OK, all my ducks are in a row now, and I’m almost ready to begin production of my new whistles.
I would like to get opinions as to whether most people prefer a plain looking whistle, or something with a bit more decoration.
Specifically - I can either go with a thin brass tuning slide and brass trim rings, or make the tuning slide into the tubing itself (like a Water Weasel) and skip the trim rings.
Plastic trim rings are also an option, but I think shiny metal looks better… and looks are the only purpose of trim rings, so I want to go for maximum effect! 
I also have the option to use either metal or plastic for the windway sleeve.
I know some people don’t like the taste of metal and prefer plastic, and plastic or plastic lined windway sleeves are somewhat less prone to clogging from condensation… but not immune to it.
Right now I’m thinking that a cream colored CPVC whistle with brass trim would be a real eye catcher… I just don’t like how much my whistles look like Susatos with the black plastic trim.
An added bonus to using a thin brass tuning slide is that it gives me the option to make my whistle heads interchangeable between my tubes and factory made metal tubes… how’s that for a neat feature? 
Of course a Water Weasel style whistle is a bit easier to make, and would therefore be somewhat cheaper, but I’m thinking that something a bit more visually appealing would be more popular… even though the sound or playability wouldn’t be a bit different either way.
Speak up now if you want your input to be taken into consideration with a new line of high-end whistles… your opinions matter very much to me!
I have no illusions that I’m going to get rich from whistle making, and that’s not why I’m doing it in the first place.
I just love the instrument and the music, and want to do what I can to get beautifully made instruments into the hands of those who share that love.
Build it and they will buy. I myself would prefer the brass trim. The first thing is a good sounding whistle after that I like a nice looking whistle. You could make several models also because I have never seen all of us agree on anything yet.
Ron
Definitely the thin brass tuning slide with brass trim rings.
Both features are worth the extra effort.
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People appreciate a good-looking whistle.
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Being able to put the whistlehead on other tubes will appeal to many.
However, if that means there’ll be sigificantly more clogging, you may want to rethink. If clogging isn’t an issue, I would say, go with the brass details.
Best wishes,
Jerry
Ditton on what Jerry said. 
Frank
Me too. (read: brass)
Sonja
What seems to be the best combination in regards to best looking/most functional is to use the thin brass tuning slide and brass trim rings where the ends meet at the tuning joint and a brass trim ring at the end of the tube… but skip the brass windway sleeve in favor of a PVC one.
My tuning slides are much higher on the tube than most, and the combination of brass trim rings and a brass windway sleeve is just too much brass in one place.
How much would the brass add to the price? I assume it’s purely cosmetic, so I would vote for keeping it all plastic. There are worse things than having a whistle that looks like a Water Weasel.
Charlie,
If I’ve understoon Gary correctly, the brass would fit standard tubes; the non-brass would not, in case you’d like to try the whistlehead on a Feadog, Generation or whathaveyou tube.
Yep, the brass tuning slide would allow the head of my Eb, D & C whistles to also fit standard 13mm (Eb & D) metal tubes.
Turning down PVC that thin would make it waaay too fragile.
And to answer Chas - the brass trim wouldn’t add very much to the cost.
Sheesh… it seems that I’m barely creating a small ripple in the pond regarding interest in my new whistles.
Maybe I need to post a few pics to convince everyone that they actually exist, and aren’t just poor quality hacks that belong in the trash can. :roll:
Everyone likes pictures. Sound clips, too (and I know you can play a whistle).
My impression is that people have a high regard for the quality of your whistles.
Best wishes,
Jerry
Gary, I think there’s lots of interest. Maybe most people are kinda like me in this respect. I would rather trust your instinct and expertise in whistle design rather than have you consider my own opinions, which would be of dubious value. I really want to see what you come up with on your own, and whenever I think I can afford it, I’ll buy one. As Ron said, “Build it and they will buy.”
