Wood whistles, help? advise?

[seanc]

Hi All,
A question regarding wood whistles. I am interested in a wood whistle and looking at what is around there are a lot of options.

I guess the questions are what are the reccomended wooden whistles? The Busman, O'Brien, etc ..Is there one (readily available i.e not an O'Riordan) that is considered the best way to go?

And also to tag off of that how much of an effect on the sound does the wood have? Meaning maple vs osage orange vs boxwood vs ebony, etc.? Do similar density woods sound similar enough to be a insignifigant difference and do greatly different density woods have a radically different tone?

Thanks in advance.

[Jason Paul]

Too funny. I almost asked the same question last night about the tone difference in woods since I'm considering biting the bullet and getting one.

Are certain woods breathier than others? Clearer? Brighter? Or is the tone more dependent upon the design of the windway and ramp?

Thanks,
Jason

[Guinness]

Wood can crack, in both senses of the word.

[seanc]

At least with guitars. The accepted truism is that the density of the wood is the deciding factor in tone, not the choice of the wood per se. I just don't know if or how that translates to the whistle world.

And I would think (and thinking is certainly a stretch) that a wood like teak (maybe cedar too) would be perfectly suited to whistles as it is naturally water resistant.

And as far as cracking... So can pvc, glass/ acrilyc, delrin etc.

[brewerpaul]

At least with guitars. The accepted truism is that the density of the wood is the deciding factor in tone, not the choice of the wood per se. I just don't know if or how that translates to the whistle world.

.

I'm of the opinion that it doesn't matter a whole lot what wood you use as long as it's hard, dense and fairly smooth grained. In a guitar, you have many square inches of vibrating wood so the density of the wood definitely makes a big difference. In something as small as a whistle however, the wooden tube doesn't really vibrate much at all. What vibrates is the air column inside. Many people feel this in their fingertips and mistakenly think that it's the wood vibrating.
I always tell people to pick a wood that they love the looks of, and they'll love the whistle too. But that's just me...

[Tim2723]

When chosing whistles, I've come to believe that design differences are far more important than small differences in materials. I think the first choice is between a conical or straight bore, then to choose between wood, metal, or synthetics, then finally the type of wood or metal or synthetic. After that the player must decide about a dozen other factors relating to the individual maker and how he uses those materials. Between any two types of material in the same group, there are other differences in design that will far outweigh the effect of, for instance, rosewood vs. cocobola, or nickel-silver vs. steel.

[Kansas]

Hi All,
A question regarding wood whistles. I am interested in a wood whistle and looking at what is around there are a lot of options.

I guess the questions are what are the reccomended wooden whistles? The Busman, O'Brien, etc ..Is there one (readily available i.e not an O'Riordan) that is considered the best way to go?

And also to tag off of that how much of an effect on the sound does the wood have? Meaning maple vs osage orange vs boxwood vs ebony, etc.? Do similar density woods sound similar enough to be a insignifigant difference and do greatly different density woods have a radically different tone?

Thanks in advance.

Hi seanc

Have not been on the Chiff board for a while, but feel I can at least relate what I have found with three similar wood whistles - all from Paul Busman.
I asked the same thing some long time ago and I believe he answered the same way as above - that the wood makes less difference.

In the three I have 1 D in Kingwood, 1 D in Maple, 1 C in Maple. They are all beautiful. I cannot imagine seeing better looking wood. They all three play wonderfully and very close to each other. The difference is the C and D even made from similar wood - the key is different. The Busman D in Kingwood was purchased from Byll who is a professional. I believe he sent it for a tune up. It plays easier and "Cleaner" than the other two.

Lastly - Paul Busman sent a delrin body on a tour a year or so ago. I could not find any difference in sound. I would buy one of these for the ability to use it travelling - but I love the wood too much. These three are my very favorite of about 20 whistles.

Paul's woods stand unmatched in my mind.

All in all, get the wood you like. I do feel there is a very noticeable difference between the Busmans and the metal whistles I own.

Paul - if your on - my third daughter is to be proposed to (for marriage LOL) on Navy Pier in Chicago this very Friday afternoon. I will take one of the three.
Please tell me my premier whistle maker and sage Dr. - what whistle is appropriate for such a joyous occassion?

