Aluminium bells

[Ben Willetts]

Mike Chester, on aluminium handbells:
> I assume the main benefits are that there is less weight
> in the bells of comparitive note bronze ones.

Yes, quite considerably less weight. A Malmark aluminium 36C is about the
same weight as a Malmark bronze 31A or thereabouts. If you're going to have
bells that size, you probably want to wave them about and show off a bit,
and being able to lift them helps!

That's more or less the only advantage of them. As you said, there is
little difference in the price. As for the sound, the aluminium ones are
rougher, but that's not necessarily a bad thing in a bass sound, and anyway,
once you get down that low you aren't really intending to be delicate, are
you? :)

Ben