I love the quiet, mellow sounding flat sets and have been hoping one would come up for sale for ages, but i realised i could have waited for a new one by time that happens.
So who is making B or Bb pipes this side of the atlantic? Preferably with a waiting list that isn’t too horrendous!
Living on a rock in the middle of the sea i don’t get out to many piping events to ask about these things, so if anyone has any recommendations or advice you can PM me.
Gura mie eu!
Closest to the Isle of Mann would be Bill Haneman:
I think Bill has closed his books for the time being. Check with him to be sure…
Brad Angus would be worth a look. He made Kevin Rietmann’s 5 regulator Bb set:
http://www.geocities.com/kevinrietmann/anguspipes.html
I believe his wait lists aren’t too bad.
There’s a full set in B by Brad Angus on uilleannobsession:
Ray Sloan make pipes in Flat sets B, C, C# and Concert D and he has moved to County Donegal.
http://www.raysloan.com/irishpic.gal.html
David Lim in Manchester England.
Robbie Hughes Strangford Co Down flat sets + concert D
Cheers
Ferg
Andreas Rogge makes sets in B and B flat. 3 year waiting list at present.
Tim H
There is a Seth Gallagher B half-set for sale just down the page. Great deal as he no longer makes them. I have a Gallagher B and love it. Very mellow. Michael Hubbert is making some beautiful B sets. His waiting list is getting longer all the time.
I’ve a high opinion of Seth’s B pipes (his C and D pipes too, for that matter) but I would hesitate to buy a half set in B unless I knew that Seth would be prepared to make the regulators to complete it.
Seth is actually making regulators for my B set. Of course you’d have to talk to Seth and make sure he is willing to make them for another set, but I believe he is willing to service existing B sets of his.
Bill Haneman’s B sets are fantastic, based on personal experience of playing a B chanter of his making and listening to the sound samples on his website.
That Coyne 3/4 set copy on display in the picture gallery of the site looks amazing too.
I am thinking of ordering a B set from Marc van Daal
(the low countries)
and it is not a bad idea to make two sets at the same time
I saw and heard Micky Smith playing a van Daal B set and he was very pleased
Thanks for your replies. I have seen a few sets up for sale in America, but the cost of shipping and customs, and the hassle associated with it would put me off.
I’m sure it’s been asked before, and it’s slightly off-topic, but roughly how much would it cost to ship a full set from the US to the UK? What are the customs charges involved? How do pipes fare in the hold of a plane?
Hi Kinry
Given the current exchange rates, for the euro and the dollar, you would probably be better going with a British maker.
To answer your question including insurance I would budget around $150 to get a set from the US.
The custom etc charges for the UK would add about 22% to the overall cost of the pipes plus shipping and insurance. (that is what it cost me for the chanter in B I bought from Australia).
That would make the Brad Angus B set on Uilleann Obsession $7260 + $150 = $7410.
At todays exchange rate that is £5040. 22% tax etc woud add £1109 roughly to the price so budget £6150+ for the Angus set. (Note I have an Angus Bb, and it is a nice set). That is it in my Avatar.
A basic Sloane B set would cost new 6050 euros or roughly £5500
A basic Rogge set in B or Bb would cost 6454 euros or £5800 roughly
Chris Bayley would probably provide a 4 reg set at around this price point. You would have to contact him for a current price.
I was quoted a price of £3.5k for a Ginsberg Bb set about 2 and a half years ago.
David
Thanks for that, David. Most helpful! it’s a tricky business, buying pipes, especially when you can’t get out to try many.