[brewerpaul]

Paul - if your on - my third daughter is to be proposed to (for marriage LOL) on Navy Pier in Chicago this very Friday afternoon. I will take one of the three.
Please tell me my premier whistle maker and sage Dr. - what whistle is appropriate for such a joyous occassion?
_________________
I remember Byll's Kingwood, and it's a really nice one. Take that. If you get on board a ship be sure to play a hornpipe or two
And congrats to the happy couple!

[Kansas]

Paul - if your on - my third daughter is to be proposed to (for marriage LOL) on Navy Pier in Chicago this very Friday afternoon. I will take one of the three.
Please tell me my premier whistle maker and sage Dr. - what whistle is appropriate for such a joyous occassion?
_________________
I remember Byll's Kingwood, and it's a really nice one. Take that. If you get on board a ship be sure to play a hornpipe or two
And congrats to the happy couple!

Wow your fast! No Ship for us. $325 just to drive there and back. I was just there 2 weeks ago for the birth of our first grandchild/granddaughter (Another daughter - No 1) so there were three airfares that trip also.

No - the "ruse" is that they are going to the pier to go on a boat at 12:00 noon, we will be there at the carousel at 11:30 Am and he will just happen to "sonter" over to the carousel and .......................the BIG Question.

She does not know we will be there although she knows my wife is still there in Indiana with our grandbaby. His parents (from Kansas also) and my other three daughters will be there also. Two sons - working. Got to keep them working!

Thanks for the fast reply. I will put it into a cloth bag and then into my pvc pipe "contraption" for protection. (I've never tried to fly with it - I don't think it would go over big as it looks like a pipe bomb).

Nice to hear from you.

[Guinness]

And as far as cracking... So can pvc, glass/ acrilyc, delrin etc.

Craic, yes. Mechanical fracture, no, glass and gross abuse notwithstanding.

[CranberryDog]

Some opine that the "gold standard" is an Abell in blackwood and silver.

[kennychaffin]

Some opine that the "gold standard" is an Abell in blackwood and silver.

I opine that, and lust for that, but hey what do I know.

[preacher]

Just a quick heads-up for those interested in wood. I will shortly be posting for sale my Bleazey D in blackwood.

[BruceW]

I have several whistles from Chris Abell. Most are in blackwood, but I also have a couple in Delrin.
I'm a huge fan of Chris' whistles -- for what they are. Let me explain. They're made with the same precision and quality as a wooden flute, which is his main business.

However, the sound of the instrument, 'flute-like', is from how it's made, and only a small amount due to the material. I have his wonderful instruments in blackwood, delrin (a synthetic) and cocus. All sound glorius. The difference, for example between the blackwood "D" and the delrin, is so slight that it's the delrin I take when I travel. (less possibility of climate differences)

I'd say do you want a 'flute' like sound, or the trad 'chiff' sound. The materials don't change this, it's the construction that does.

Hope this helps,
Bruce

[Kansas]

Paul - if your on - my third daughter is to be proposed to (for marriage LOL) on Navy Pier in Chicago this very Friday afternoon. I will take one of the three.
Please tell me my premier whistle maker and sage Dr. - what whistle is appropriate for such a joyous occassion?
_________________
I remember Byll's Kingwood, and it's a really nice one. Take that. If you get on board a ship be sure to play a hornpipe or two
And congrats to the happy couple!

I could not play -due to timing and access to the car which was parked a mile away at Grant Park and had my whistles - during the "asking".

So that evening, there were very low clouds from an intermittent rain and the wind was still (pretty rare in Chicago). So I played Inisheer - Londenderry Aire - and Brigit O'Malley into the fog/clouds which made it even more surreal as Trump Tower and the other builldings were almost completely hidden by the clouds. The Kingwood D got the nod for the first two and the C Tiger Maple I so greatly love for the third. A little Kesh and Sally Gardens too with the Kingwood later.

I was on the 32nd floor of a condo facing the Trump tower (10 floors parking on the bottom making - I guess 42). Holding on for dear life in a chair on the balcony - LOL.

I'd post a couple of photos of the view if I could figure how to do it on the Chiff board.

Someone tell me how?

Thanks for the inspiration and the wonderful tools Paul.

And oh - she said YES.