Any part of an Uilleann bagpipe set is very expensive compared to other types of bagpipes. At this price-range I’d expect that the metalwork is worth made of sterling silver. I found that most makers do not offer silver metalwork option at all, possibly because there is no real customer request for silver. Is there any problem with sterling silver? Price may not be a real argument: a fully keyed chanter from a top maker costs 1800 with brass, with sterling silver it costs 2000. IMHO, 1800 or 2000 does not really matter. When you buy a decent chanter from a “top notch” maker with a waiting time of one year or more, and then you get a musical instrument with a wonderfully finished elegant wood-work plus cheap-looking brass metal parts. Am I missing something?
Any comments will be appreciated.
Miki
PS: It’s Saturday morning, family sleeping; Have time thinking of “big questions of life” 
Why do you associate brass with cheap???
Gold with a similar finish would look identical and there is nothing cheap about that. There is nothing cheap about brass parts. what makes these instruments pricey is the work that is put into them. Many makers send you your chanter only after they have spent hours playing it and adjusting it so they are certain it is up to thier standards.
It is not the material, whether brass, silver, or whatever, that makes it valuable. The labor is almost 100% responsible for the cost. for example, ebony is considerably more rare then cocobolo, but in most cases choosing ebony over cocobolo will not mark the price up.
As far as the keys go, brass keys are not cheap. they are sturdier and easier to keep up then silver ones. one common reason that one metal would be more then the other, is the maker may only keep silver keys in stock. you request brass he must make them from scratch. In that case the brass is much more exspensive then the silver
Personally speaking, i am willing to pay thousands of dollars for time, craftsmanship, high standards, detail, and passion for an art…I am not however, going to pay an extra 400 dollars for the mere value of silver. But if you really want silver, you’ll probably pay for it. In the end the perfect instrument is priceless no matter what its made of. Its all a matter of what your goals are. What do you value first?
(I wonder what Mr Bill Haneman would have to sayahem)
-alex
getting off the soap box…now
Why do we use brass and silver at all with keys etc… why not commonly stainless steel or titanium?
Just becouse they are easy to form, durable, and both materials are well available, reasonable price
brass and silver can solder by same equipments too.
Both are easy to polish too and have good shine.
Other thing is the visual point, sometimes brass fits better to colour of timber and mounts and vice versa with silver.
The amount of time and handwork when working with these metals are the same, but silver is expensive..so the weigth of it effects to the price of pipes.
so if there about 500gr silver with pipes =at least (depends offcourse the course of silver, and how much maker must payed of it) )could be 500-800e more than samekind brass pipes (but this just my appraisal)
There’s no problem with silver: several makers will make you sets using sterling silver for the metal parts when asked to do so. It will cost you extra, there may not be a lot of silver in the keys of a chanter, in a full set you’ll feel the price difference in the material. Ronnie Wathen’s pipes had close on 3 kg of silver worked into them. The sister set to my own was done in Sterling, including an extended bass reg.
To give you an idea of pricing here is one of the silver dealers that I use
Chris
First off, and I know it’s just a matter of taste . . . but there’s no reason that brass should be associated with “cheap.” This is brass, does it look cheap?
But if you dislike the look of brass, there you go.
I’ve had/commissioned a total of three sets (and have only one now, waiting for another), and for each in my case the metalwork was chiefly up to the pipemaker. The first set, by Rogge, ended up brass. The second, by a Mr. Wooff, is in nickel-silver. The third, by Hubbert, is sterling.
I actually personally really like the look of brass, but I think it’s kind of a pain to care for unlacquered brass unless you love the patina.
And I also agree that there’s a nice warmth to brass, particularly in the context of blackwood or ebony with boxwood mounts. Very nice. I personally prefer sterling to nickel silver because I like the color a little better, but hey.
Stuart
Pipes in silver.
They weren’t cheap, even if they look it.
Personally, I think they are the nads of the dog.
Brass tends to be easily worked. It’s either alloy c260 or c360. While others are avaailabl, these are the most common and readily available. Brass goes well with nearly every color wood and mount. Brass looks wonderful when used with cocobolo and boxwood (this is of course just my aesthetic opinion).
Sterling silver is VERY easily worked and can be quite forgiving but it’s an absolute drain on the bank account and the sizes available (in rod and bar and tube etc) are much more limited. Silver goes best used against an ivory mount and a good ebony. Silver and boxwood as a mount (in my opinion) don’t look right together.
Nickel is really tough on the tools and can be hard to work with. Large dia. tubing is nearly impossible to find and there is very little selection in sizes of the stocks. The most common form is sheet.
Stainless looks nearly (99.5%) identical to nickel (you really have to either be a jeweler or have an eye like one to tell them apart). But it’s even tougher on the tools. Nickel and stainless can be nearly impossible to buff clean. Meaning you can always see scratches in it’s surface left from either manufacturing or from working it. And it’s heavy…
I like aged brass. Aged silver is tremendous. But a patina doesn’t make one a piper or lend credibility to one’s piping. This is a pet peave of mine. David Wilcox (not the Canadian dude) summed it up well when talking about his early career in a song about his guitar…
“I needed something old and righteous with its own authority”
stating that he had to have a beat up crappy looking guitar to play so that at least one of them looked like they knew what they were doing…
And yes, brass IS* cheap. A 36" long tube of 1/2" o.d. brass is only $8. While 1 foot of 1/2 sterling silver tubing would cost around $40 depending on the world spot price of silver, the fabrication charge etc.
So $120 versus $8. Which one is cheap?
To be clear…by cheap I am referring to economics. Not Aesthetics.
Now…a set of pipes made from copper tubing..now that’d be plain ol’ CHEAP and downright tawdry!
Brass has a specific gravity of (app) 8.5
Nickel-----------------------------8.9
silver-----------------------------10.5
stainless steel-------------------7.8
stainless steel is the lightest commonly used metal for pipes, silver being the heaviest !!!
RORY
speaking of silver tube, where’s a good place to find some?
For the sizes used on pipes, you usually have to make your own from sheet stock. Most makers of silver tube make small sizes suited to jewelry. I wish I could find nickle silver tubes. No one seems to make those. 
Marcpipes wrote
I wish I could find nickle silver tubes. No one seems to make those
Oh yes they do - check your PM’s
Chris
Oh yes they do - check your PM’s
Why not just post the address of the company here for anyone who is interest and not be so cryptic
John
Why not just post the address of the company here
Do please,
I’d like to get mu hands on some too.
Tommy