does anyone know if there are any advances in pipemaking that are on the way and that might radically mechanise or streamline manufacture of pipes and cause prices to fall? - I ask because sam l from hunterpipes has started making basic chanters for £450 and I wondered if this development could be extended to drones and regs
There are several makers who have been making what they term student style sets for years so nothing new or innovative. From one I have seen recently the maker in question used the simplest key system for chanter and regulators and kept bass drone straight ended i.e. no return curve and puck
There are also Mike Hulme and Chris Bayley who are producing barrels sets which look to cut out a lot of work as everything can be included in just one piece of timber https://forums.chiffandfipple.com/t/waiting-for-laughing/2034/1 Not a new idea as they were being made in London 200 years ago. Love to know how they manage to put so many bores through one piece of wood when some of the makers I know have trouble keeping a single bore straight
Check your pm’s
There is no secret to making a barrel unit, whether just for a stand of drones , or one incorporating regulators. To do the job properly you need the correct tools, plus a clear plan of what you want to achieve. Providing the equipment is set up correctly it is no great stretch to put 6 or 8 bores through a piece of wood rather than 1. Modern tools do not make the task easier, contrary to some opinions, merely faster. Nearly 400 years ago Hotteterre was putting 17 bores through the shuttle body of a Musette du Cour using D bits and a treadle lathe. 200 years later MacGregor and Reid were using the same tools and techniques. 200 years after them both Chris and I are still using the same techniques. We use gun drills rather than D bits, but the principles are still the same.
However, that being said, there is always a risk of a slip-up, in which case a piece of expensive wood becomes scrap; in the case of a regulator barrel a waste of enough wood for 4 chanters requiring one bore each rather than 8.
With regard to the OP’s question, I do not think that good traditionally made pipes can come down in price very much; whatever tools and materials the maker is using, the same level of skill and self-criticism must be applied to the work. Plus the maker needs to make a living. David Quinn once described the Taylor Brothers work as “A Passionate Industry”. He was spot on regarding the passion, but I don’t think he used industry with the same connotations we might assume for mass production today.