I have my Clarke’s Celtic tin whistle and am doing my best to learn how to play it by reading free lessons online. However, the box my whistle came in is woefully inadequate. I want to make a wooden case to put it in. Or, more accurately, I want my stepfather to make it, because he knows how! 
Is there anything I need to know before we make it? Type of materials, snug or loose fit, anything. I don’t see how anything could really hurt or help much, but I thought I’d rather be safe than sorry!
For just the one whistle? I think a wooden box is a little overboard for a Celtic Whistle. My suggestion is to get/make some kind of simple cloth pouch. It’ll be more than protective enough, I’d say.
Or you could go buy a few more whistles, and then make a nice wooden case to keep them all in! 
Well, I thought about a pouch, but the problem is that none of us know how to sew, hahaha! Plus, my stepfather very often has spare bits of wood. We also move quite a bit, and I’m afraid that something heavy will land on it and damage it. We’re actually about to move soon.
Wouldn’t I love to get some more whistles! I’m not very good, but I’m hoping to get a lot better eventually. Music is addictive!
If you get into whistle playing, you are bound to have more than one. Even if you stick with the cheapies.
Build that box to allow for at several and allow for longer lengths. The box won’t be that much bigger anyway. Whistles are narrow.
Consider some foam padding or a liner so they won’t bang together.
And check some old messages; this has come up several times before.
The simplest case would be for him to take two pieces of wood and use a router to route out a chamber the size of your whistle. Two hinges and a catch, and you’re all set.
I’ve posted it before, but here’s the case I made for my Clarke D (my first whistle).
I used bass wood and cut it with an X-Acto blade, used wood glue to put it together and sanded it down to a snooth finish. I then used Mod Podge to glue the fabric to the box and took another piece of fabric and rolled it up and put it in the box (both top and bottom). If I had a scroll saw I would have used a better wood, but I still like the results. I got everything I needed at a craft store for about $20.
Just because a whistle only costs $12, it doesn’t mean it doesn’t need a home.
As for my other whistles, I think I may either go with a heavy padded whistle case or brush roll.
Also, I’ve owned both of the drumstick bags the Whistle Shop carries, and they are both wonderful for whistles. Recommended for those with a lot of cheap whistles (like me).
Wow, there are some very good ideas here! And Black Mage, is looks like you put a lot of work into that box. It’s very nice. 
My whistle is really nothing fancy, but it’s my first one and I feel a lot of affection for it. I guess I want it to have a special place. Haha, sentimental for a piece of metal and plastic!
Thank you all again for your replies.
A word of caution- I made a nice maple hinged box to hold two Shaws, C and D. The Shaw is unpainted, but like the Clarke it has a wooden block to form the fipple. When I put the whistles away in the box after using them, the remaining moisture in the whistle tends to tarnish and corrode the metal at an alarming rate. Furthermore, one of the wooden blocks grew mold on it overnight which was a rather icky discovery the next day. Needless to say, I no longer close the lid on the box so as not to trap in the moisture, but that defeats part of the purpose of having the box in the first place. I suppose I could swab the whistle out after playing (a bit difficult with the tapered bore), but normally the wooden block holds moisture for many hours after playing.
Has anyone else had an experience like this, and if so, what did you do about it?
Another super cheap super easy option is to take your whistle with you to home depot, lowes or some other such home improvement store and get a length of pvc pipe and the appropriate endcaps to fit your whistle, if all you are looking for is a single case. Make sure it is and inch or so longer than the whistle is so you can stuff some tissue in the ends to keep it from banging the ends. Should cost no more than $4.
check out one of our member’s website:
(own the prototype whistle box, he does very nice work)
NancyF
