I’ve got a Feadog in D, and two Generations (in C and G, respectively). As far as I’m aware, the heads are not removable (and I don’t fancy risking a test!) and it does make them difficult to clean.
How do you guys clean out your whistles?
No, the heads are removable.
The Feadóg head is not glued. It will slide right off with a proper twist. Use rubber gloves for extra grip traction if needed, or hot water if it’s really stuck.
The Generation heads are glued, but should come off with the hot water or acetone treatment. There are many threads about this topic, such as this recent one:
https://forums.chiffandfipple.com/t/beheading-issues/66093/1
Good luck!
I dry the bore of wooden whistles if I’ve played them for more than a few minutes and blow the excess moisture out of the windway. Other than that I never clean a whistle. They never seem to get dirty enough to warrant it.
Thanks, I might give this a go. I’m just afraid I’ll break or damage the head you see…
Also, is it possible that removing the head and then putting it back on might result in an out-of-tune whistle?
Most likely they are not in tune when the head is fixed (from the factory) anyhow. I’ve tweaked and tuned many Feadog whistles that wouldn’t fit back into their little boxes afterward because they were way too sharp when packaged.
I’ve also come across Feadogs that had glue residue when I finally got the head off via hot water dunking.
I just run hot tap water through mine, seems to work fine.
I’ve never cleaned my Feadog or Clarkes, but if I was so inclined I’d give them the mild dish soap & warm (not hot) flush recommended by Michael Burke for his whistles. Not recommended for wooden whistles.
Best,
Deisman