Looking for some elder or a set of elder drone reeds for a four drone setup
Bob
Elder is a bit tricky. The way I learned it, elder reeds should be made while the the stems are freshly cut and green. The reeds are allowed to dry and cure before using. Few successful reeds can be made from dried and cured stems. You need to know the diameters of material you need in the finished reeds before making them. It is a home brew project, as you should have freshly cut material to work with. I know of no one selling finished reeds. Lilac, snowberry and some other pithy centered plant stems can be used as well.
That makes a lot of sense Ted, There is a lot of elder round here but id wondered how on earth folk made reeds from it as its so brittle!. Now I know.
Its a sacred wood here In Eire traditionally; Willow, Hazel and Elder; 3 aspects of the Goddess; Maiden, Mother, and Crone. Its also traditionally ‘taboo’ to burn it in the home and it is a fire hazard if you do burn it as jets of flame shoot out from the ends. I think if I remember its toxic fumes as well?
When I have made them in the past, it has been from dry elder. I have more failures than with cane, but it is free. I think there’s a video somewhere of Ronan demonstrating the technique, which is not the same as for cane reeds.
If you haven’t got sorted by the time I am less busy (ha) I could do you a set.
Sam
elder is a very common tree/bush that grows throughout the UK and is easily identified so is it that difficult to go and cut some and experiment 
That’s totally the opposite from what I was told, which was that for reeds you want to harvest your elder in early February, when the wood will be guaranteed to be at its driest. I don’t have any personal experience to support this, though to me it makes sense on the face of it.
As to letting the dried stuff rest and season, I don’t know. But about green elder I can tell you this: sometime last summer I was fiddling with a green elder branch about the length and diameter of a pencil, had stripped its bark and carefully cleaned out the pith, and in the process of drying in that prepared state it spontaneously cracked lengthwise within a couple of hours - or maybe was it a couple of days? Hours, I’m pretty sure. My memory’s a bit hazy on that, but whether hours or days, you can see the problem. It was soon, it was a surprise, and as if it was right before my eyes in any case. So if green elder’s to be rendered usable, it would seem to me that you want to leave the bark and pith intact while it seasons, for sure…maybe even seal the ends with wax to gentle the drying process. But what do I know.
Then again, this was the Sambucus canadensis common to the States, not the recommended Sambucus nigra of the UK, Ireland, and Continental Europe. I’m given to understand that even S. nigra grown in the States is not as good for reeds as what grows where it natively comes from. If that’s true, it’s a pity.
Interestingly, on Monday I noticed Sambucus nigra offered at a local nursery here in St. Paul.
I have a set of elder reeds (from dried twigs) that I made for my B set. The bass drone reed was particularly challenging. I don’t remember how may tries it took, but many. Also, they don’t seem to be as air-tight as cane so there is a trade of from air-consuption vs. tone. At first, I thought it was just my construction, but I spoke to Benedict about this too, and he was in agreement…
None the less, tone-wise… I’m glad I put the time in… one you break them in, they work always.
What about tone , how do they compare with cane and synthetic reeds? and how stable are they? Do they sound better than cane in your rig?
I’ve always wondered at people selectively breeding elder as a visual element, because I think of it as too scruffily matter-of-fact and independent-looking for the idea of “garden”. But, maybe that’s entirely the point: a touch of the Wild Thang. Anyway, this cultivar with the purpley-black leaves is a pretty striking fellow, I must admit:
The real question for us is: Will it make good reeds? 
This is interesting. How significant is the air consumption difference, could you say?
The reason to harvest elder mid-winter, is so that the sap is down, not because it is driest. Drying happens quickly. Excess sap should be avoided. Letting the sap ‘cure’ is what takes time. I have not made many elder drone reeds but have played some made by others. One maker says he made his green, as the dried sticks are brittle. I have made a number of chanter reeds from elder. I find these reeds to be more sensitive than cane to environmental changes.
Ah, thanks for the clarification. 
This topic brings to mind the most interesting aspect of modern day pipemaking (to me,) to date.
I have often wondered if the season of harvest of boxwood would have an effect on the long term hardness and stability of box in the pipes made from the wood. If the sap was “up,” as in the mid to late summer, the resulting wood, I would think, be more dense if properly dried, and if it was “down,” and nearer the root, that the upper timber would be more soft. ((?)) You got me. I found the boxwood that Patrick Olwell and I cut in October '89 to be rather soft, but I do not know if that was a result of the particular species of the wood itself, the growing conditions, the season of harvest, or some other factor entirely. In my experience, ignorance sucks if it is not bliss, and bliss wins over uncertainty every time.
check out this for to answer your question; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Tu5KKNrQG0
[Broken link fixed. Mod]
elder drones sound about 1000xs better than synthetic.
