Got one in C for Christmas. Looks like a Susato. Tunable, and very in tune with itself. Loud. Tone is similar to Susato. Anyone else come across these? Is the D also very in tune?
Added comment: The Smart brand costs less than $20.
Oh dear. This looks to be an exact knock-off/rip-off of the Susato whistle by [u]Jinan Smart Music[/u], a Taiwanese company. The whistle is listed on page 9 of their catalogue, downloadable here (PDF):
http://www.smarter123.com/attachment/SmartRecordersCatalogue.pdf
For some reason, the associated photo seems to be of a village in Switzerland. 
On that same page they list a “Zaphone”, which is obviously a copy of the Xaphoon. The recorders look like copies of Moecks, Yamahas, etc.
Given the work and expense which I know the Kelischeks have put into the design and development of the Susato, I’d be loath to support a maker whose business model is the theft of intellectual property, if that’s what this is. But I’d still be at least curious to know how it sounds and plays …
My wife Google searched in order to find me a C whistle. Came up with the Smart. I had never heard of them.
Cost on Amazon is $14.95 and shipping is free.
I liked the C enough to get a D. When I was ordering, Amazon offered an inducement to sign up for a credit card, and that got me the whistle for free, with about $25 remaining on the card. Application form was REAL short.
It’s an obvious copy of Susato, but keep in mind that an Oak, a Feadog and a Generation are all very similar. And I have a metal whistle (Chieftain?) that has a similar head arrangement to Susato’s. Nothing new under the sun.
I too would be interested in how this thing sounds. It looks very like a Susato indeed. Except that all those things on the site, the susato lookalikes, the Zaphoon lookalikes, the Moeck lookalikes … they all look a bit naff in that catalogue. Don’t know what that is. It almost tempts me to order one just to find out for myself …
Sure, not faulting you for acquiring the whistles. 
That’s true. Only the mysterious Elves of Oswestry know if there were any intellectual property issues with those. And the prices are all comparable. In this case, a direct (CAT scanned?) rip-off of a specific American product design and price undercutting the original with cheap East Asian production is bound to raise eyebrows.
Does it come complete with O ring? The recorders look like they glow in the dark - ideal for playing under the covers.
Sounds like you’d be interested in what has become the flashlight thread!
https://forums.chiffandfipple.com/t/how-to-make-a-thread-bookmark/61/1
I can imagine a whistle or recorder, a flashlight, and heavy bedcovers as part of some exotic regression therapy. 
And my Rayovac flashlight really does glow in the dark. It’s kind of spooky.
Throw in Andrea and a motorbike and we’ll be all set.
A flashlight that glows in the dark. What will they think of next? 
Best wishes.
Steve
Oh shoot, that’s not what I mean. 
They have been available on e bay more than several months ago.
Right, and they kind of carpet-bombed eBay with their products. I’ll probably get one just to compare to the Susato. It sure looks like a scanned copy of the Kelishek’s product from the pics as MTGuru suggests.
Feadoggie
I was playing the C at home (because my wife was out). Dang, it’s LOUD. It’s definitly not a beginner’s model. For me the acid test is when I’m “on stage”. Something that I overlook at home instantly becomes a huge issue on stage.
Attending the NAMM show yesterday, I came across the Jinan Smart booth. Naturally, I stopped to have a go on the Smart whistles, D and C. Of course, 2 minutes of playing is not a proper test, but enough for a few impressions.
The whistles are indeed roughly copies of the Susato form, but not exact scans. They seem to come in two different materials, one a dark ABS, the other some sort of of charcoal grey matte-textured plastic. The moulding and manufacturing looked good and clean.
Intonation seemed fine. Tone, not so much. Not much chirp, and kind of breathy and “choked”, moving toward scratchy with the slightest push. Not as loud as Susatos, but not as clear either, veiled, and not in a good way.
In short, no recommendation from me. Meh. Get a real Susato, or a more trad sounding whistle. The Smart is neither fish nor fowl.
