A local musician who owns one of my whistles, proposed and idea to me, and I wanted to get peoples input on it.
This is not an ad campaign, but rather an overall idea that could apply to anyone… so don’t go worrying already!
Some whistles that use an anodized coating or something of the like, end up with a VERY smooth surface.
Now this gentleman approached me at a local ‘concert’ and showed me what he had done to a whistle he bought from me.
He had taken FFF emery cloth and very lightly ‘roughed up’ the finish on the ‘back side’ of the whistle. (where your thumbs suppoprt the whistle) And the way he did it, it was uniform and actually looked kind of cool…
I’ll be darned if it doesn’t help hold the whistle in place while playing, and he had done it to all the whistles he owns of every kind, not just the ‘extra smooth finish’ ones.
I’ll also be darned if I didn’t do it to my own whistles the minute I got home!
What do you all think of that? And does anyone think that would be a nifty feature? Or a feature to offer???
I think it would be a good thing to offer as an option. Metal whistles and sweaty hands aren’t always a friendly combination.
Bill (Serpent Music) put a nice “satin finish” on the copper whistle he made me. It makes for a good “no-slip” surface.
I have actually heard of folks using part of a bicycle inner tube on an M&E polymer flute to assist the grip. On the old Nicholson flutes, a piece of sharkskin was affixed to the wood for the same purpose.
I’ve been offering the satin finish for a while on the Village Smithy, and have begun doing it on the copper and brass whistles. Right now, I’m looking at a “machine-turned” finish as well. The satin really looks great with the engraving. I do it like this:
Longitudinal strokes with 320 SiC paper to break the shine
Rotate instrument while pulling 600 SiC down it.
Reverse rotation, same thing
Longitudinal with 1500 SiC
Rotate and reverse with fresh 1500 SiC
Do the engraving
Finish with rotate and reverse with worn 1500 SiC
It gives an almost “pearl” finish, and is easier to hold than the smooth-polished barrels. See this picture: http://www.serpentmusic.com/tbrassserpent.html for a good example. You can click on the thumbnail to see a high-definition closeup.
A technique of satin surfacing I’ve had on two mountain bicycles, one out of titanium tubing, the other from aluminium (case of MtBOA:
bead (NOT sand)-blasting after welding but before anodizing.
The surface is grainy, with some “grip”, yet smooth.
It doesn’t reatin dust and dirt as sand-blasting does. Eventual dirt wipes off with a sponge just like on smooth metal.
The manufacturers claim this treatment actually hardens the surface.
Apparently, the surface is much more scratch resistant than polished.
Colour anodizing looks even better than on smooth surfaces.
I know this surfaces were subcontracted, not made directly by the bike workshops.
Metal whistles are made with much thicker tubing than high-end bicycles, so I guess it could be applicable, but maybe before drilling the tone holes.
I guess one at least of this manufacturers would share the subcontractor with a whistle-maker.
FWIW-- I have a Tenor recorder ( plastic Yamaha) which is pretty heavy and tended to slip in my hands. I made some horozontal grooves on the back side where my right thumb sits using a Dremel, and now it is a LOT easier to hold. Same idea. I don’t really know how necessary this is on a smaller whistle though
On a heavy, slippery alloy whistle I own, I’ve added a few thin (5 mm) strips of 3M brand rubber corrugated non-slip self-adhesive. It’s the white kind marketed for safety in bathtubs, but also as “grip” for sailboards and boats.
There’s also a gray variation of same tape, but it’s a tad more agressive to the skin. Even this I prefer to the plastic clamp provided with Susato whistles or Aulos recorders, which for some reason I don’t like in contact with my right thumb. However, I’ve seen some people, like my girl-friend, love this piece of plastic.
PS: edited to ad please do NOT tape such material to a wooden, or painted, or coated, whistle. You’ll strip (scalp ?) the surface of your instrument when trying to unglue this extremely sticky adhesive.
[ This Message was edited by: Zubivka on 2003-02-24 07:12 ]
On 2003-02-24 01:18, JohnPalmer wrote:
Does this mean that you might be going back into the whistle business?
JP
Yes it does in fact. I still have a ways to go before ‘opening the doors’ again so to speak, but I have everything in the works to complete or replace those orders that were either incomplete, or poorly fashioned. I must take care of thos before I even consider opening back up to the public again… it’s only right that I do so.
Thanks for all the really cool input everybody… I think I just might go ahead and offer some kind of ‘roughage’ (pun intended ) when the time comes.
On 2003-02-26 05:27, Easily_Deluded_Fool wrote:
No whistles were harmed in the transmission of this communication.
But quite a few pixels were
BTW, do you know the sailors’ bottleneck knot? It’s primarily used to get a handle on jugs, or cool the white wine outboard the ship . It is quite ornamental and very secure for such tying as you did.
On 2003-02-26 04:09, Zubivka wrote:
A good point for Serpent’s steel whistles is they may be heavy, but you can always stick magnets as grips >
Hey! My steel whistles are no heavier than your average billy-club, and they serve that dual purpose, too! The longer ones are also suitable as security-locks on sliding doors, medium-strength pry-bar for stubborn windows, and pluggers for planting tomatoes! If you have a narrow closet, the Serpent Low D Chromoly could be just what you need for hanging those pesky heavy winter coats - no more broken closet-rods! Get a Serpent Low-D Chromoly and solve your wardrobe problems in musical style!
serpent
