Anyone know where to buy Susato thumb rests in the UK. I’m wanting them for my Low D whistles but buying them from the USA is ridiculously expensive for what they are. They come in sizes 0 to 6 so if anyone knows the diameter sizes that would be useful too. Many thanks.
Can’t help with the Susato thumbrests, but in the meantime a bead of beeswax in the appropriate place on the back of the instrument works well for me … even on something as heavy as a clarinet! The nice thing is it’ll polish right off if/when you’ve finished with it or need/want to move it.
Thanks for that. I’ll check into it.
Wrap an appropriately sized elastic band or hair band around the body of the whistle. It’s cheap. It’s adjustable. It works.
Big Whistle stock Susatos, they may offer their thumbrests but I don’t see them listed. Probably worth contacting them.
Feadoggie
Yes, try Big Whistle. Or write to Mike Kelischek at Susato and ask him directly. I’m sure he’d know which of his dealers stock them.
Since all Susatos are sold with thumbrests but few people, I imagine, actually use them, there’s probably many a thumbrest sitting discarded in a drawer. If you specify which whistles you want to fit, I’d bet you could find UK Chiffers willing to sell or donate theirs.
If I can find my bag of discards, I’ll measure the sizes for you. I know that my set is no longer complete. Unfortunately, the plastic is quite brittle, so they tend to break when fitting because the diameter of the whistle is larger than the thumbrest opening. Other than that, they work quite well.
Snappy Thumbrest Measurements (inside diameter):
#0 - 13.8 mm
#1 - 15.2 mm
#2 - 18.0 mm
#3 - 20.0 mm
#4 - 21.2 mm
No #5 or #6 handy though, sorry. I’m afraid those are the ones that I’ve broken. For a low whistle, one of those larger ones is the one that you’d want.
For comparison, my low D whistles measure 25.0 mm and 25.3 mm outside diameter.
Go to a musical instrument repair shop and see if they have a spare clarinet or sax thumb rest. You can glue that in place with epoxy. Experiment by holding it in place with a rubber band first to make sure where you want it.
Thanks for the replies. My whistle’s outside diameter is 25mm so it does looks as though 5 or 6 would be the right one. I’ve thought about the rests from other instruments but don’t want anything permanent or semi-permanent that would affect the finish.
You can put a small block of balsa wood on with double-sided tape. The tape might work with a clarinet rest as well, though the area under the base might be a bit small. I’ve made rests for recorders from a small strip of aluminum bent 90 degrees and held on with double-sided tape. With aluminum, you need a pad where your thumb rests; balsa is soft enough a pad isn’t necessary. You can also use MT’s paperclip/string thumbrest - a search of this forum will turn up a how-to post.
Back when I was experimenting with O rings (the famous MTGuru O-ring tweak), I slipped an oversize O ring on a Burke low D. Didn’t seem to help the sound much, but when I started to roll it off, I realized it was just barely wide enough to act as a thumb rest. Has not left the whistle since.
This is about the same as what Feadoggie suggested. I like the fact that an O ring will probably never wear out and that it is thin enough to not interfere with piper’s grip.
Hobgoblin said they could order some in when they next put in an order to Susato. In the meantime, I’ve asked a friend to send some from the US for me. But you lost me now with O-Rings!! What are they? And how do you get them? Sorry walrii but the balsa thing sounds too fiddly for me.
Oooh, I like that. 
A #15 O-ring (.75" ID) or slightly larger will stretch to fit a 25 mm low whistle. About 1 hole width above the B1 hole is a good position for piper’s grip. It’s cheap, adjustable, removable, non-damaging, and secure.
All hail the O-ring!
You can’t completely support the whistle with just your thumb (and lips). But it gives a little extra stability if you want, and takes some of the burden off of the bottom anchor finger. A good idea, swizzle.
Neoprene O-rings are commonly used in plumbing. They come in many different sizes. Should be available in your plumbing, hardware or DIY store. Home Depot here sells them in packages of 10 for around $2.
O rings! Bravo 
So obvious and I never thought of it. I don’t feel much need be maybe…