Care and maintenance of wooden whistles

[wodan22]

I am a newcomer to C&F, and a relative newcomer to the whistle. I recently ordered my first 2 wooden whistles-a Paul busman and a Gene Milligan (both high D).

I am curious as to what I should do as far as care and maintenance for my wooden whistles so that they will, hopefully, last a lifetime. All my internet searches brought up a lot of info about caring for and maintaining wooden flutes, but whistles...not so much.

Any advice would be appreciated.

Although somewhat unrelated, when I got my first 2 whistles (a nickel Oak high D and a brass Feadog high D), I foolishly removed the little sticker that tells the brand and what key they are. Right now, I know which is which, but as my collection grows, this may become less obvious. Any suggestions as far as that?

[Steve Bliven]

I am a newcomer to C&F, and a relative newcomer to the whistle.

Welcome to the Board. It's all downhill from here....

I am curious as to what I should do as far as care and maintenance for my wooden whistles so that they will, hopefully, last a lifetime. All my internet searches brought up a lot of info about caring for and maintaining wooden flutes, but whistles...not so much.

I'm sure that Paul Busman will be happy to provide information about how to keep his whistles going strong. As you've probably noticed, he posts here often and will probably be along soon to comment.

Although somewhat unrelated, when I got my first 2 whistles (a nickel Oak high D and a brass Feadog high D), I foolishly removed the little sticker that tells the brand and what key they are. Right now, I know which is which, but as my collection grows, this may become less obvious. Any suggestions as far as that?

Masking tape ? Metal engraver ? Those thingys that make tape labels ? Give them to the neighborhood kids and buy new ones? Just live with it ? Try to sell them on eBay as "Unidentified Vintage" ? Lots of Options...

Best wishes.

Steve

[slowair]

The maker will most likely include care instructions with the whistle.

Pretty sure Paul does.

[MTGuru]

I foolishly removed the little sticker that tells the brand and what key they are. Right now, I know which is which, but as my collection grows, this may become less obvious. Any suggestions as far as that?

I've gone as far as re-gluing the little paper labels when they fell off. But even Gen-style whistles are mostly distinguishable from one another even without the labels if you know what to look for.

[brewerpaul]

I'm off to work, but I'll get back to you... In the meantime, don't fret it. Care is simple

[brewerpaul]

Care is common sense. Avoid extremes of temperature, and sudden large changes of temperature. A closed car on a hot sunny day is a recipe for disaster.
Shake the excess moisture out of the whistle when you're done playing and don't store it in an airtight case until it's had some time to dry out.
Swabbing out the bore with a rolled up cloth handkerchief is a good idea, but I don't always do that.
Oiling-- there are a ton of bore oils out there, and most will do the job. I use a 5:1 mix of LIGHT olive oil and almond oil, with a couple of drops of vitamin E oil to retard the oil becoming rancid.
You do NOT have to oil the whistle a lot or frequently! I sometimes get whistles back for tweaking and the wood is saturated. A thin coat of oil is all that's necessary. Do this when the whistle is completely dry. Apply the oil, let it sit for a while, then swab out the excess.
Once or twice a year is really all that's needed. I hate to tell you how rarely I oil my own personal whistles!

[wodan22]

Care is common sense. Avoid extremes of temperature, and sudden large changes of temperature. A closed car on a hot sunny day is a recipe for disaster.
Shake the excess moisture out of the whistle when you're done playing and don't store it in an airtight case until it's had some time to dry out.
Swabbing out the bore with a rolled up cloth handkerchief is a good idea, but I don't always do that.
Oiling-- there are a ton of bore oils out there, and most will do the job. I use a 5:1 mix of LIGHT olive oil and almond oil, with a couple of drops of vitamin E oil to retard the oil becoming rancid.
You do NOT have to oil the whistle a lot or frequently! I sometimes get whistles back for tweaking and the wood is saturated. A thin coat of oil is all that's necessary. Do this when the whistle is completely dry. Apply the oil, let it sit for a while, then swab out the excess.
Once or twice a year is really all that's needed. I hate to tell you how rarely I oil my own personal whistles!

Thanks so much!