Here is the finished square-bore traditional style baritone with sawn teardrop keys:
Making the longer key was a PITA; the precision filing skills needed to make the long keel with the complex shape take a long time to develop, too long to be practical for making one set of regulators, so I intended to finish the mahogony regulators in the Ned White style which combines the traditional turned body with the Taylor-like key style. Unfortunately, after starting the finish turning, the glue joints inside showed up as seriously open , so I smashed the bugger with a two by four:
Well, based purely on my skill at playing regs, I’d say if I tried to play both, they’d sound identical!!
Tulip is really lovely wood. How’s the tone compared to, say, blackwood or cocobolo?
That remains to be seen, I have nothing to compare it too, and the only reed I have as yet is an old, funky chanter reed that’s not quite right for it, but the sound with that is not bad. I’ll have to get over to Ted Anderson’s soon, to get some help with reedmaking; Ted lives just west of me on Tomales bay, about a 25 minute drive from here.
As I have yet to learn to play regulators, I’m afraid that when I start playing them, I’ll make my pipes sound like an accordian!
As I have yet to learn to play regulators, I’m afraid that when I start playing them, I’ll make my pipes sound like an accordian!
If I had the skills I would make the regs using accordion reeds. Just one reed so you get way from that horrible wet sound.
Use one “free reed” per note, unless you want to make one key play chords. It would not look like the tradatioanl reg, but once its in tune, you have it. I think theres a big difference between a free reed and double reed.
Crazy idea I know. But after so many years of playing the pipes, I took up the cajun accordion. What a relief to pick up the box and just start playing!
