Luk Khang Wo (Humming Top) — a 4-6 × 6.5-7.5 cm Bamboo Drum Capped with 0.5 cm Boards, a 20 cm Spindle, a 0.5×2.5 cm Sound Slot Cut at 45°, a 15 cm Launcher and 50 cm String; Hums "Wo" as It Spins

"If the top spins but makes no sound, it has not been thrown hard enough." (Sirindhorn Anthropology Centre, author not named, CC BY 4.0)

Choose bamboo 4-6 cm across and cut a piece about 6.5-7.5 cm long. Cut boards about 0.5 cm thick, larger than the bamboo piece, glue them tightly over both ends and leave to dry for at least 1 day. Then pare the boards round, flush with the bamboo, with a knife.

Drill a hole through the centre of both ends, in line. Shave a spindle about 20 cm long, the upper part the size of the hole and the lower part larger than the hole, and push the thin end in from below. Cut a sound slot in the body about 0.5 cm wide and 2.5 cm long, and pare the left edge of the slot at 45°, slanting to the right.

Shave a stick that fits the hand, about 15 cm long, and drill a hole at the top for the string. Cut a string about 50 cm long.

Photos of a real luk khang wo (Sirindhorn Anthropology Centre, author not named, CC BY 4.0)

Wind the string clockwise round the spindle in neat turns, leaving about a hand-span free, and thread the end through the hole in the launcher. Pull the string with one hand while pushing the stick away with the other, hard and fast together; the top drops to the ground and spins, humming "wo".

Northern tung poles had long slots cut along the bamboo internodes, slanting in like a wedge, not aligned from one internode to the next, so they hummed whichever way the wind blew; the luk khang wo came from making these tung poles. Take care with the knife when paring and shaving. Source: Sirindhorn Anthropology Centre, Traditional Objects of Everyday Use database, "ลูกข่างโว้", author not named (CC BY 4.0 licence). **Limits** The source does not name the wood for the end boards or the launcher.