Does any one know anything about this pipemakers work?
Am thinking of upgrading to a full set (currently have a half set by Dave Evans- no longer making- and a practise set by Brian Howard) and have seen Rays work on his webiste- looks very good at least
Thanks
Simon
I hope his work is excellent as I have a 1/2 set currently on order from Ray (concert D small bore) 
Only 5 more months to go!! 
If you do a search on this forum for the word ‘sloan’ you will get a lot of hits of previous postings which may be helpful to read. My research here and elsewhere determined that he has a good reputation.
In emailing back and forth, I found him to be very easy to communicate with, willing to answer all your questions, and very responsive..answering all emails within a day or two.
I believe his start was in Small Pipes, etc and U pipes are a more recent addition to his product line, but has continued to grow this area. (added regulators, small bore, and more pitches).
Are you close enough to pay him a visit? That may help with your decision.
Welcome to C&F Simon…
-gary
Yes, Ray is not all that far away from me, which is why I am considering approaching him. Peter Hunter and Brian Howard and Ginsberg (all of which I know of by reputation, and I have one of Howards chanters) are also not far- bit spoilt for choice really!
S
I know nothing about Ray’s uilleann work, but can tell you that he is extremely well regarded as one of the very finest Northumbrian smallpipes makers out there. His work is really easy on the eyes with great attention to detail and many top NSP players use his pipes. He is also very supportive and easy to deal with (has helped me out a lot in my quest as a Northumbrian smallpipes builder).
Is Peter Hunter still making pipes? I saw a half set in B, which Brad Angus added regulators to: LA piper Larry Dunn’s set. It was a lovely piece of work, very nice sounding and well turned and built. If he’s still active I’d go to him for sure, judging from that and Ronan Browne’s B chanter, which sounds like a great stick.
ray has only a few peers in the world of smallpipes and NSP, maybe only 5-6 others who are on par.
in the world of UPs, there are many good makers.
if you are near ray, go for it. his work is excellent. here in north america, some of his customers have had problems in that local makers sometimes find it difficult to reed his chanters. as a neighbor of rays, you will not have that problem. i have smallpipes from ray and he give excellent post-delivery service.
meir
Ray’s work in the NSP and smallpipes is well known. The only Sloan UP I have seen was well executed but, as mentioned, was hard to reed. Ray has gotten into UP as a sideline and he will need some more research to come up to the standards in UP tone that his other work is known for. The exterior of his sets is supurb. However, Peter Hunter would get my vote, if he is still active as a maker. His pipes look and work really well. He has many years experience making UP, and the tone and tuning of his gear is top-notch.
Ted