I’m looking for a first tin whistle and after some research am deciding between a Feadog Pro “D” or a Susato Kildore V-Series adjustable “D”. Is it worth paying the extra $25 to start on a Susato or am I fine on the Feadog? I am listeing to Spider Stacy of The Pogues.
Thanks.
I would recommend the Feadog over the Susato for a beginner. The Susato is not an easy whistle to play at first. The Feadog is a bit challenging, too, but less so (don’t blow too hard and you’re fine). The cheap whistles easiest to play in my experience are the Sweetone (but it sounds yukky), the Clare, and the Walton Mellowtone/Walton C.
Hello Lecraw and welcome to the boards 
I’ve only been at the whistle for about four months myself but it does not take very long to get the hang of it if you practice regularly. Both whistles you mentioned would be quite capable of learning on with enough good qualities in the sound to grow with your increasing skills. They have very different sound qualities though from each other and which you would prefer could only be a guess on my part. My advise for what it’s worth would be to use the search function of this forum. Put in keywords of Feadog pro and susato very small bore to read the many discussions about those (and other) whistles. The Chiff and Fipple main website also has a very usefull section on inexpensive whistles which you would also find helpful. Best of luck and enjoy the journey.
My understanding is that Spider Stacy plays Generations, but those have quality control issues, so the Feadog is actually better. However, if you’re a beginner, everyone says to use a Sweetone. So, I would start on the Sweetone and then graduate to the Feadog. But I’m just going off of what I’ve been reading on this site and on this forum.
BTW, Spider Stacy is my major influence, as well. I saw The Pogues in L.A. a couple months ago and they were awesome.
I’d say go with a cheapy (feadog). But, if you are willing to pay a little more than the amount for a cheapie, I’d say check out the Freeman tweaked whistles. Good luck.
-Casey
My first whistle was a feadog D and i highly recomend one, i still play it regularly to this day, its not a bad whistle, and best of all, ITS CHEAP!!!
I think bad Generations are rare, and the quality-control issues are overstated on the chiffboard. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend a Generation to a beginner.
I’d recomend a Jerry Freeman tweaked whistle and in particular his Mellow Dog. This is a reliable, nice sounding whistle which will serve you well.
I wouldn’t want a Feadog as a first whistle. It needs ‘taming’ which might be frustrating to a beginner.
The Susato is not for the timid. I like them but you need to give them some wellie for them to really shine. I don’t think they are for most beginners.
For a cheapie one I like is the Walton Mellow D and I have given them to a number of beginners. This is the whistle that Jerry converts into his famous ‘Mellow Dog’.
Personally I wish someone had told me to start with a Burke!
Second the motion for the MellowDog. It doesn’t look like a hand-voiced professional instrument, but it is.
This is spot-on advice. Except I’ve never played a Clare so, you know, I’m taking his word.
Most of the youngsters around here start with nickel Generatons and they learn just fine. They don’t know there’s anything better.
I’d highly recommend Feadog for learning the Pogues tunes. It’s what I learned on and I played a lot of Pogues in the beginning (still do). You’ll find that you can blast away on songs like “Streams of Whiskey” and “Boys from Co. Hell” with no problem. 
I haven’t been as happy with the way my Susatos perform for the Pogues songs…I don’t know why, just me I guess.
Spending more than $10 on anything to play Pogues tunes strikes me as similar washing down Barbecue ‘n’ Slaw with a very expensive champagne. It just doesn’t fit.
And I love the Pogues, and BBQ too.
I’d go for a Sweetone to learn on. I first had a Feadog when I wanted to first give whistling a try and gave up on it. Its not a forgivng whistle to learn on. I later bought a black Clark with the diamond pattern and it was sooo much easier to play. My Clark eventually started to give me trouble (probably just clogging which at the time I had no solution for) and I went to the Sweetone and even though I own a Shaw, Dixon, a Feadog and another black Clark I play the Sweetone virtually all the time.
Lisdoonvarna
I think a Clarke original would also be a terrific starter whistle. Wish I had had one.
I would get a Feadog. I have several including the Pro. The standard brass Feadog is very nice if you do what Bloomfield said and breath into the whistle don’t blow. It does not take a lot of pressure to play beautifully. I would also recommend a Waltons C as an easy to play beginners whistle. I also play generations in all keys and both nickel and brass. I have had no problems with any of them that was due to the whistle. I have a Sweetone, a Meg, and a Clarke original that I never play. I just prefer the others. The Susato is a fine whistle but is not as forgiving as some of the others mentioned here. I have other more expensive whistles that are wonderful but you don’t need to spend all that to learn to play.
Ron
Have you ever played a wind instrument before? If no, I would suggest sticking with something like the feadog (though I don’t personally care for them), Generations, Oaks, etc. The Susato is really not a whistle for beginners, as others have already indicated.
~Crysania
Thanks for all of the great input. I am going with the Feadog to save on $ - my follow-up question would be does it matter if I buy a Feadog Pro or regualar Feadog? The Feadog Pro is Nickel only; the Feadog Original comes in either Brass or Nickel. Do they both play about the same?
Thanks
Yes. Subtle differences exist but probably don’t matter much at first. Remember to blow very lightly — it’s a good whistle to teach you breath control.
One thing about the nickel Lecraw is that the very smooth texture makes the whistles shiny and beautiful yes, but also a bit slippery in the fingers. Some people don’t mind it, but I personally prefer the feel of the brass.
Get whichever you can get sooner. I have two few stock feadogs and a pro, and honestly I don’t think there is any significant difference between any of them.
If it shrieks, blow softer. If it still shrieks, blow harder. If those things don’t work, ask someone who sounds good on “cheapies” to try it out. I’ve had plenty of “unplayable” whistles that became playable when I learned to play sensitively.
I have a couple of freeman tweaked whistles that I’d be happy to sell for $10 each. If improving one’s technique isn’t easy enough, you can always throw money at the problem. Or rather, at me