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English
Kanghan Mun (Pull-String Spinner) — a 15 cm Bamboo Tube with a Side Hole 3 cm Below the Mouth, a 12×3 cm Blade, a Spindle 2 cm Above the Mouth and a 30 cm String; Pull and Release and the Blade Spins Back and Forth
กังหันหมุน (kanghan mun; also bai mun, mai phat, chuk mun, phat lom dueng, kam mun) is a folk toy. Its flat bamboo blade looks like a windmill vane, but it does not use the wind: a string pulls the spindle so it spins one way and back.
This blueprint makes a real kanghan mun to the sizes in the source.
Beginner
About 1-2 hours
Instructions
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1
Real sizes
Real sizes
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2
Pinwheels, before it
Pinwheels, before it
The paper pinwheel is turned by the wind; the kanghan mun uses a string to pull the spindle round.
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3
Read from the source
Read from the source
"This kanghan mun does not rely on the wind; a string pulls the spindle to make the blade spin." (Sirindhorn Anthropology Centre, author not named, CC BY 4.0)
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4
Tube
Tube
Cut a hand-sized piece of bamboo 15 cm long, shave it neat, and drill a hole about 3 cm below the mouth.
Materials for this step:
Bamboo Poles1 piece5
5
Blade and spindle
Blade and spindle
Shave bamboo into a blade 12 cm long and 3 cm wide and drill a hole in the centre. Shave a round spindle long enough to stand about 2 cm above the mouth of the tube, and fit it to the blade.
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6
String
String
Knot a 30 cm string tightly and thread it through a small piece of bamboo used as the pull. Pass the other end through the hole into the tube and tie it to the spindle. Put the spindle in the tube and turn the blade until the string is fully wound.
Materials for this step:
String1 piece7
7
Real photos
Real photos
Photos of a real kanghan mun (Sirindhorn Anthropology Centre, author not named, CC BY 4.0)
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8
How to play
How to play
Grip the tube firmly, hold the small bamboo pull and pull the string; the spindle spins one way and back again as you pull and release the string.
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9
Troubleshooting
Troubleshooting
Troubleshooting the kanghan mun.
Flow
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10
History and limits
History and limits
It is made much like the ban bue. Materials differ by region: the south uses para rubber seeds, the central region mango seeds, and the north bamboo.
Source: Sirindhorn Anthropology Centre, Traditional Objects of Everyday Use database, "กังหันหมุน", author not named (CC BY 4.0 licence).
**Limits** The source gives no spindle length as a number and names no tools.
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