{make} mailing tube rain stick

My son had to make a musical instrument for his music class and decided to make a rain stick. We had done this several years ago, and I was anxious to try out my newer (and easier) method.  

This is actually ridiculously easy, it hardly needs a tutorial. 

We used a very strong mailing tube, sharp drywall nails that were short enough to not poke all the way through the tube, and a variety of dry goods to make the rain sound (rice, beans, salt).

We started hammering around the seam and eventually just nailed everywhere. After we had as many nails as we thought the tube needed, we added the dry goods and adjusted them as we tested the sound. We just put the stoppers back in the ends of the mail tube, but you might want to duct tape or glue them, especially if you have a very young child who might open them up. 

And of course you might want to decorate your rain stick when you are done! My son decided he really liked the white and silver and did not want to add anything else. 

The sound this makes is lovely and makes a great addition to our musical instrument collection.

Have you made a rain stick before?