Susato revisited

[vomitbunny]

Well, I’m gonna try putting a whole different head on my susato. And maybe a new body while I’m at it. Hmmm, maybe a gen head. And a gen body too maybe. Where’s my hammer…

[Bloomfield]

@Scott McCallister

So, do you bevel the blade to a sharp edge or is it blunted a little?.
When you say you epoxy it in place, how do you get the glue under the new blade without removing it and putting it back… or do you just overcoat the blade with the epoxy? What do you cut the curved blade with? What is your favorite color? What is the airspeed of an unlaiden swallow?

Thanks for the help!
Scott

African or European?

I use a red Dunlap Tortex guitar pic, which is the thinnest hard pic you’ll find, although for a Susato A or G, I think I might try an orange Tortex, which is the next thicker (.6 mm, I think).

I bevel the pic to have one sloping face, the sharp edge down. Something like this:

  ________
/________

only that the the angle is different, between 45 or 30 degrees, I’d say.

I overcoat the pic with epoxy, yes. but I keep the epoxy as much away from the ramp surface of the pic as possible.

I use an exacto knife to cut out the original curved blade, and I try to get the angle roughly where I want it to be for the pic. The angle is easy to adjust, though.

First time you do it, play around with it, to get a sense for placement and angle and the bevel.

I use the nail file (or emory board) to bevel the pic.

[Scott_McCallister]

Thanks, Bloom!

[vomitbunny]

And the red blade sort of compliments the all black too.

[Bloomfield]

@Scott McCallister

Thanks, Bloom!

Welcome. But remember that I’ll need to have that signed parental-permission slip before I can let you mutilate your Susato.

[Scott_McCallister]

Sometimes it is better to ask forgiveness than permission

[nancymae]

What do you gals/guys think about their low d? I have been in the market for one, but I am not sure…I want an inexpensive low d, but I also want it to sound good!! What are your impressions on the low d from Susato???

Thanks in advance!
Nancy

[Bloomfield]

You’ll get different views, of course. Quite apart from the sound of the Susato low D (which one may like or dislike), the Susato low D is hard to blow and of all the Low Ds I’ve tried, it has the worst strech and the holes are hardest to cover. In fact, there is the infamous f#-hole which is more oval than round and not easy to cover.

If you want to get a low D for as little money as possible, I’d recommend a Kerry (not Pro) low D. (Of course getting something like a Kerry a Susato or a Dixon will make you want to get a good one later on, so that really you should just buy a Colin Goldie Overton right away and be done with it. )

[peeplj]

You can hear a Susato Low D here:

http://www.flutesite.com/samples/susatodemo.mp3

For comparison, here is a Howard Low D:

http://www.flutesite.com/samples/howarddemo.mp3

These are my only two Low D whistles so far.

–James

P.S. Edited to add a few comparison comments: I find the Susato low D easier to play than the Howard, primarily because the Howard is somewhat harder to control in the 2nd octave.

The Susato I can play with fingertips or with piper’s grip. On the Howard, piper’s grip is mandatory.

Neither is particularly easy to play when compared to a high-D whistle or even a flute.

–James

[nancymae]

Thanks James and Bloomfield for your input. Unfortunately, I can’t afford an Overton right now. I think I am going with a Hoover..which is what I was going to go with in the first place. I do love his whistles!! Thanks for the replies though!!

Nancy

[jim_stone]

@Bloomfield

You’ll get different views, of course. Quite apart from the sound of the Susato low D (which one may like or dislike), the Susato low D is hard to blow and of all the Low Ds I’ve tried, it has the worst strech and the holes are hardest to cover. In fact, there is the infamous f#-hole which is more oval than round and not easy to cover.

If you want to get a low D for as little money as possible, I’d recommend a Kerry (not Pro) low D. (Of course getting something like a Kerry a Susato or a Dixon will make you want to get a good one later on, so that really you should just buy a Colin Goldie Overton right away and be done with it. )

Second this entirely, including thumbs up for the Kerry low D.