Any advise for improving the 2nd octave on a Gen Bb? I tried the blue-tack/sandpaper tweak. It sounds a little better but the second octave (G and above) still sounds a “little” rough. Dogs howl, children run away.
Did I just get a bad whistle?
Cheers,
Stef.
Just my $0.02 but, I find that with playing, whistles improve with age. They seem to settle down & mellow. Kinda like fine wine.
So, I suggest you play it a lot. I have 2 Bb Gens. The nickle one is good, the brass one is not so good.
Gary
You could try slightly sanding the blade (where it splits the airstream). This improved my Gen Bb. Easy does it…use very fine sandpaper and very light strokes.
Micah
The best tweak for Generation Bb is to spend a few bucks on a Clarke Sweetone C, then pull both fipples and put the Sweetone fipple on the Gen body.
Chuck Clark is right…it will make a world of difference.
I have a Generation Bbs in Brass and Nickel, and I’m very happy with both just as they are.
I noticed that the Brass one has a bit of loose plastic in the red mouthpiece, but I’m not going to touch it yet for fear of spoiling the whistle.
These are the only Generation whistle I haven’t had to move the heads to get them in tune.
Maybe I’m not as picky about the sound, amybe I like the rough edges, or maybe my ears just aren’t that good!
I do have a Feadog/Oak hybrid, which is probably my favourite D (at the moment). The Mk III Feadog head is the most comfortable in my mouth, and the Oak body is so solid and classy, and the tone very sweet and clear. The Black/Silver livery is so cool I’d fit right into an Oakland Raiders fan club band!
On 2002-09-25 11:36, Chuck_Clark wrote:
The best tweak for Generation Bb is to spend a few bucks on a Clarke Sweetone C, then pull both fipples and put the Sweetone fipple on the Gen body.
Really? they are the same size?
I recently acquired a gen Bb and would like to improve it, and a shop here sells sweetone Cs…hmm.
Thanks!
I’ll try a sweetone head.
Cheers,
Stef
No, they are not the same size. You need to build up the outer diameter of the tube where it goes into the mouthpiece. I suggest a couple times around with duct tape and then some teflon tape for a sung fit.
J
They might even vary a bit. I know I needed far less tape than Jessie mentions - maybe a couple of tight wraps of teflon (plumbers’) tape. Someone else once told me they used waxed thread like that used on a fishing fly or chanter reed.
Chuck_Clark wrote:
The best tweak for Generation Bb is to spend a few bucks on a Clarke Sweetone C, then pull both fipples and put the Sweetone fipple on the Gen body.
Thanks, Chuck, for the suggestion (and Jessie for confirming it 
). I’ve got a Sweetone in C that has that typically solid mouthpiece but, unlike the Ds, is horrendously out of tune with itself.
Anyway, My Generation Bb is nicely tuned but has a mouthpiece that suffers from the same problems mentioned above.
Now I’ve got some homework to do tonight! I’ll share my results later.
Jef
I tried the sweetone fipple transplant once. It worked best for me as follows:
Buy a copper plumbing joint at your hardware store that will fit the Bb body.
Then sand out the inside of the sweetone a bit for a snug fit.
add a little bit of teflon tape as needed to seal.
Play generation Bb hybrid vigorously for several minutes.
Go to “Dixon Bb” section
Click on “Add to cart”
Click on “Check Out”
Type in your credit card number and address.
Sit by mailbox for several days (you may want to pack a lunch for this step).
Open Box when it arrives and play whistle enclosed.
Place Generation Frankenwhistle in kitchen drawer (they’re great for stirring guacamole).
Hope this helps 
Doc
Oh one other note. As mentioned in a previous thread, you shouldn’t use brass whistles for stirring guacomole. They turn the guacamole black. Only Nickel whistles are good guacamole stirrers.
The Brass ones are wonderful for holding windows open.
Doc
Sweetone fipples are designed and voiced to match a conical bore…tuning discrepencys do occur when fitted to a cylindrical shaft,noticeably on the higher notes.Your best bet would be to tweak your gen fipple which is simply incomparable in tone and character.Partialy filling the left side of the airway entrance by aprox 20% with a glued in plastic insert is my favourite gen Bb tweak…the increase in pack pressure gives it an Overton vibe and 2nd oct notes and transition are easier to play and helps to eliminate squeeks.This tweak also makes redundent any filling of the cavity underneath the airway exit. Peace to you, Mike