Ugears Hurdy Gurdy

The Hurdy Gurdy is a stringed instrument that produces a sound similar to that of a pocket pipe. By hand, you turn a wheel that rubs against the strings, similar to the action of a bow on a violin. The history of this instrument begins in the 15th century. One of the first forms of the was the organistrum (a portable organ) in Medieval Europe.

After some changes, this became a common musical instrument among traveling musicians in England. The hurdy-gurdy went through its Renaissance period in the 17th and 18th centuries as a noble, classical instrument for the entertainment of the rich and noble. The instruments were richly decorated by craftsmen with inlay (marquetry) and carvings. Some call the music the “Rock’n’Roll of the Middle Ages,” we thought this was really cool. It really stuck in our heads and so we decided to make the UGears version of a hurdy-gurdy.

You build the UGears Hurdy-Gurdy yourself without glue, toothpicks or special tools, because with this model we decided to use only the patented plywood joints. The assembly of the consists of several stages. First, the smallest parts are assembled to form larger building units: the body, deck’s, wheel, stools, heads, tuning pin, keyboard, strings. This all together then forms the complete model.

Product dimensions in mm: 400 x 220 x 165
Package size in mm: 383 x 174 x 51
Number of parts: 292
Estimated assembly time: 6 hours