Thanks for that. I’ll post my thoughts on the Woodnote brand whistles on that thread but suffice it to say that my conclusion is the same.
Feadoggie
Hi Offline,
I agree. I now have a C and D and I can’t recommend them. I’ve tweaked both, resulting in some improvement to the tone. But the needle on my tuner goes wild with these babies. And to get the upper part of the second octave in tune takes so much wind that the volume becomes unbearable for anyone in the same county. I have a problem finding a place to play these suckers where nobody will call the police. Better to pay the extra and get a Susato.
Hmmmmmm…
I don’t have a Smart brand whistle but picked up a D and C pair of Ferris whistles through eBay from Ferris Music in the UK (Northern Ireland I think). They look identical to the Smart whistles but are unbranded. They resemble the Susato whistles (of which I have a high D and a low G) but no more than a Yamaha or other plastic descant resembles a Moeck Rottenburgh soprano recorder. The weight, feel and sound does not resemble the Susato whistles. My two whistles posted to Australia cost me just under $20 for the pair. Two Susato whistles would have been almost $100 more for me to have sent to OZ.
They are nicely made from ABS and have a Matt finish which is easy to grip. They are light and speak well and have their own characteristic sound which is a blend of the note and some overtone vibration due to their light construction relative to the Susato. The Susato in contrast gives a clean and clear note with the more solid tube less inclined to add to the overtone vibration.
I am a recorder player originally and have played since I was 10 in 1963. Plastic and wooden recorders have different sounds and I have a variety to play depending on my mood and what I’m playing. The same with whistles. Metal, plastic and wooden materials, straight and conical bores all influence the sound and feel of an instrument. Two identical instruments can play in their own unique ways so having several helps the player explore the character of their own playing.
The Ferris (and Smart) whistles are great because they are quality at an affordable price. I can keep them ready on hand to pick up and play. The Generation whistles I started on were nowhere near as nice to play and were inconsistent. I can certainly recommend the Ferris whistles to other players, they are great to play.
When I am playing I have a selection to pick from. I have my two Susatos in D and low G (would love a full set), my Ferris C&D, a bB, C & D combination of Syn whistles made in aluminum, a Howard Low D and. Kerry low D. I’ve stopped playing my old Clarke and Generation whistles (except for my bB) because I don’t enjoy them any more. The whistle I play the most varies but the Susato Low G and the Ferris C get used a lot.
I have played recorder, whistle, guitar, flute and sung in my Folk band for 33 years now and even consider the Ferris whistles good enough to play on stage. They are not a ripoff of Susato, they are a high quality affordable instrument for everyone. Isn’t that what penny whistles were in the first place?
Cheers
Eamon (sorry if post is a bit long)
[ Revival ]
Are you suggesting that these (or at least their molds) are 3D printed? I can’t think how else they would use a CT scan for production. Anywho, seems a pricey way to copy, but economy of scale and all that I guess.
No. And for CT scan substitute your favorite reverse engineering technique. I’d imagine that a good engineer/draughtsman armed with rules, micrometers, and macro photography could do it as well.
I never saw it myself so it might be urban legend … But when I worked at Sam Ash (early 80s), I remember the stories of Japanese visitors who would come in and ask to see some expensive guitars. Then instead of playing them, went to work with a kitful of low tech measuring devices. And some time later there’d be a nicely made Japanese copy on the market.
There are lots of ways to skin this cat, so to speak. Yes, a high resolution CT scan can be used to print models. That is done in the Bio-engineering field now AFAIK. I am sure you know that.
But it would easy to scan a whistle head or body using a 3D laser scanner. That could generate an engineering drawing of the whistle parts. Clean up that drawing and Use it to generate drawings of a two part mold for injection molding. CNC the molds from those drawings and go into production.
I am hoping Santa brings me a 3D printer with a scanner module for Xmas. Not likely! But heck, they are selling 3D printers with scanners at Staples now. Don’t know why they weren’t on a deep discount sale for Black Friday. The future is coming.
Feadoggie