Complete reed making kits with tools

[Klondike Waldo]

I might be interested in some of the tools rather than the whole kit, but in general it sounds like a good idea. I'd be more interested in perfecting my border and smallpipe reeds because they cost much more than GHB reeds usually.

[flares2]

Originally Posted by Pip01

I would not make... and then play my own reeds... and
for the very same reason that I would not go out and buy
a kit... and then make... and fly... my own helicopter... !!...

I agree with Pip01 here. But if I had a helicopter, I would be sure to put fuel in it, oil, etc.

Why not have a reed care/manipulation kit? There's always a lot of good advice on the forum to sand a reed or trim the edges, but I'm sure an inexperienced hand with improper tools could destroy a beautiful reed by sanding or chopping it up. A kit with proprietary "tools for dummies" could help the average piper maintain his/her professionally made reeds.

I'd rather shell out a few bucks on tools made by reed makers than run to Lowes and buy whatever mandrels, cutters, etc is on the shelf.

[Bill Adam]

Originally Posted by flares2

I'd rather shell out a few bucks on tools made by reed makers than run to Lowes and buy whatever mandrels, cutters, etc is on the shelf.

At the double reed instrument store I buy my products you can pay $14.95 for a folding knife with replaceable steel blades and go up to $199 for a Japanese Ando knife plus the recommended Japanese Water stone and strop to sharpen and hone. Oh and you either order a right handed or left handed knife.

[classicbagpipes]

As a wise old reed maker once told me, when you get into making or learning to make reeds, be prepared to throw out the first 1000 or so before you get what you want. Shawn could probably answer that question for us.

[magsevenband]

I like the idea and applaud Shawn for taking the initiative......

Cheers,
Al
www.theroyalpiper.com
www.magseven.com

[Kirby Allen]

Oh yes the dark art of reedmaking.

I'd be interested in learning to make my own reeds, as I could fit reeds to a chanter instead of the other way around, or just try to imitate a reed being made.

It may also be a neat way to experiment with what "brand" of reeds works with what chanters by copying reeds until you find what works and then ordering those.

[Shawn Husk]

A big thank you to each and every one of you who has responded so far.

I'm reading this all with keen interest, and I want to hear more what people have to say.

The intent behind all of this is more about education than anything else. When it comes to chanter reeds it seems there are a million different ideas about what works and what doesn't. In my own reedmaking efforts I have come to the conclusion (as I always suspected) that there were certain "basic principles" that underlie all reedmaking and that this set of principles is applicable to all chanter reeds. I believe this to be the case. There are certain physical properties about every reed which make it perform well or not, and through time, experience and vast amounts of experimentation these properties have become clear to me. I'm not saying that I have learned it all, hardly, but I have a very good grasp on the fundamentals, the true underlying basic principles that govern all reeds.

To keep this short. I intend to continue working on this project but keep in mind that it is in it's infancy and will take some time to prepare and perfect. But nonetheless it WILL happen. I am determined to help pipers everywhere to understand reeds better and to provide a working set of tools that will pretty much allow anyone with the passion, perseverance and patience to make great chanter reeds do so if they choose.

Please keep the comments coming. It's inspiring and intriguing all at the same time!

Shawn

[Shawn Husk]

In keeping with the vein of Tedley's post I'd like to share something.

A few years ago there was a nice fellow named David Jones who is a forum member who was making his own reeds. Dave was at the time a highland piper as well as an uilleann piper. He's since gone over to the dark side and only plays uilleanns

Anyway, he was kind enough to share 4 videos up on youtube all about how to make your own highland chanter reeds. These were great videos as they basically only required the bare minimum of reed specific tooling, namely an in cannel gouge. The rest of the tools he used in the video were all commonly available to anyone nearly anywhere at any time.

In searching for these recently I noticed that Dave had closed his YouTube account and the videos were no longer accessible. So I contacted him and he was kind enough to let me repost them under my own account with all the credit to him.

So just to give any of those of you out there who want to give reedmaking a try please have a look and enjoy!

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4

Shawn

[Johnniez]

Take note in the PART 1 video.

The shooting block he has installed a couple of door hinges at the appropriate height and widths to act as a guide when cutting the cane. Thus not wearing out the wood shooting block. Great idea.

[Kirby Allen]

Also as far as potentially putting reedmakers out of business, I doubt that would happen. The homemaker reed market will always be a niche area (unless you're an oboe player), and it's just not feasible with pipe bands who need 20-30 consistent reeds a year minimum (and that's assuming every reed you get is a good one).