I bought the Brad Angus B set which appeared on ebay a few weeks since, and they arrived 2 days ago.
They had taken a while to get here as I needed to send over a bankers draft to Brad from UK for payment, and Brad wanted to spend some time making sure everything was just so before despatching them- including making a box full of reeds (to my shame I am no reedmaker) that should keep me going for the rest of my life- and whoever is lucky enough to own the set after I’m gone.
When the set was on ebay originally, you may all remember it was bought by one of our compatriots on this board, who then pulled out partly due to the amount of negative vibes he received from some posters on here. Sean- sorry, but you was robbed mate!!! 
If you haven’t got your name down with another maker yet- CALL BRAD!!
So what are they like?
They arrived on Monday lunchtime, and Brad had taken them completely to pieces and wrapped all the component parts in bubble wrap to give them half a chance in the belly of the plane on the way over. The first thing that struck me was the build quality- the detailing on the wood turning is exquisite, the contrast between the ebony of the body and the boxwood mounts is very pretty indeed with the shaping and lines of each component being very elegant. The brasswork is clear, faultless and beautifully executed.
Down to important stuff- how they play and sound…..
Remember here that only a few hours before I played them for the first time these babys had been down to gawd knows how many minus degrees in the belly of a jumbo….
From the first note they were beautiful- even taking into account me getting used to the chanter span. The tone of the chanter is mellow as one would expect of a fine flat set with the merest hint of “reediness” giving it a lovely edge. The bell note sounds easily either hard or soft, the notes are all in tune with each other right up the chanter. The second octave is likewise effortless and in tune with itself. The drones- very, very fine indeed, well balanced to the chanter, good and steady in both octaves. The regs are likewise brilliant- though this is my first full set and I am very much a novice regulator player. The reeds needed a bit of tweaking to get them playing and balanced in pressure but no more. The tone and balance of the regs is again excellent.
General overview- these are a very very fine set of pipes. The name and reputation of Angus as a pipe maker of the highest order- build quality, aesthetics, tone and playability- must and will one day rate him amongst the best makers in the world. If you are thinking of starting out, upgrading or whatever, Brad is your man, and Kevin is absolutely right (man!!)- THEY ROCK!! Get in there before his waiting list is as long as Woofe’s-
