AS the clock strikes 8am, villagers of Kampung Sumangkap in Kudat district  never fail to rise to the continuous sound of metal smacking. This noisy small village is  about three hours drive from the State capital (Kota Kinabalu). For some, hearing the sound of metal smacking first thing in the morning can be unbearable and  a nuisance, but for  these  “disturbers of  peace”, who  are  gong makers from the Rungus community, they are eking out a living as well as keeping  the tradition of gong making alive.