Here is a pic of my new aluminum prototype. I really like this instrument. I was just messing around with a couple of ruined whistles just for fun and “accidentally” whomped out a pretty good instrument.
It is quiet and has a mellow tone with just a bit of chiff. Very low air requirement. It is very well balanced and easy to play into the 3rd octave. The low D note is just a little unstable.
Let me know your thoughts!
It looks real nice. A small fipple window favors the upper octave. Might need to open it to stabilize the low d. Can you give us a better look at the window?
Unfortunately, I cannot right now. I took it to a family reunion and my nephew (who is serving in Iraq) liked it, so I gave it to him. I am going to make another one as soon as I can get a hold of the materials, and I will post then. It will be a couple of days at least. Sorry.
Looks nice!
Oh yeah, when you get a new one made post a couple of sound clips. I’d like to hear how it sounds
I will. Thanks!
Cool. That looks interesting. 
How did you make the fipple?
The fipple is 3 layers of 6061-T4 Aluminum. The middle layer makes the body of the fipple and has the windway cut in it. The center is a 1/2" round bar. I cut the labium and wind way with one pass using a flat end mill. The labium has a curved edge. The windway is curved like on a Weasle or a Susato.
I am going to make a few of these, just to make sure this one was not a fluke. When I do, I will post some sound and more pics.
Hopfully you will stumble on a way to stabilize that bell note too!
Hopfully you will stumble on a way to stabilize that bell note too! >
Oh ya. Thats no problem. All I have to do is shave a little length off of the labium. I just skipped it because it is a prototype. I left it in a relatively unvoiced state. I feel that the concept, and especially the construction technique, is proved.
This instrument is different than other ones I have made from Al.
Out of curiosity, what kind of tools/machinery is required to produce something like this?
I’d /love/ to try making a whistle again (tried one once with copper), but never had proper tools to really make an accurate prototype. Along those lines, is there a freely available design document that you used or could reccomend?
Bare in mind that my goal is to make thousands of instruments per minute… 
I would say the bare minimum to make a presentable whistle would be some kind of drill press and a drill vice. It does not need to be fancy, but starting a hole in thin material on a round surface has always been a problem for me. Having a machine to steady the drilling is important.
I could not say what the minimum to make the one in this thread would be. I have only simple machine tools. A mini-mill and mini-lathe. You can google those words and turn up all sorts of cruft. Oh ya, a good set of needle files is useful, too.
Why don’t you make one and send it on tour?
how does it sound bty?
I really like the sound of this instrument. It is clear and has a full-bodied sound. Just a hint of chiff, which you can expand if you want it. This one was a little quieter than I like because I cut the airway a little more narrow. Future versions will have a 3/8" airway instead of 5/16". Another flaw was that it required more air than I like. The airway was .065" inches tall. The next one will be .049" tall. On the proto (which I gave to my nephew) the bell note was weak, but that is an easy voicing issue which I did not bother to fix. The high register was very good and well balanced with no tendency to squeal. You could even play 3 or 4 notes into the 3rd octave without it losing that quality.
Another improvement that I am thinking of is to change the alloy that I am using. I was using 6061-T4, which is a little gummy. The alloy 2024-T3 is harder, more durable, and comes in more sizes than the 6061. Problems are that it is less resistant to corrosion and it costs twice as much. Thats bad.
I would like to send one on a tour. Who thought of that anyhow? That seems like a great way to get lots of feedback on a new design. I will prolly make a batch as soon as I can get the money for materials together.
To hold the work steady a quick clamping Vee block works wonders.
Take a 2 x 6 piece of wood that is equal the length of the whistle.
Cut out a V shape portion in the center.
On each side, cut out a groove to hole a piece of C channnel.
The C channel take the bolt head to a 3/8" diameter bolt and acts as a T slot.
Then given some small 1 x 2’s that have the same V shape in the center and bolt holes. Put wing nuts on the bolts and it will clamp the whistle in snuggly for very intense maching work. I have used used this fixturing for making whistle components on a CNC once. It holds very securely.
Thats a great tip, Daniel. Thanks!
Do you know of an easy way to make a drilling guide for the tone holes?
I’ve made one of those, and mine holds very securely. I think this is you best bet.
Its not a proto any more! Here are some new pics of the first batch:
I am really happy with these instruments! They sound great. I have finally figured out how to incorporate an O-ring into the tuning slide, too.
the whole instrument
tuning slide and logo
rolled over so you can see the cut of the fipple lip
one taken apart so you can see the O-ring on the body
closeup of the O-ring
pic of the whole batch
closeup of the airway
another closeup of the airway
Post your comments, please. ;D