Well, pics would of course be nice, but don’t think we aren’t interested just because we are not flooding you with emails and postings …
I don’t know anything about whistle making, so apart from purely personal preferences about specific things you ask about, I can’t say anything. I would love to be able to see and touch and play a prototype and tell you thousand things I’d like (which you’d probably get very tired of very soon ), but, alas, I’m on the other side of the world.
So, you build, and we will buy and review. The market is far from being saturated.
Sonja
Don’t matter to me. I’m sure whatever you do will be the product of serious thought and contemplation. I’d be happy to test them for you.
Gary-- do you have prototype pics of your two design options? Posting those would give people a better idea of what you have in mind, and probably generate some interest. You might actually consider offering BOTH options if that’s not too tough-- customers like a choice. Once you have whistles in production and members of the board try them out, they’ll post their reviews ( very nerve wracking waiting for those to appear-- trust me on that…). At that point, your whistles will speak for themselves. If people like them, you’ll sell them. If not, back to the drawing board! Paul
Gary, I was going to say just go with your own gut-feeling, untill I read what Paul wrote. I think he’s got the right idea.
~Larry
Gary,
I also agree with Paul. If it’s not too much trouble to have more than one design that would be the way to go.
Different strokes for different folks ya know.
Cheers,
Kathy 
If the two versions of the whistle play and sound exactly the same, offering both versions may not make any difference in how many people buy the whistles.
If you make the version that most people seem to prefer, that may not prevent even one person from buying the whistle, just because they would have bought the other design had it been available. The question is, will having two versions available actually result in more people buying the whistles?
Just a quick update on the status of my new whistles.
I can’t find a supplier of brass tubing in the necessary sizes, so the fancy looking whistls with brass tuning slides and trim rings will have to be put on hold indefinitely… I may never find a suitable source of brass tubing.
Don’t think for even a moment that I’m going to let that little problem stand in the way of progress though! 
I’m best known for being a retrofitter of cheapie tubes anyway, and that may well be the niche I have to remain in for a while longer.
Those of you who are familiar with my discontinued ‘Copperheads’ would be amazed at the improvements I’ve made in my design since I’ve got all the bugs worked out of my new shop setup!
Instead of trying to make a complete PVC whistle with a head that can be removed and put on a cheapie tube, maybe I should instead build retrofit heads and complete whistles separately… that would certainly be easier! 
I also have to admit that I still prefer my retrofit heads on cheapie tubes over my complete PVC whistles.
It’s not the difference in sound (which is very slight), but the difference in the feel of the thin metal tubes that I prefer over the bulkier PVC tubes.
I still can’t make metal tubes that are any better in tune than most cheapies, and it’s just not possible to make them any cheaper… so I still stand by my choice not to even bother with making metal tubes for keys that are already cheaply mass produced.
And to those who have asked about special tunings like ‘just intonation’ and the like… at least for now, I’m going to leave that to Ronaldo Reyburn since he’s already doing such a great job at it.
I still think there are enough people with a drawer full of good tubes with junk heads on them to keep me busy retrofitting for quite a while… but the convertible whistle isn’t something I’m going to give up on ever making!
The complete PVC soprano D is also ready to roll (without the brass trim), and Eb-D-C sets could still be made in much the same way as Water Weasel sets.
So, I haven’t given up… I’m just extremely overworked at my regular job right now, and don’t have much time or energy left over to do much else.
Speaking of which, it’s 3:00 am here now, and I really should be getting some much needed sleep! 
That’s what happened to Ronaldo(Reyburn) when I asked him to make a new tube for Sindt A head piece. So I asked John about my several requests and John offered to send Ronaldo the proper tubing if necessary.
After that I let Ronaldo know the issue and he said he would talk to John,etc.,I don’t know the details after this, but Ronaldo finally found the source to get the tubings to make the tube for me.
It was also a good opportunity to know the difference between the word ‘tube’ and ‘tubing’. 