Hi all
I’m a new member to the forum and thought maybe should say a few words about myself. I’ve been attempting to play the whistle for about two years now, much to the annoyance of my wife and kids. I started off on cheap whistles which really are the only ones available in music shops here in Norway. I haven’t been lucky enough to find a good one yet, and surfing the net found this great site http://guido.gonzato.googlepages.com/whistle.html
I’m very grateful to Guido for this opportunity to make my own whistle. I have made three whistles from Guido’s site and all have been better than any whistle i have tried(have not tried high end whistles)
Making your own whistle is very rewarding and i am now an addict. I have read many site’s and read many review’s and would love to attempt to try my hand at wooden whistles.
The only problem i have is the tuning slide, i’m not sure how to construct it. Most are made of metal, matching the beak and foot of the whistle. If you open the slide, wouldn’t that make the bore slightly larger where the two body’s have been pulled apart? Is the tenon of the slide thin walled to compensate for this ?
I have only seen pictures of whistles with tuning slides and never examined one in my hands. There seem to be many types of tuning slides out there, what is the best ? and how is it constructed ? how would i go about making one ? can anyone help with advice ?
Thankyou
Hello, chrisp, and welcome to C&F.
Since you are already familiar with the Low Tech whistle site, I would suggest that you start with the methods described there by Guido. You are correct in thinking that an external coupler creates an expansion in the bore when the two halves are oulled apart and that it will effect the tuning. The effect is not too bad when the tubing you use has a thin wall so it’s worth trying.
Guido offers two methods. The first method is rather simple. Find a tube with an inner diameter the same as the outer diameter of the whistle body and use that as a coupler or sleeve. Cut the whistle in two parts and glue the sleeve to one part. Insert the other part so that it slides.
The second method takes a bit more work. Guido suggests using acetone to soften the tubing on one part and then carefilly expanding it using a similar piece of tubing. This is the method Guido uses himself. I have a couple of his whistles and the slides are very effective. They are good whistles. A similar method is used by Tony Dixon on his two-piece polymer whistles. It’s possible the Dixons may be expanded by heat since the tubing he uses can be made pliable with warm water.
Using an internal metal tube for a slide makes sense when the slide is made from very thin walled tubing. There’s little disruption of the bore to effect tuning. To make a slide with an internal metal tube can require some machinery to properly fit the pieces. But here’s one method to consider. It’s similar to the acetone method described by Guido. Find a thin walled tube with an inner diameter very close to the inner diameter of your whistle. That could be the hard part. Here in the US we have K&S brass tubing which is sold in hobby shops for making model trains, planes and such. Once you have the tube. Cut your whistle in two. Then use the acetone to soften the plastic. Then insert the brass into both halves to expand the plastic. Use a release agent on the brass so you can get things apart later. Once the plastic hardens, pull everything apart. Glue the brass to one piece of plastic. Slide the other half over the tube for your silde. It might take a couple tries to get it right but it should work.
Feadoggie
Thanks’ Feadogie,
I’ve read some of your posts, and it’s nice to know there are people like you out there thank you for your reply, KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK
I used the acetone method before on one of my previous whistles, it’s amazing what you can do with that stuff, it took a few days to be hard again but worked perfectly.
So working in wood would be a similar process, making the slides bore measurements the same as the bore of the whistle, and the slides wall thickness as thin as possible?
The tuning slides on wooden whistles have metal rings on both bodies of the whistle, are these purely a visual feature or do they reinforce the thinner wood where the slide tube fits?
Has anyone a photo or a drawing of how good tuning slides on wooden whistles work, i’m sure there are many different types. It’s very difficult to describe in words, some pictures would be a great help to me who has never held one
The rings on wooden whistles are there functionally for structural support. As long as the whistlemaker has to make them, they may as well make them look attractive too. The Oz whistle is a good example. There’s no reason that the slide has to be metal either. But when you are trying to keep the wall thickness down and keep the strength up, metal is a natural choice.
You could dispense with the rings at the joints if you make the outside diameter of the wood thicker at those points. This can be a point of art and design as well. Recorders have been made that way for some time as well as early wooden flutes. I like the rings anyway. The rings don’t have to be metal either.
I will look through my files for a photo of a slide on a wooden whistle. I don’t have one handy at the moment. The slide on a whistle is similar in structure to the slide on a wooden flute. You may be able to find a picture of those by hitting google. Oh, right …
http://www.mcgee-flutes.com/fluteslide.html
Terry’s site has a wealth of information well worth digesting.
Feadoggie
Stemme-muffen bør være slik at boringen blir større når du trekker fløyta fra hverandre. Det du oppnår da er at den øvre halvdelen av skalaen får litt høyere tonehøyde i den andre oktaven, noe som er bra for sylindriske fløyter. Å lage stemmemuffen som et rør inne i boringen er altså ingen god ide . . . . been there . . . done that.
Thanks i look forward to feadoggies pic’s
Ok, det er ikke bare meg fra Norge. Jeg er ikke Norsk men har bodd i Norge i 15 år
Yes-- for a wooden whistle I use thin walled brass tubing in 9/16"and 17/32" OD. These two sizes telescope neatly and somewhat loosely. Once the slide is finished I have to slightly expand the inner tube for a snugger fit.
The wooden parts need to be bored out very accurately to accept these tubes which are then epoxied in place. A metal lathe and not a typical wood lathe is required for the necessary accuracy.
The metal rings are most definitely needed to reinforce the thin wood. The wood beneath the rings is also turned down to accept the ring. Between turning down the OD and boring out the ID for the slide, the remaining wood is frightfully thin: I can often see light through it! Great care is required at this point but once everything is epoxied in place it’s actually quite strong and durable.