The actual bell I ring is the old Maidenhead Town Crier’s Bell which was last used in 1922. The present owner kindly donated it back to the new town crier so we are ressurecting a piece of local 19th Century heritage for the 21st Century.
It is tuned to ‘D’ (according to my digital guitar tuner) and the mouth has a diameter of 6 inches.
The bell itself has a loose handle and needs a good clean, so I popped out for some Brasso this morning.
This is a ‘turned and blasted’ bell which means that after it was cast, the bell was shot blasted, but then the shoulder (directly beneath the handle) and rim were both turned on a lathe to make them smooth. This gives two distinct textures on the bell’s exterior.