Position of drones - bag size

[shiela]

hi I,ve been playing pipes for around a year and I have trouble keeping my drones upright,i always seem to have them leaning back compared to the band,it has been suggested now that my bag is too small.it,s an extended small.on Wallace pipes,i,ve tried different blowpipes to no avail,last night at band I tried another pipers medium bag pipes,and that seemed better,does anyone have any thoughts or advice please?there doesn,t seem to be much bag behind my arm but my tenors won,t go any further back,if you see what I mean?

[Mainebagpipes]

If the medium bag seems better and is comfortable, that's probably a good indication you need something bigger.

This will vary based on bag make and personal preference, but in general if you're:

5' 8" tall or shorter, look at an extra small or a small;
5' 9" to 6", small or medium;
6' to 6' 4", medium or large;
Any taller than that, large.

I think that's paraphrasing Jim McGillivray's site (can't remember where I jotted it down from). If you're able to, see if you can get some time on pipes with different bag sizes and figure out what works for you.

I'm 5' 10". I've had success with extended smalls or mediums depending on the make, although I use "Willie McCallum" bags on two out of three pipes right now.

[HighlandPark]

Just curious what you mean keeping your drones upright. Is it uncomfortable to play? Are they in someone's face behind you? Or is the angle slimply different from those of your bandmates?

Certainly, bag type and size, and blowpipe length are critical factors. However, different pipes in the same bag will often balance in a noticeably different way. My Lawries are near vertical while my Hendersons just seem to fall back a little, both on the same bag. Perhaps it is how the drones are positioned in the grommets, but both are comfortable set-ups.

FWIW, if you do a Google image search of some prominent pipers you will see that some have drones that are far from vertical; this doesn't seem to negatively affect them. YMMV

[el gaitero]

Aim for getting the bass drone standing up at your left ear....maybe a small tich behind it or even in front.

With a constant rock hard bag while playing/marching...keep it there.

Not draped over the shoulder like a fishing pole.

Yep....you might need to upsize your bag...but focus on getting the bass upstanding in either case.

[DamhCabrachPiping]

Worry more about being comfortable.

Recently watch a video of Stuart Liddell playing a PHSD and his drones are far from vertical.

There should be enough spacing between rank and file to accommodate your bass drone being horizontal anyways so it’s no biggie.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[el gaitero]

Or this....https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojAwdnjaHM4&sns=em.

[shiela]

hi thanks for the replies,i purchased an airstream tilt and that seems to be really comfortable now,and my drones are more upright now..thanks for the help,x

[Josh Whitson]

Just adding that, in my opinion, ideal bag size has less to do with height and more to do with your build. By many charts due to my height I should be playing a small or medium. However, I'm very thin with long arms so even with those bags fully inflated my left wrist was kinking badly to get my fingers on the chanter properly. An experienced pipe major recommended I switch to a large bag and that fixed the problem immediately for me.

[el gaitero]

Originally Posted by Josh Whitson

Just adding that, in my opinion, ideal bag size has less to do with height and more to do with your build. By many charts due to my height I should be playing a small or medium. However, I'm very thin with long arms so even with those bags fully inflated my left wrist was kinking badly to get my fingers on the chanter properly. An experienced pipe major recommended I switch to a large bag and that fixed the problem immediately for me.

Seems (to me) almost anybody can fit onto a large bag..and all the makers are pretty close in same depth...but not so for ‘everybody’ on a small bag. Ha! I do recall having a large Bannatyne once ...forever it felt like my left elbow was almost paralell to the ground. Color me surprised when it leaked enough to be replaced and I finally measured it ...schnikee’s it must have been an XXL ...IIRC it was 12- 1/2” depth.

[Roddy Livingstone]

A cautionary note.......look at the alignment of your spine & how you might be compromising healthy posture before you decide that "Big is Best".