Hi, i found this site on Google. I’m looking to start practicing the Uilleann pipes, and i think this is a good place to begin. I’m looking for a practice set or a half set to begin with, i found a load for sale on ebay, but reviews here make me think they not worth buying.
Does any one know where i could possibly buy a good quality second hand set?
Kind Regards,
Ryan
Welcome Bigryan!
You can keep an eye on the Used Instruments Exchange forum right here at Chiff and Fipple: http://forums.chiffandfipple.com/viewforum.php?f=35
There’s also the Classifieds page at Uilleann Obsession: http://www.uilleannobsession.com/classifieds.html
The vast majority of listings you see on ebay for “Uilleann pipes” are for shoddy replicas that basically won’t actually work properly as musical instruments.
You will find that good Uilleann pipes are associated with individual skilled makers, rather than factories or import/export businesses.
There is one thread here at C&F which contains links to carefully-selected ebay listings that are worth taking a look at: https://forums.chiffandfipple.com/t/ebay-items/81729/1
If high price is a concern, there are a few starter options out there for new pipes, that could be considered budget-friendly.
The ones I can think of off the top of my head:
-
Kenneth McNicholl’s 3D printed chanter: https://www.kmbagpipes.com/3D.html
The chanter including reed and top are £ 255. Google says that converts to $329.78 at the moment.
You will also need to obtain good bag and bellows.
I actually have one of these chanters on the way now. For a sample of how it sounds, Mr. McNicholl posted video footage of the chanter that he made for me: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZWPe2bEWDJI -
Patrick Sky’s “Budget” practice set, for $750: http://www.patricksky.com/Pipes%20prices-5.htm
Here’s a little local news feature on Mr. Sky and his pipes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7al1306eAFI
EDIT: Most likely not currently available; see the replies below. -
David Daye’s Penny Chanter. His starter practice set is $568 plus $35 shipping. A half set is $1,370.00 plus $51.00 shipping.
Here’s his site: http://www.daye1.com/pennychanter.html
The chanter and drones have a very utilitarian design, but they work very well. This is probably the most affordable option.
There doesn’t seem to be much Youtube footage of the half set in action. Here’s one example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJkpXhzrLTo
- Patrick Sky’s “Budget” practice set, for $750: > http://www.patricksky.com/Pipes%20prices-5.htm
Here’s a little local news feature on Mr. Sky and his pipes: > https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7al1306eAFI
Best to make sure these are still an option.
I just noticed that page hasn’t been updated since 2013. And Mr. Sky has been dealing with serious health issues in recent years.
So this probably isn’t an option at the moment.
Hi Ryan,
You can also check these dedicated Uilleann pipes sites:
http://pipers.ie/resources/classifieds/
http://uilleannforum.com/forums/viewforum.php?f=6
There are also many other places to check, but always be careful:
https://www.adverts.ie/for-sale/q_uilleann/
https://www.donedeal.ie/all?words=uilleann
ECT. … probably many more similar sites…
DO NOT BUY PAKISTANI STUFF !!! Even quality instrument can make your life miserable 
, not to mention these.
You can also contact Andreas Rogge for his economic delrin practice set https://www.uilleann-pipes.de/en/.
This is not a guitar or a synth ect., but a much trickier instrument - well at least 1st few years and for me especialy as I live in isolation. If you have pipers close to you, educate yourself 1st and don’t hurry! There might be Pipemakers close to you - go visit them and order there. If you live in isolation, don’t repeat my mistake trying to learn instrument alone, as you will regret it later, when you will have to start with relearning process.
Good luck in piping. A
Great advice given already. First of all, do you know of any pipers located near you? There’s no location listed on your profile here, so I don’t know which country you’re in. That would also influence which makers I would recommend.
If you have a reed maker near you, then you could consider a used set from ebay, uilleannobsession, adverts, donedeal, pipers.ie, etc. I personally purchased my first set 4 years ago from ebay from a piper who recently got a 1/2 set. But there’s an excellent maker located near me who helped me with reeds. The reeds that came with the chanter didn’t work well in my environment. If you don’t have a maker near you, then I definitely recommend buying from a maker directly. Typically a maker will try hard to get you a good reed, even from a distance, maybe sending multiple reeds or helping with tweaks over email. It would be worth the extra cost to get that remote support if you can’t find the local support.
I will echo the comment on the cheap sets made in Pakistan, avoid! Someone once let me mess around with such a set, and it was uncomfortable and unplayable.
Here’s a list of makers off the top of my head that have cheaper options, if that’s what you’re looking for:
-Childress (student sets)
-Whitmer
-Daye
-Rogge (plastic chanters)
-Banba
-McNicholl (plastic chanters)
That’s what I sadly heard as well.
I also just remember that Donnacha Dwyer recently posted on FB about starting to make simpler student sets. He didn’t post the pricing, but that would be another good entry option.
Honestly, a poor set will just put you off piping. I had a Daye penny chanter once (bought it as a travelling chanter), the thing was terrible & never played even close to in tune. If that was my first experience of piping I would have never carried on. The thing came way off, unplayable and with a set of instructions on how to scrape the reed to get it in tune.
My quality chanter, which I bought 1st off and still use, played perfectly straight from the parcel with no adjustments needed. The pipes are hard enough without having to fight them into working order from the get go.
As has been said so many times, find a local, quality maker and get their practice set. You are honestly better off saving for a year and getting a quality set to begin with.
There’s a second hand practice set by a very good maker Andy Faden just come up for sale on uilleann obsession.
Thank you all for your posts and help, really appreciated! From reading here i knew that the imported set are not worth buying, and hoping to get a second hand set, if anything to just keep costs down. I shall look into the makers mentioned, and i’ll keep an eye on the second hand sites mentioned also.
Thanks again!