Crack in bass drone top below metal drone cap: What to do?

[Glpiper]

While performing some maintenance to get my approximately ten-year-old set of blackwood David Naill bagpipes back into playing condition after about five years of sitting unplayed, I noticed a crack in the bass drone top below the metal drone cap. I am not sure how far the crack extends; whether it extends upwards into the wood bound by the drone cap, and whether it extends further internally.

Do you have advice about what to do about this?

I live in El Paso, Texas, and I do not have a lathe or other specialized wood-working equipment or blackwood dust (which I've read some people mix with certain types of glue for repairwork) .

[Toxpert]

I would reach out to Naill to find out how they might help you. That company is known for extraordinary post-sale customer support.

[Hot_Rod]

I would recommend contacting Rick Pettigrew at Dunbar. They repaired a couple hairline cracks on the bass drone of my 20 year old Cushing’s a couple years ago. Excellent workmanship, the cracks are completely invisible now.
I have also had them do other tasks for me as well, and each time I am extremely pleased with the end result.


Rod

[EquusRacer]

While I agree with the above recommendations, if you're wanting to work on it yourself: If you have store nearby that specializes in all sorts of wood, including "exotic" varieties, you could pick up a small piece of ABW, or even ebony, and sand it to create your own dust to apply after gluing the crack. In addition, we have some luthiers here who might have better DIY advice.

[el gaitero]

If you haven't confirmed it's leaking.....put a stopper in the bush ..then a thin smear of liquid soap over the crack;..,mouth blow from the ferrule end. Bubbles = a leak.
No bubbles?..., I'd leave it alone,;...or if frantic about it
...lay in a thin line of Krazy Glu...mask it off first.

Are those brass caps...or has the 'silver' plating worn off?

[Calum]

Looking at the pics, in all honesty I'd do nothing. That doesn't look like it goes through the wood and is unlikely to cause issues, and it's not going to be much more of a repair if it does get worse.

Glueing the crack without closing it is not a repair, it's just cosmetic.

[Glpiper]

If you haven't confirmed it's leaking.....put a stopper in the bush ..then a thin smear of liquid soap over the crack;..,mouth blow from the ferrule end. Bubbles = a leak.
No bubbles?..., I'd leave it alone,;...or if frantic about it
...lay in a thin line of Krazy Glu...mask it off first.

Are those brass caps...or has the 'silver' plating worn off?

Thank you for your response. I'm not sure if I would actually be able to get any glue into the crack because it is so narrow—there is so little space where the wood is split. The caps are nickel, which is very tarnished.

[Glpiper]

Looking at the pics, in all honesty I'd do nothing. That doesn't look like it goes through the wood and is unlikely to cause issues, and it's not going to be much more of a repair if it does get worse.

Glueing the crack without closing it is not a repair, it's just cosmetic.

Thank you, Calum. What is the difference between gluing the crack with versus without closing it?

[Glpiper]

While I agree with the above recommendations, if you're wanting to work on it yourself: If you have store nearby that specializes in all sorts of wood, including "exotic" varieties, you could pick up a small piece of ABW, or even ebony, and sand it to create your own dust to apply after gluing the crack. In addition, we have some luthiers here who might have better DIY advice.

Thank you for your advice. What steps would you follow to effectively seal the crack with glue and wood dust? (Would this involve clamping the wood? What type of glue would you use? Do you mix the glue with the wood dust or apply the wood dust after the glue?)

[Glpiper]

I would recommend contacting Rick Pettigrew at Dunbar. They repaired a couple hairline cracks on the bass drone of my 20 year old Cushing’s a couple years ago. Excellent workmanship, the cracks are completely invisible now.
I have also had them do other tasks for me as well, and each time I am extremely pleased with the end result.


Rod

Thank you for your recommendation. Do you have an email address for Rick Pettigrew at Dunbar? I used the "contact us" form on the Dunbar Bagpipes webpage (https://www.dunbarbagpipes.com/contactus.html), but I am not sure if my message was received.

[Glpiper]

A follow-up question for everyone:

Does anybody have experience getting repairs done by specialists in repairing other woodwind instruments (e.g., clarinet, oboe, etc.)?

I ask because getting repair work done at Dunbar Bagpipes or David Naill Bagpipes might involve lengthy and costly international shipping, and there are other instrument repair specialists who are located closer to me here in West Texas, USA.

[Hot_Rod]

Thank you for your recommendation. Do you have an email address for Rick Pettigrew at Dunbar? I used the "contact us" form on the Dunbar Bagpipes webpage (https://www.dunbarbagpipes.com/contactus.html), but I am not sure if my message was received.

Here you go: [email protected]

[Hot_Rod]

With regard to shipping to Dunbar - I recently sent them a blowpipe that I wanted shortened. I don’t recall what I paid at the post office, but on the invoice when it was shipped back, the shipping was $30.17 CDN (so about $22.93 US).
Shipping time has typically been about a week - which for me was rather frustrating, as where I live - about midway between Rochester and Syracuse, NY - I’m probably only about a 3 hour drive from the Dunbar factory!

[EquusRacer]

Thank you for your advice. What steps would you follow to effectively seal the crack with glue and wood dust? (Would this involve clamping the wood? What type of glue would you use? Do you mix the glue with the wood dust or apply the wood dust after the glue?)

Others might disagree and therefore approach it differently. But I would use epoxy, rubbing it in (recognizing what you said that it is narrow; but there's enough for a small amount of glue to rub in). I would then cover it with the ABW or ebony dust while the glue is still wet (mounding the dust up). When dry, I'd sand with very fine paper or steel wool, then oil. Again, that would be my approach, and I respect others' opinions, especially those who make and repair instruments.

[Raibeart]

Any glue you apply, and especially a glue/wood dust combo, will get into the combing. A pipemaker would put in the glue/glue+wood dust, then when dry put the part on the lathe and clean up the combing with a combing tool.

I wouldn't clamp it. It cracked because it was trying to relieve internal stress. If you clamp it you re-introduce that stress and it will crack again, or it will crack on the opposite side. That said, your crack is very tight (some might call it a check not a crack) which is good and implies that there's not much stress.

I'd suggest contacting Roddy MacLellan at MacLellan Bagpipes in Zebulon NC.