Rhythm coconut shell (saccharr shaker) — a mature coconut shell polished smooth, with an eye hole bored and the flesh scraped out, filled with 20-30 small stones, with a wooden handle secured by lac resin; shaken in time with the music.

"Players shake in rhythm with the music and other percussion instruments being played." (Sirindhorn Anthropology Centre, author not specified, CC BY 4.0)

Select a fully mature coconut of medium size. Peel off all the husk. Use a coarse brush or sandpaper to sand the shell until smooth and shiny. Use a chisel or a sharp-pointed knife to pierce through the eye of the coconut, wide enough for a wooden handle. Scrape out all the coconut meat. Dry it in the sun until dry.

Put about 20-30 small stones into a coconut shell. Carve the wooden handle to be round and fairly long, using a knife or a plane, so it is comfortable to hold.

Pound the lac (shellac) finely, put it in a can, add water to cover it, and heat it over a fire to get sticky lac resin. Pour it to bond between the coconut shell and the handle, or push the handle until it sits snugly against the bottom of the shell, then hammer nails to secure it on the outside.

Coconut shell tapping rhythm drawing (Sirindhorn Anthropology Centre, author not specified, CC BY 4.0)

Shake in rhythm with the music and other instruments being played

Today, the coconut shell percussion instrument (kala khaochangwa) has developed into an instrument called the saeg. Be careful with the fire while boiling lac, and be careful with the chisel and knife. Source: Sirindhorn Anthropology Centre, Folk Tools and Equipment Database "Kala Khaochangwa", author not specified (licensed under CC BY 4.0) **Limitations** The source does not provide the handle length or stone size. The illustrations are drawings. There is no product listing for raw lac.