I don’t know what else to call it, but about three years ago he was raising money to come up with a hot new whistle (link below for reference) in conjunction with some fancy 3D scanning through a University or whatever.
Anybody ever know what ever happened with all that?
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/the-world-needs-an-affordable-great-penny-whistle#/
I always found that project to lean towards the bizarre - unless you’re using high-grade physics to associate tone attributes with airflow, why would you need to CT scan a whistle? A pair of calipers and a free copy of Fusion 360 are way cheaper if you’re after a 3D model! As for the body tubes, unless you are ordering non-standard tubing sizes, your average CNC mill could make, I dunno, 2 per minute makes 120 in an hour? I’m not talking out my ass here - I’ve done all of the above, and not counting sweat equity I’ve spent less than $300.
Well I was just curious because apparently several thousands of dollars was raised and I really can’t find out anymore about it. I sent a message to Jerry Freeman on his YouTube page ( or maybe it was a reply to his reply up somebody else on a YouTube page) and I left a message at one of the places I know he retails through online, the whistle shop, and so far, over the last three weeks, nobody seems to have an answer.
Ahem.
The project is coming along, more slowly than I expected, but it’s developing well.
The first 3D printed whistleheads will be based on the high-resolution scan I obtained with the help of the crowdfunding campaign you asked about, of a good pre-1980’s D Generation. Since I’ve stopped offering tweaked D, Eb and C Generations, I think a vintage Generation-based D is the right place to start production.
In the last year or two I’ve had success turning already excellent vintage D Generations into not merely very good, but really stellar whistles. I’ll incorporate the insights I’ve gained from that work into the finished version of the classic-based whistle.
I tweaked the whistlehead I have the CT scan of and showed it to Blackie O’Connell. He said, “That’s a GREAT fooking whistle! That’s what a whistle SHOULD be.” (When I do these classic Generations, I take a very light touch. I don’t modify the plastic at all and everything I do is reversible.)
Here’s a comment from a gentleman in the UK I did some work for. The D he refers to is a pre-1980’s red-top D Generation:
“The whistles arrived yesterday and I’ve spent the last 24hrs giggling like a schoolgirl. The D is two and a half octaves of sheer perfection. I’ve never played such a perfect sounding, easy playing, sweet D (and that includes one of your tweaked red-tops). Every note will blow from gentle singing to real in-your-face brassy without breaking. It was a nice whistle before you got it, but nothing like this.”
And here, if you’re still reading this, is the story of how I came to decide which whistle to begin 3D printing production with. From Catskills Irish Arts Week 2017, this is an excerpt from Angels, Beggars and Castaway Things, A Forager’s Journey Home:
I finished the morning’s preparations and drove to the pavilion, arriving a little after 11:00 for the event scheduled to begin at noon. Within the first half-hour, my table was very busy and I hurried to keep enough whistles ready on the table. A man about my own age came over and held out a battle-worn pre-1980’s key of D redtop brass Generation. ‘I’ve played this for years and years,’ he said. ‘I bought it in 1970. It doesn’t work like it used to.’
The windway roof was completely worn off the first quarter inch of the beak, leaving the inside of the windway exposed. The windway floor was severely warped in an arch, closing off about half the original opening at the downwind end. And the inside of the mouthpiece was covered with a layer of crust from hundreds, maybe even thousands of hours of playing.
‘Let me see what I can do,’ I said.
I love those old, classic Generation whistles. Generation replaced the tooling in the early 1980’s and the whistles have never been the same. The really good vintage ones are special, and it delights me to bring them back to life, which I get to do two or three times a year.
A few months ago, I stopped offering tweaked Generations in Eb, D and C. As they come from the factory, the whistles no longer can be reliably tweaked, so I had to give up on them. (High G, F, Bb, alto A and tenor G tweaked Generations, however, are turning out better than ever.) Pondering the implications, I understood what to do.
When the University of Connecticut provided me with CT scans of my whistle designs, I also got scans of good examples of pre-1980’s Generation Eb/D, C and Bb whistleheads. I will turn those scans into 3D printing designs and create replicas of the original, treasured Generation whistles. It will take some time, as the technology and materials are still evolving, but I will do it, I promise. Those classic whistles MUST come back.
