I just can’t seem to go by the local hardware store for long without stopping to buy pipe and dowel. This time it’s alto whistles.
From left to right: soprano D, Alto A. and two Bb.
(The soprano D is just there for comparative purposes.)
The skills are improving slowly but surely. I decided to make life a little easier and use a coupling and just have one head. It works well, but the whistles are not tunable because the coupling is conical. It saves a lot of work though, so that’s a big plus. It isn’t easy lately to dedicate time for making whistles, this will eliminate a lot of hours that I just don’t have to make a whole range of altos.
Getting the tone holes in line needs some more work. I have an idea to try on the next tube that might improve that. Instead of using a utility knife to make a starting point, a hand drill will be used to slowly start a pilot hole. I’m also using masking tape to mark out everything on the pipe, and that has had the bonus of reducing slippage when drilling.
Having an inexpensive set of files has greatly helped when smoothing out the sides of the duct and making the blade. The makeshift files that were being used just added more time and frustration.
I wish I had a mic (well, maybe) to record these. I’m very happy with how these sound. Now to just keep working on the piper’s grip for the A and the larger holed Bb, and the increase in breath needed. When time permits, more tubes will be made.
Oh, and the Whistle Calculator by Phil van Leersum has been a BIG help.
They look good. I love your masking tape idea. All the whistles I’ve made have black lines all over them where I marked my holes. For now I don’t mind because I don’t show them around much but if I get better I’ll certainly want the cleanest looking instruments I can make. And using some tape in the marking stage seems a lot easier than sandpaper or steel wool to try to get marks off.
Thanks!
The masking tape has made a big improvement in the appearance of them. I haven’t been able to sand the tubes clean and get them to look good with the finest grit paper locally available. So now I just use the tape and put the lettering/UPC bar code so it doesn’t show. Much better. It has also helped when sawing the wind-way. The blade is less likely to slip when starting the cuts with the tape on there.
A dry erase marker would probably work, but I don’t know if they are made with a fine enough point. The ones I use for my to-do list and have been able to find locally are too thick, especially for drawing the lines for the duct/window.
Thanks!
The guide provided by Guido Gonzato (http://www.ggwhistles.com/howto/index.html) has been a great one. I’ve checked out other instructions online, either video or text, and this one is the clearest IMO. I still refer to it, but now use a whistle calculator to get the hole sizes and distances between them fine tuned. http://sourceforge.net/projects/twjcalc/
I’m drawing a blank on the pipe/tubing I know it as electrical conduit but can’t source 15mm outer diameter to give me the needed inner diameter is there an alternative product name I could search for in Europe?
You’re in Northern Ireland? If there’s a B&Q near you, their black electrical conduit pipe makes good lows and altos using the Gonzato measurements. I am based Down Under but was back Up Over a few months ago and brought some back with me from Bonnie Scotland. They also sell connectors which make neater head-caps than the incision up the back method. I bought them too, then left them in the hire car so had to make do and mend when I got back here. The black pipe is also pretty good-looking IMHO, shiny and easier to keep clean than the white plumbing pipe sold down here ( the stuff I started on). Pix attached of a low D with white Ozzie plumbing pipe cap and an alto G with a black cap. You cant go wrong really at the price. If memory serves I paid about a tenner for the 2, 2 metre sections of pipe which gave me a set of lows in D, Eb and F and a set of altos in G,A,Bb and C. Give it a shot and let us know how you get on.
BTW Greetings Mr. Ed. Nice work with the American pipe.
Nice looking black whistles you’ve got! I’ve seen some other colors available here in the US, but whether the pipes are safe to use for whistle making I don’t know. Hopefully the altos will be finished before it gets too cold in the garage to make them. Next year, God willing, a whole set of sopranos will be made. No interest in the low whistles yet. At least not long enough to start the planning stage anyway.
