Just curious to knwo where if one is having difficulties getting and/or holding a good hard D note, where is the first place you’d want to address this in the reed scrape? I’ve been told it might be down near the bottom of the V as this is where the majority of the lower frequencies live. Also perhaps going to more of a U shaped scrape than a V.
Thoughts?
Bri~
Howaya Brian,
Have you tried jamming gick in the bottom of the bore? Try sticking in a small bit of blue tack or poster putty until the note is in tune as a hard D… forget the soft D… it’s an abomination. This will allow you to play an in tune hard D every time and should ease the playing of it… makes it more reliable y’know?
PD.
Right…it should do that yes.
But with my chanter, the only thing that happens when any type of impliment is inderted in the bell such as a scrap of paper, or a twist tie or small strip of plastic is a wicekd and un-curable auto-cran. No hard D, no soft D, just a sick, warbling, wonky tone. The only way to get it back is to remove whatever is shoved in the bell.
I’ve made a couple of reeds now that actually had very very nice hard D’s to them when they were first assembled and playing (before fine tuning) but as they settled in for a few days and the scrape was thinned out to achieve a non-arm busting playing pressure it seemed to disappear.
Sometimes it sounds like it’s almost there but I just can’t get it to break and hold that good solid hard tone… 
P.S. I was never able to get any sort of hard D whatsoever with the makers own reeds…
I understand the D is in the lips. Wider, narrower, ect. tunes it. The V, near where the staple ties on, is where you’d adjust the E. Upper and lower octave D is a matter of single or double vibration at the lips. Throat size, and openning at the bell, like D’Arcy says, is more responsible for the hard D. Of course the experts will want to weigh in.
There’s usually more than one element involved to a solution. 
OK Lar,
So the books I’ve got seem to mention a direct relationship between the width of the reed lips and the bell opening. Perhaps a slightly wider reed then? If putting something in the bell to reduce it’s volume (for just the D note, not a rush for example) that would bring the bell diameter in line closer to what the reed is in theory right? Or have I got this backwards?
B~
Sounds like you need to get on the weights and play at a higher pressure ya big blouse 
Seriously though, this might cure your problems… in your (most likely) dry climate and high elevation you’ll need a heavier reed to cope with these issues… atleast a more open reed.
PD.
Yeah, I know I’m a big whimp!
Seriously I’ve not been able to sound that hard D no matter how open the elevation was on the maker’s reed before - I thought it was entirely in how the reed itself was made. I’ll try a little wider slip for my next endeavour and see what happens.
…
I’ve found I can cure autocran by just moving the bridle up to open the reed just a tiny bit. This is when changes in humidity have caused a previously functioning reed to go out of whack.
djm
the only time i get the autocran is when the lips are too close togather. it takes only the slightest bridal movement to stop it.
best, tansy
With my chanter it doesn’t make much difference how much elevation the reed has - if there’s something in the bell, and even when rushes are inserted (as per the direction of the maker) the gurgle is almost impossible to stop. I’ve tried rushing the upper bore with a bit of phone wire a while back and didn’t really notice a difference then either.
I have a little cane left so I’m just going to have a go at a few more reeds. I’ll be watching the width when I cut the slips as I’ve been shooting for between 0.49 and 0.50". Maybe I’ll try something in the 0.52-0.54 range and see what happens there.
B~
I’m with Kevin on this one. The area above the back D (about 3/4" above) is the magic spot. And the entire upper bore from the throat to the back D. I had a chanter design that only got a hard D on holidays when the moon was full and the reed was scraped “just so”. I made another reamer that was about .007" smaller from the throat to the back D and about .010" in that area just above the back D.
The hard D is easy as pie now and very stable.
In your case I would try a long guitar string going up to and maybe even into the throat.
Bob
For my chanter:
The things I had to do to get hard D on my Hillmann chanter was to sleeve the throat with a 5 mm piece of brass tubing and a roll or 2 of paper in it as well.
Throat size has a big effect on hard D.
The next area was just above the thumb hole. I made 2 Vs of light guage of G guitar string (Vs ended up being slightly longer than an inch long when bent.
I also have a piece of cardboard bent into a U as well as some poster putty stuck in the bell of the chanter to tune it to the drones (it eases hard D as well.
Reed:
Open the lips until the auto-crann stops and try an A cut with a (possibly) slightly higher bag pressure.
Widen the V at the base of the scrape next to the staple eye to a U shape, a little at a time, trying often and changing the “stuffing” in the bottom of the chanter.
Stop when it’s almost acting like you want it to and play a week.
Remember, anything done close to one note can have effects on other notes, especially a 5th and octave.
Good luck.
Nanohedron would want you to consider sticking an IUD in the throat for a hard D.
Actually, it’s a strand of plastic coated telphone wire I use, wound back and forth. It wedges in place without scratching the bore. Trim to about 1½" long ±.
I forgot the first test of any reed for any problem.
With your hand cream freshly rubbed into the pad of your forefinger, close the lip (in the open position) by placing that forefinger over the lip opening. Suck on the staple and you should be able to stick your tongue on the bottom of the staple and hold a vaccuum for a short time (the longer, the better).
Cure any side/wrapping/reed seat leaks before trying anything else.
When the weather changes, the sides may decide to leak from the reed moisture changes.
I usually use either Elmer’s white or carpenter’s glue by putting a drop on my finger, then drawing a thin line from binding to just before the tip on both sides, then letting dry until transparent.
Traditionalists will use beewax for this part. 
I seal the wrapping with real beeswax I got out of a jar of honey with the comb still in in that I bought just for the wax. The other stuff I bought at other places looked too white and didn’t taste sweet at all…
I scrub the binding with it, then take a scrap of cane and polish it shiny (melt it it).
You guys are scaring me! 
It all seems so imprecise and jury rigged for such an expensive instrument. Do they all need such adjustments?
-brett
Welcome to the dark side. May the Si be with you…
What is so difficult about learning the Uilleann pipes? 
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You can solve the problem by getting your self a P.Hunter concert chanter,
the bottom D is scary enough alone, never mind the hard D which
once or twice I played when I’ve felt really bold, its a scary “Stick” 
the softer the reed the harder it is to obtain a hard D I find. 
I agree with Sean that the problem might be that the throat is too wide, especially if
the chanter in question is your penny chanter. I posted something a while back about
having the same problem with my PC and how I solved it by dangling a short piece of
string down the throat. I was never able to get a hard D with my Daye reed until I
added the string, and now I can get a really nice hard D without much effort at all.
The gurgling autocran problems also disappeared. Just put a piece of string down the
throat and leave a bit of it in the reed seat so the reed will hold it in place. Credit for
this simple suggestion goes to Ted Anderson who suggested it to me. Good luck!
–Bob