The 1970 redtop brass Generation was in rough shape. There was nothing I could do to repair the damaged windway roof, and I wouldn’t try to change the distorted interior geometry. This is archival work, and I take a very light touch to the original plastic on these historic instruments. I could do two things:
Meticulously clean the whistle. I removed the crust from inside so not a single particle could be seen when sighting through the windway. Very important not to leave even the smallest crumb, as it will disturb the airstream and damage the sound.
I installed a filler lattice under the windway. People stick a ball of poster putty to fill the cavity under the windway, and that cleans up some of the unstable notes. But poster putty or any solid filler deadens the sound. It took me ten years to finally come up with a solution I was satisfied with. I needed something transparent to sound waves, but that an airstream would see as a solid surface. Finally, I figured out how to create an open lattice that attaches under the windway. It works perfectly without altering the original plastic in any way.
I finished that work and tried the whistle. It was beautifully sweet and perfectly balanced between octaves. I thought, ‘This is special.’
Looking around, I saw Mary Bergin, talking to someone near the back of the hall. It was between sets of music, and a good time to approach her, so I went over and got her attention. She smiled when she saw me and said hello. I held out the whistle and said, ‘I wanted you to see this.’ Her eyes twinkled as she looked at it. That was the kind of whistle she played for many years before they stopped being produced.
‘Try it,’ I said.
‘Is it safe to play?’ She asked.
‘Yeah. I’ve worked on it.’
We stepped outside and she started to play, at first a little hesitantly. Her eyes lit up and she played on awhile. As she handed it back, she said, ‘Wonderful.’ ‘Isn’t it sweet?’ I asked. ‘Lovely,’ she said. ‘Good on ye.’
A little later, back at my table, Laura Byrne appeared. We chatted a minute and I handed her the whistle. ‘I want you to try this,’ I said. She played the whistle a long time, and beautifully. There, I could hear better than when Mary played it and I realized that was the best classic D Generation I had ever heard. Gorgeous.
After Laura had left and my table was quiet awhile, I began to think of angels. I’ve mentioned before, I don’t see angels, but at times, I’m keenly aware of their benevolent presence.
‘You brought me here to see that whistle, didn’t you?’ I asked. ‘Yes,’ I heard them say. (I can’t explain how this works, but it’s clear enough to me where the words are coming from.)"
Thank you for your reply Jerry. I am returning to wrestling after a hiatus and in doing research as to what’s new and available out there I came across yours and heard a lot of good reviews of your tweaked offerings that mellow dog one. And was kind of sorry to hear that the generations got so irregular that you had to stop at them.
Anyway, during my wandering to and fro on the internet I came across the information on that project. But But some of the information was a little dated and wad looking for an update, cuz, as i said, it sounded very interesting and worthwhile, particularly considering your reputation as a tweaker (which in this case is much better than it sounds LOL), so like many I was interested in sampling the finished product if there was one. But I guess that will have to wait a bit.
So thank you again for the update. Appreciate it
Thanks for asking, Michael. It’s a good time for an updated report.
I assume you meant to type, “I am returning to whistling … .” It took a minute to figure out what “I am returning to wrestling … .” was intended to mean.
Best wishes,
Jerry
Yes. Talk text.
Unfortunately I do my best editing and proofreading AFTER I hit send. LOL
Thanks for the clear and detailed update on the quest.
I’ve been restrained by health issues for more than twenty years. That’s slowed down all the work I’ve had to do, keeping me pinned to survival tasks and not able to put enough into projects like the one we’re discussing.
On the wall over my desk are the words:
“But they that wait upon the Lord
shall renew their strength;
they shall mount up with wings as eagles;
they shall run, and not be weary;
and they shall walk and not faint.”
A few months ago, after some adjustments to my medical regimen, my energy dramatically recovered. After more than twenty years. Seriously. Major upsurge in my ability to push through tasks. Major upsurge in my enthusiasm. Major upsurge in the amount I’m able to get done in a day.
It will still take time before some of these projects bear fruit, but now I can see my way through them. They are getting done.
Glad to hear the project is progressing, and that your health has improved!
Looking forward to trying these when they are available