How to Make a Highlighter Kazoo
Transform an empty highlighter marker into a buzzing musical kazoo by hollowing the barrel, cutting a resonator hole, and taping a vibrating plastic membrane.
This guide shows how to make a highlighter kazoo in 15 minutes. Start with disassemble the highlighter; follow the safety notes and step checkpoints below.
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- Read the tools, materials, safety notes, and steps below for free.
- Tap See 20-second demo if you want to understand it first.
- Tap Start Camera Coach when you want hands-free help, or Voice-only if you do not want to use the camera.
- Allow camera and microphone. Point your phone at the work; the coach watches your progress and tells you the next step.
🧰 Required Tools & Equipment
- ✓ Needle-nose pliers
- ✓ Utility knife or craft scalpel
- ✓ Cutting mat
- ✓ Ruler
- ✓ Scissors
📦 Materials & Supplies
- ✓ Large plastic highlighter marker
- ✓ Thin plastic shopping bag or plastic wrap
- ✓ Electrical tape or scotch tape
- ✓ Paper towels
⚠️ Safety Checkpoints & Warnings
- • Cut strictly away from fingers and hands on a non-slip cutting mat when carving the plastic barrel.
- • Wear disposable gloves or handle ink cores with paper towels to prevent staining skin.
- • Do not put the highlighter barrel to your mouth until thoroughly rinsed and dried of all ink residue.
📋 Step-by-Step Guide (6 Steps)
Disassemble the Highlighter
Remove the cap and pull the felt writing nib out of the marker tip using pliers. Grip the plastic back end-plug with pliers and wiggle it firmly until it pops free from the barrel. Pull the saturated felt ink reservoir out from the hollow body and discard it onto paper towels.
- • Highlighter is completely stripped into an empty, hollow plastic tube.
- • Nib, ink core, and end plug are separated on the table.
- • Squeezing the plastic barrel too hard with pliers and cracking the tube.
Wash and Dry the Tube
Flush the empty plastic tube under warm running water until no color comes out. Shake out excess water and swab the interior thoroughly with a twisted paper towel. Ensure both ends and the interior walls are completely dry before cutting.
- • Water runs completely clear through the barrel.
- • Plastic barrel interior shows no remaining ink smudges.
- • Leaving moisture inside the barrel, which prevents tape from adhering later.
Cut the Resonator Sound Hole
Place the barrel flat on the cutting mat and mark a rectangular window roughly 0.5 inches (12 mm) long on the upper top side, about one inch from the mouthpiece end. Use the utility knife to slowly score and cut out the rectangular opening, deburring any sharp plastic edges.
- • A clean, burr-free rectangular or oval hole cut cleanly into one side of the marker barrel.
- • Barrel remains structurally rigid without collapsing.
- • Pressing down violently instead of making multiple light scoring passes with the knife.
Cut and Position the Membrane
Cut a small square of thin plastic film measuring roughly 1 by 1 inch (2.5 x 2.5 cm). Center the plastic membrane directly over the cut sound hole so it completely covers the opening with overlap on all sides. Lay it flat across the hole without pulling it completely rigid.
- • Plastic film square rests fully covering the sound hole cutout.
- • Film has slight slack rather than drum-tight tension.
- • Stretching the membrane too tight like a drum skin, which prevents the buzzing vibration.
Tape and Secure the Membrane
Secure the top and bottom edges of the membrane to the marker barrel using narrow strips of tape, leaving the central window exposed. Wrap tape firmly around the perimeter to seal the sides airtight while keeping the vibrating area over the hole unobstructed.
- • Tape wraps tightly around the barrel edges holding the membrane flat.
- • The center of the cut sound hole shows exposed, un-taped vibrating plastic film.
- • Covering the entire cutout with tape, blocking the membrane from vibrating.
Test and Tune the Kazoo
Place the narrow tip of the highlighter loosely against your lips and hum a steady note from your vocal cords (say 'doooo' or 'tuuuu') into the tube. Listen for the distinct raspy buzz as the membrane vibrates with your vocal sound waves.
- • Membrane visually vibrates and ripples visibly over the hole when humming.
- • Audible loud, crisp kazoo buzzing matches vocal pitch changes.
- • Blowing air like a whistle instead of humming with vocal cords.
Credit: inspired by an original tutorial by Landen Purifoy — watch the original on YouTube.
Don’t have everything?
- No Plastic wrap? Wax paper or thin baking parchment
- No Needle-nose pliers? Standard slip-joint pliers or a flathead screwdriver to pry the end cap