Need advice -- Defective WMD

Whistle
1

I have this defective Walton’s Mellow D whistle. When I play it, it sounds raspy, like there’s something blocking the air (my sister said it sounds like a heavy smoker whistling).

I took the mouthpiece off to see if tuning it would change the sound. The mouthpiece is now off and no matter how I put it on, the sound is still horrible. Any advice on what to do? I don’t want to toss the whistle just yet.

2

I think it’s something you’d notice, but is there any blockage on the bottom? A friend of mine dropped one of her whistles outside between sessions and got a bit of mud blocking the opening. Sounded weird, and similar to what you describe.

3

I’ve inspected the mouthpiece and the whistle itself. The mouthpiece looks fine, there’s no unusual dents or scrapes and there’s nothing blocking or hiding in there. I washed it out with some warm water to be sure. The whistle doesn’t seem dented in any way either.

4

Look for debris or bits of extra plastic sticking out inside the mouthpiece. I had a similar thing happen to one of my whistles, and removing a thin strip of plastic sticking out from the side of the mouthpiece fixed it.

5

Is there a good seal between the head & the body? If not, it wouldn’t sound like a blockage, but might be closer to a smoker’s wheezing…

6

Do you smoke? Try cleaning the fipple with a match.

7

There ARE NO WMD-- ask George W… :roll:

8

:laughing: :stuck_out_tongue:

…and no I don’t smoke :roll:


Thanks for the tip Craig, I’ll look for extra plastic.

9

I had a mellow D like that - it was simply unplayable. I couldn’t find what was wrong with it either.

Eric

10

I have an old well used MelloD, actually made by Soodlums’s which preceeded the Walton’s name, if I’m not mistaken. It’s a good whistle in many ways, better than Gen D’s and others. Bur it is a little on the, let’s say, coarse side. Maybe raspy/coarse is part of the characteristics of these whistleheads.
IF ALL ELSE FAILS - - Please let me make this suggestion: Put a Hoover Whitecap on the tube; and put your old green Walton whistlehead in a drawer, on the coffee table, on the mantle, etc. I feel pretty sure you won’t regret the move.
Start Saving your nickles and dimes - - After you’ve got $30, your troubles are over. Mail away your barrel to Mack Hoover and he will fit out your barrel with a new Whitecap. I did this with an Oak D and a bad Gen C recently. I’m glad I did.
You will then be able to play happily on your new hybrid while you tinker with your old Walton head if you wish.
Hope this will be helpful. Lloyd

11

Look for a rough edge coming out of the windway maybe. Smalled tweakers screwdriver to smooth out the top and bottom edge. Bevel the bottom edge just a touch. (you may need to do a search on the bevel tweak)
You did the blue tac tweak right?

12

You most likely have a defective Mellow D whistlehead. For awhile, Mellow D’s were very inconsistant. The problem is that the plastic didn’t completely fill the mold at the windway floor exit, leaving a little less material in a crucial spot.

Best wishes,
Jerry

13

I have one Mellow D that is very nice. It has the Walton sound but plays nicely. I have another that appears to be identical but has a very raspy coarse sound. One I like the other I play when I have no other lying around usually in the car. Jerry’s answer is probably the clue to why.

Ron

14

ummm… and make it an unlit one :astonished: