Hello There,
These makers names don’t appear too often on here, does anyone have one of these instruments, and what is your opinion of it?
Yes I have used the ‘Search Function’ Feadoggie 
I have a Shearwater Session D, aluminium, wide bore, non tuneable. It has a mellow sound and doesn’t take too much push to get high A and B like a Susato does. Air requirements are higher though and it needs to be warm to play up to pitch. Too late at the moment to play and check the tuning but I’ve not thought it was out at all. Not as neatly made as a Chieftain etc but perfectly ok and I think very good value (£38 on Ebay). Nice sound samples on his website.
I quite like playing Bonny at Morn on it which is quite apt as they are made in Newcastle I believe.
Yes, I like it (and no connection with the maker).
OF
Sometimes a lack of words speaks volumes. It may also mean that these whistles are not marketed or sold broadly and may be seen regionally more often than not.
I am sure that each of these makers has their fans.
Howard is one maker that I have found interesting. A high whistle was offered briefly. I got to play one and I rather liked it. I’ve owned a Howard low whistle. It came with a first generation head which was a bit difficult to handle. I bought a couple of the second generation Howard heads once they were offered and replaced the first head. I liked that set-up. The sound is rather unique. It is one of those whistles that seems to enjoy a love/hate reputation among players.
Feadoggie
Makes sense, though I see dozens of listings on Ebay (e.g.) for Alba and Shearwater. And not a few for Howards. So they’re certainly widely available.
I have an old Howard high d (all brass). Interesting? … A very pretty whistle and well made. Strong tone, almost strident. I call it the “tea kettle” on account of how hard you have to blow to get it to sound a good strong tone, and if you don’t you end up sounding like a kettle not quite up to steam!; you also need to push to get the second octave to sound. I can’t say I hate the sound, though it’s definitely not my favorite; I don’t love the sound as much as some others. It’s not as facile or agile a whistle as other similar whistles I play often. Of course, a sampling size of “one” doesn’t mean a whole lot, and can’t really be used to make statements about a maker’s whole line. YWMV.
Cheers
I have an Alba vibe low d. It takes a lot of air, but I played flute for years so I’m OK with that. It is big and loud and I love it. All that being said, though, I think I should have started with a Dixon low d as it has a much easier reach and lower air requirements.
A little late, but to chime in: I’ve owned several Albas, and while they take a lot of air, I love the sound. I have found them very expressive and easy to lean into (until you run out of air). I have found the jump between octaves to be a bit unpredictable at times. I still have a low/mezzo G in the bag, and sold a non-tunable high D that I instantly regretted the moment I did. The price is usually pretty reasonable, and they come up on ebay/CF occasionally for under $100.