Composite regulator reed?

[WireHarp]

I am beyond frustrated: I completely lost my ability to make reeds. I used to be able to occasionally cobble out one or two decent ones, but poof.. no more.
Years ago I did manage to reed up my drones with the 'brass square tube/round tube plastic tongued' composite thingies and was wondering if anyone
has ever had success making one as a regulator reed. I play a union style set with a single six-keyed tenor reg ( I think) and was hoping somebody might
have a body length if they were able to make one work. In the meantime I think I'll go bite some more cane in half. Grr.

[Mr.Gumby]

Considerable success has been reported with yoghurt container plastic and drink can-metal. I have played a Taylor set that had its regs reeded with coke can reeds. They were 100% stable, unfortunately I was playing the set outside and where normally cane reg reeds would move slightly in the same way as the chanter reed, these didn't but stayed put instead so the tuning of regs and chanter parted ways quickly.

Ken McLeod did a demonstration, making metal reg reeds during a NPU tionol, Rosslare or Bettystown during the nineties I believe. I think I recently scanned the film with the pics of the demo. He may or may not have done a write up for SRS or An Piobaire but my memory is blank on that.

[Driftwood]

I play a union style set with a single six-keyed tenor reg ( I think)

I'm interested to know what the sixth note is.

[WireHarp]

I believe it is a b, running up a diatonic scale from D; but I've never had a reed good enough to find out.
*sigh*

RWM

[an seanduine]

In addition to 'drinks can' regs, and yogurt containers, there have also been successful reg reeds made of phosphor bronze shim material and wood, notably cedar, spruce and redwood.
A little more information about your set and its maker would be helpfull.

Bob

[billh]

I believe it is a b, running up a diatonic scale from D; but I've never had a reed good enough to find out.
*sigh*

RWM

Well, that doesn't sound at all like a tenor reg. Regs with the tonic normally would be classed as baritone regs.

[WireHarp]

My set started out life as a Chris Bayley pastoral set. I found it REALLY hard to reed that chanter ( sort of am unholy union between uilleann and a
baroque oboe). So when my friend Tom Standeven died, I was given one of his practice sets, by Ginnseberg (had a GREAT chanter). I attached the
chanter directly into the bag and voila: union pipes. So the reg is for a pastoral set, most likely accounting for the six keys. I have made a few successful
reg reeds over the years but they always die in the end, usually by closing up. the dimensions are smaller and narrower than typical uilleann regs (according to the NPU book at least) so I always seem to end up with very strong 'shovelling' in the profile. I have Tim Britton's blackwood drone reeds in them and they work great...but before those I had made the brass/plastic composite which worked reasonably well. I was hoping to try that idea with the reg but so far no luck. It seems that in order to get the pitch low enough the tube would have to be the size of a drinking straw; plus they tend to be really weak. Bronze/wood sounds interesting but no idea where to get sheet bronze nor how to proceed with construction. Chances are the best solution is to keep hacking away at the cane..
I was just hoping somebody might have had a eureka moment.

RWM

[JR]

I've had good results with both yoghurt and cane in my Bayley D regulators. Currently using cane. Having also played a really nice Bayley pastoral set you can remove the footjoint to play a standard Union Pipe in concert D.

[eskin]

I have bronze regulator reeds in my Kirk Lynch 3/4 set. Interestingly they are identical tenor regulator reeds from a Quinn C set.

I haven't had to tune or adjust them in over 5 years, they just work.

[uillmann]

I have bronze regulator reeds in my Kirk Lynch 3/4 set. Interestingly they are identical tenor regulator reeds from a Quinn C set.

I haven't had to tune or adjust them in over 5 years, they just work.

I wonder if bronze reeds could be low-temp soldered to the staple. Probably last a thousand years. From what I heard, bronze reeds do not react to humidity changes, but are slightly affected by temp swings. If they sound good, bronze reeds might offer relief from regularly having to adjust. That's mighty tempting.

[Mr.Gumby]

If they sound good, bronze reeds might offer relief from regularly having to adjust. That's mighty tempting.

The problem, as I indicated above in relation to my experience with Coke can reeds, occurs when your chanter rises a bit after playing. Your regs will stay put so you'll have to set them up in a way you can pull the tuning slide/rush back a bit to tune them up a bit as you play.

[eskin]

If my chanter (Koehler with an O'Donovan reed) rises much, I'll generally just add a bit of thread to keep in tune with the rest of the session players. We generally have at least one concertina, so keeping my set at concert pitch has been a priority.

[uillmann]

We generally have at least one concertina, so keeping my set at concert pitch has been a priority.

I know, right? What a pain in the keister. Why can't those guys tune up to us like we do to them.

[Nanohedron]

Build a free-reed capo, and the world will beat a path to your door.

[geoff wooff]

The problem with moving the reed to compensate for a rise (or fall) in pitch is that it changes the focus point. It's a bit like moving the bridge on a fiddle , scaling and octaving accuracies will change. The chances of damaging the chanter reed are heightened especially when adjusting during a session.

All chanters rise in pitch during playing, 10 to 20 cents, even without the effects that may occur by quick changes of temperature, bringing a set into a session.