Hello all. First off I’m glad I found this Fourm it will be a great help. Oh and i have read the FAQ 
, anywho I’ve been a GHB piper for a few years and as many of us who are not in the celtic world I thought that the GHP were really Uilleanns. Anyhow a friend who has a half set let me give them a shot and all the passion that I had felt for playing music came flooding back. So after a break of about a year and a half i have started playing my GHB again and want to start on Uilleanns. In all I did not find them overtly hard and other then hole position, in the 30 min or so that i was playing I got fingering down and the whole bellows bag rythem worked out to a “somewhat” stable flow.
Now here’s the rub. First off I am Calgary so therefore two problems. The only other piper is my friend and he has just started not long ago himself. It is dry here, very dry so this will cause peoblems as well I know.
In the end I dont mind being mostly on my own, as much as I have seen after some education a piper can be quite self reliant.
I guess the third peoblem is getting a qualty half set. I am a student so cost is a bit of a issue however I dont mind spending good money for a good quality half set that will last me a while. I was just in contact with Joe Kennedy and he said he has a 2 year wait for a half set at 4000$ CDN. I would like to start asap with a good half set so 2 years is not a option for me.
Well anyway that’s my situation, just wanted to say Hi, and anyone who wants to educate me up is wecome.
Thanx
Jordan
Hi Jordan,
Welcome to the world of Uilleann piping… and especially to the reality of trying to get a good set of pipes “asap.” If you were just starting out, with no previous related experience, than you’d have better luck getting just a practice set much sooner. Have you asked about getting just a practice set from Joe sooner, and getting the rest of the set later on? This is often a good option.
Don’t be put off by the lack of responses here, just keep asking questions. Bug people, and soon someone is bound to answer. Seriously.
here i go again, pimpin’ tim britton’s sets, but, for what it’s worth, here’s what I did:
Tim Britton does rebuilt pakistani sets. They look very attractive (the only upside to straight paki pipes, as they are more decoration than anything else) but he get’s them and takes them apart, redrills what needs drilling, fixes what needs fixing. I was a little incredulous at first, but went with his rebuilt set in part because of cost (although, I could have swung a Bruce Childress full set if I put my mind to it) and in part due to impatience (Bruce, and everyone else, had a looooong wait). So, I muttered a prayer and placed an order with Tim. It was one of the best purchases I ever made
In short (you can find my more lengthy explanations on here in older threads) you can get an in-tune, reliable FULL set for $2600 in about 2-3 months. How’s that for a start?
What would a beginner do with a full set including regs? Simply ignore the regs. They don’t do anything unless you press a key anyway. The benefit to this is that 1) you get used to playing around the regs so you don’t have to readjust when you are ready to use them and 2) when you ARE ready they’re right there - no adjusting, no having the maker alter the mainstock, no waiting for them to be built.
Tim is best to answer your specific questions (you can find the full set info waaaay down the bottom of this page http://www.skep.com/britton/pipes.htm ).
Go n-éirí an t-adh leat!
Hello Jordan,
Welcome to the UP world, the dark side, the realm of the octopus… 
Being from another UP desert in Canada (I’m in Quebec city), I totally understand your situation.
If you are looking for a no frills, in tune and nice mellow sound, fairly priced and not on a looooooooong waiting list, I would suggest you have a look at Neil O’Grady’s pipes. He is in Newfoundland so you get a few advantages: 1-similar climate (although I understand that Newfoundland is not the prairies) makes it easier on the pipes. 2-You save on shipping, customs fees, etc… You can buy directly from Neil or from a shop in Maine called Song of the Sea (they have some in store at the moment). Have a look at those sites:
http://home.thezone.net/~pipes/index.htm
http://www.songsea.com/uilleann.htm
I am playing one of Neil’s half set and although I am totally new to UP (I’ve been playing for about a month now), I am very satisfied. I am a member of the Quebec Irish Pipers Club and a few other members also play O’Grady’s pipes and everybody is very satisfied. Again, not the most decorated and fancy pipes, but they are easy to play, good reeds, in tune and have a nice sound. And of course, there is always the more subjective aspect which is encouraging a canadian pipemaker…
If you choose to buy from Song of the Sea, SEND ME A PM!!! I will give you some advice about customs so you don’t end up like me, paying ridiculous penalties to Canada Customs 
Good luck
Martin
Jordan,
You don’t need a 1/2 set to get going on the pipes. They do help (as Uilliamm pointed out) to balance your pressure control, but you can get a very good handle on your chanter work with only a beginner set while you wait for the 1/2 set.
I visited Joe Kennedy last weekend and gave him my beginner set back as a down payment on a Bflat set (two year wait as well). It is a very good chanter with a stable reed that took me through 2 winters (Montreal and Toronto) with no hassles. I told Joe to sell it for $1,400CDN, which is pretty good for a beginner set with a nice chanter.
You can contact me privately if you want to discuss (virgil.colby@sympatico.ca).
Cheers,
Virgil