Wooden fipple question

Whistle
1

Hi,

My low D has a wooden fipple, and I was wondering if the fipple needed any special care.

thanks!

2

You should contact the manufactuer of the whistle, the type of care depends on the kind wood used.

3

Hi, I’m making whistles with wooden fipples and the question that comes to mind is how is your fipple finished on the inside? If it is raw wood you run the risk of swelling up the wood and majorly disturbing the voicing of the instrument. If this is what you have I would recommend an application of food grade walnut oil, it is very thin and penetrates well and will harden when dry. If you have a fipple that was just oiled when made them I would suggest the same treatment. I use a piece of PELON strip cut wide enough to fit into the airway (fabric used to stiffen collars purchased at any fabric store). The oil can be applied with this strip and polished with a clean one.
I personally use a water thin acrylic sealer that is applied during the making process. I find this actually hardens the wood and completely waterproofs it. I would not recommend this for you because there is build-up on the surfaces being coated which could disturb the voicing. It works for me because I polish the surfaces as part of the voicing process. This could work for you if you had a way of polishing the airway.
I hope this gives you some insight into what to do about your fipple.
Be well Ronaldo

4

Thanks for the information