What if you could turn a few pieces of standard 3/4-inch PVC pipe into a playable Native American style triple drone flute in just minutes? With the BBF Triple Drone Tone Box, you can supply your own PVC or choose a complete kit with 15 prepared tubes for building triple drone flutes in Mid A, Mid G, Mid F#, Low E, and Low D.

The BBF Triple Drone Tone Box is a 3D-printed mouthpiece and three-chamber sound mechanism that I designed specifically for standard 3/4-inch PVC tubing. It provides the sound-producing portion of all three chambers, giving beginners, makers, and experimenters an accessible way to build playable PVC triple drone flutes without specialized flute-making tools or years of experience.

Please note: The Triple Drone Tone Box itself is not a completed playable flute. Choose the option below that best matches what you want to build.

Choose Your Kit

Triple Drone Tone Box + Block – 2 Pieces (No PVC) Includes one BBF Triple Drone Tone Box and matching block. PVC tubing is not included. This option is for builders who want to supply, prepare, drill, and tune their own standard 3/4-inch PVC tubing.

Triple Drone Full Kit – Tone Box + Block + 15 PVC Tubes Includes the Tone Box and block plus 15 prepared PVC tubes for building five triple drone flute configurations:

Mid A
Mid G
Mid F#
Low E
Low D

Each key uses three PVC chambers: a fingered melody chamber, a root/tonic drone, and a minor-third harmony drone. With three tubes for each of five keys, the complete kit contains 15 prepared PVC tubes.

Triple Drone PVC Tube Kit Only – 15 Tubes (No Tone Box) Already own a BBF Triple Drone Tone Box? This option includes all 15 prepared PVC tubes for the five configurations above. The Triple Drone Tone Box and block are not included.

Three Chambers – Melody, Root & Minor Harmony

Unlike a single flute or two-chamber drone flute, the BBF Triple Drone Tone Box uses three separate PVC chambers to create a richer, layered sound:

Melody Chamber – fingered and tuned to the minor pentatonic scale
Root/Tonic Drone – provides the root note of the flute's key
Minor-Third Drone – provides the minor third above the root, adding harmony to the minor-pentatonic melody

The five configurations are:

Mid A: A minor pentatonic melody / A drone / C harmony
Mid G: G minor pentatonic melody / G drone / B♭ harmony
Mid F#: F# minor pentatonic melody / F# drone / A harmony
Low E: E minor pentatonic melody / E drone / G harmony
Low D: D minor pentatonic melody / D drone / F harmony

This arrangement combines a playable minor-pentatonic melody chamber with a continuous root drone and minor-third harmony, creating the fuller, layered sound that makes the BBF Triple Drone distinctive.

How the BBF Triple Drone Tone Box Works

The Triple Drone Tone Box connects to three pieces of standard 3/4-inch PVC tubing and provides the mouthpiece and sound mechanism needed to produce all three voices.

By changing PVC tube lengths, finger-hole configurations, and tuning, the same Triple Drone Tone Box can create instruments in several different keys.

The BBF Triple Drone Tone Box is designed to:

Work with three standard 3/4-inch PVC tubes
Provide a sound mechanism for all three chambers
Support multiple flute lengths and tunings
Combine a playable melody chamber with two harmonic drone chambers
Make triple drone flute building more accessible to beginners
Give experienced makers a platform for experimenting with their own PVC triple drone designs

Watch the demonstration video on the demo page to see the BBF Triple Drone Tone Box in action and learn how it can be used to create your own PVC triple drone flute.

The goal is simple: make triple drone flute building more accessible, affordable, educational, and fun.

Made for Makers, Musicians & Experimenters

The BBF Triple Drone Tone Box is designed for anyone interested in Native American style triple drone flute making, PVC flute construction, DIY musical instruments, drone harmony, acoustic experimentation, and beginner flute building.

Whether you're building your first drone flute or experimenting with multi-chamber harmonies, the Triple Drone Tone Box provides an accessible platform for exploring melody, root drone, and harmony.

Construction

BBF Triple Drone Tone Boxes are 3D printed from PETG (Polyethylene Terephthalate Glycol), selected for its durability, dimensional stability, moisture resistance, and greater heat resistance than PLA.

Because each Triple Drone Tone Box is 3D printed, a subtle surface texture may be visible. This is a normal characteristic of our printing process and does not affect its operation or sound.

Learn & Explore

Additional demonstrations, playing tips, flute-making information, tuning guidance, and musical examples are available through Blue Bear Flutes and the Blue Bear Flutes YouTube channel.

Shipping

Free shipping is available within the USA and its territories, with affordable international shipping available worldwide. See our Shipping page for complete details.

Already Have a Triple Drone Tone Box?

The 15-Piece Triple Drone PVC Tube Kit is available separately for builders who already own a BBF Triple Drone Tone Box. It includes all 15 prepared tubes for the Mid A, Mid G, Mid F#, Low E, and Low D configurations. The tube-only kit does not include the Triple Drone Tone Box or block.

Start Building

Choose the Triple Drone Tone Box + Block to supply and prepare your own PVC, the Triple Drone Full Kit for the Tone Box, block, and all 15 prepared tubes, or the 15-Piece PVC Tube Kit Only if you already own the Triple Drone Tone Box.

Experiment with melody, drones, harmony, and different keys—and most importantly, make music.

BBF Triple Drone Tone Box – DIY Native American Style PVC Triple Drone Flute Kit

Name: BBF Triple Drone Tone Box – DIY Native American Style PVC Triple Drone Flute Kit
Brand: Blue Bear Flutes
Price: 75 USD
Availability: InStock

From $75.00

Style

Quantity

Additional Information
What You’ll Need
To complete your drone flute, you’ll need:
Standard 3/4 inch PVC pipe
A drill and drill bits
The supplied finger hole measurements
Sandpaper or basic finishing tools (optional)
That’s it. No specialized flute-making equipment is required.
Designed for Experimentation
One of the biggest advantages of the Tone Box system is flexibility. Because the sound mechanism remains consistent, you can experiment with:
different flute lengths
alternate tunings
custom hole spacing
ergonomic layouts
decorative finishes
travel or compact flute designs
This makes the project ideal for hobbyists, educators, makerspaces, classrooms, and anyone interested in acoustic experimentation.
Beginner Friendly
Traditional flute making can require years of experience to consistently produce a clean, stable sound mechanism. The Drone Tone Box removes much of that complexity, allowing beginners to focus on learning tuning, spacing, airflow, and musical playability without first mastering the most difficult part of flute construction.
Open Source Philosophy
This project was created to encourage creativity and accessibility in flute making. The free downloadable STL file allows makers around the world to print, experiment with, and learn from the design while developing their own instruments and ideas.
About PVC Flutes
PVC has become a popular material among flute makers and experimental instrument builders because it is:
inexpensive
lightweight
weather resistant
easy to work with
acoustically consistent
When properly tuned and designed, PVC drone flutes can produce a surprisingly warm and expressive sound while remaining extremely affordable and durable.
Compatibility
The Triple Drone Tone Box is specifically designed for standard 3/4 inch PVC tubing. Performance may vary with different pipe dimensions or manufacturers, though standard Schedule 40 PVC generally works very well.
Handmade Design Origins
Although this project uses modern materials and 3D printing technology, the underlying voicing, tuning concepts, and sound mechanism geometry come directly from decades of flute-making experience and development through Blue Bear Flutes.