I was wondering do people play chanters that are keyless without key blocks… I have a lot of 1.5" wood and was going to make some keyless chanters, but was curious.. Does anyone play keyless chanters??? I know I have to have my Cnat key and personally without the blocks it kinda feels like playing a stick 
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There’s nothing wrong with making a basic, low-cost beginner’s chanter with no blocks. Several makers have offered these in the past.
djm
i play a c.roberts chanter with only a cnat key, no other blocks for other keys..
its super fine, but im allready thinking about my new chanter
My chanter is completely keyless.
My (first) pipe maker’s chanter is also a Charles Roberts chanter with a C key and no other key blocks. He has no use for any of the other keys and the blocks get in the way.
All I’ve ever played were keyless chanters so far.
Is that C- natural key mostly for the high-octave C ?
I just cross-finger the lower C-natural.
The key is supposed to be just for second octave Cnat but some pipers (Paddy Keenan for instance) use it in the lower octave for quick BCD triplets. If you’re fast, you can get away with it. However, if you’re not fast it can backfire on you. It’s better to stick with cross-fingered Cnat in the lower octave.
Cross-fingering Cnat in the upper octave is possible but I can’t do it.
I tend to use the Cnat key for slow airs ornamentation quite a lot. Otherwise, it stays where it is and looks pretty. Useful, when needed and sounds every so slightly different to Cnat by cross fingering too (or it could be my imagination).
My first chanter by Brendan O’ Hare [Belfast] was a D keyless chanter which had blocks for keys.
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My first key was an Fnat with a hole and pin to attach a future chanter.
Cheers,
DavidG
OK… get in the way of what??
His turning gouge.
My Williams D chanter has no key blocks, no keys. There is a setup for a stop key:
Most pipers play keyless…fullstop. I’ve rarely required a C# key but find my Fnat key useful on one or two occassions. Other than that, the majority (99.999999999%) of tunes are played keyless. Fully-keyed chanters are just sticks with expensive and mostly unnecessary decorations. Not that I wouldn’t want one myself. It’s just that everyone has grown used to seeing chanters with blocks and keys that keyless chanters look kind of naked without them. The majority of people owning keyed chanters have enough trouble playing ‘normal’ tunes, let alone trying to play ‘keyed’ tunes.
Cheers,
DavidG
It depends on the repertoire. I use Cnat key in about 10% of the tunes I play. I use the G# in another 10%. I only use the Fnat in one tune. I don’t have a Bb key… yet 
When I say keyless I do mean no keys and no blocks to ever add keys… like the one a couple post’s above
Yes, I realise that. I mean that most pipers, even though they have keys, probably never use them or need to use them, so in reality, keyless chanters should be more prevelent than they are, particulary with the prices of pipes these days, a chanter with no keys, and no blocks for keys, would be ideal for someone on a budget.
Adding keys to a chanter can stuff up the tuning, so in reality a chanter should be designed from the outset with keys or never to have keys. So a no-block chanter would indicate its internal dimensions are not suited to having extra keys, and in theory, a chanter with blocks for extra keys, should be tuned so that it wouldn’t play ideally in tune until the keys were added, if you get what I mean.
My chanter’s intonation is pretty much spot on so I’m always nervous about having extra keys added.
Cheers,
DavidG
The length of keys can be modified to suit, so if you have blocks on your chanter, adding keys at a later date should not futz up the tuning. Similarly, if you have no keys nor blocks for future keys, you can still have keys added at a later date using pin mountings, and without spoiling the tuning. A competent pipemaker should be able to handle the job either way.
Note, however, that many pipemakers are reticent to change another maker’s pipes if the original maker is still extent.
I would also like to note that keys look way cool. All the pros have’em. Whether you ever use them or not is besides the point.
djm
His fingers
Nope…
Nico, the blocks and keys are placed where they don’t intefere with non-key playing. It’s really a conscious effort to actuate a key. With the exception of an O’Grady, who has a block in the place your right thumb (tumb for those with accents) wants to comfortably rest. I haven’t found any in the way.
Boisvert and Childress have a tapered or small concave shaped block that supports the thumb nicely.
… and Verrrrry comfortable at that!