper easy enough but should it in brass or iron, and ho w long should it be - ie is there any optimal point at which it should stri ke the flare of the bell?

I suspect if you had it analysed you'd find it's actually bronze (copper/ti n) rather than brass (copper zinc). The alloy used for bells has rather hig her tin content than the alloys usually met with in other contexts, so it l ooks yellowish rather than the slightly pink tinge often associated with br onze. The higher tin content makes it harder, but more brittle. I found a similar bell among my Great-Aunt's effects, and though I can't lo cate it just at the moment I recall the clapper being slightly rusty...

I suspect most of the handbells will be ex-school bells, they used to use them to summon the kids in.

I have one with a porcelain handle an I think it was used as a dinner bell. can't find it at the moment but it was a substantial size bell,not one of those fiddley sized ones.