O'Riordan contact information?

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O'Riordan contact information?

Post by brewerpaul »

Does anyone have current contact information for Pat O'Riordan? Someone online was asking if anyone could repair a damaged O'Riordan fipple and I asked for some pictures.
Damaged is putting it mildly! I was thinking it might have a simple crack, or separation of the parts but I was wrong. It literally looks like a dog chewed the beak to pieces.
I'm hesitant to try to cobble this into playable condition. Pat would obviously be the best person to do the repair/rebuild and I'd like to ask him if he's willing to do that. Barring that
perhaps he could give me some pointers that might help me at least give it a try.
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Re: O'Riordan contact information?

Post by colomon »

I too would love to know his address, just to send him a thank you note for long years of whistling pleasure!

Do you know what variety of Pat's whistles it was? Maybe we can at least find someone here who can post pictures of what it is supposed to look like...
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Re: O'Riordan contact information?

Post by Byll »

Sigh. As far as I know, Pat has been very ill for quite some time. His family has rightfully circled the wagons, and will allow no contact of any kind. I wish I could be more helpful & hopeful...

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Re: O'Riordan contact information?

Post by brewerpaul »

Sigh indeed. I'm sorry to hear this but it's perfectly understandable.
I've only seen pictures of part of the head which appears to be all polymer apart from metal
fittings.

After a bit of a search, I found this old forum thread with a review of Pat's whistles. I'm guessing that the damaged head is much like the one in these pictures:

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=30445
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Tell us something.: Whistle player, aspiring C#/D accordion and flute player, and aspiring tunesmith. Particularly interested in the music of South Sligo and Newfoundland. Inspired by the music of Peter Horan, Fred Finn, Rufus Guinchard, Emile Benoit, and Liz Carroll.

I've got some compositions up at http://www.harmonyware.com/tunes/SolsTunes.html
Location: Midland, Michigan
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Re: O'Riordan contact information?

Post by colomon »

Here's a couple more pictures for you. This is a 2002 Traveller Eb whistle, but it's the identical design/size to the D. You can see into the airway here, the way the head is two pieces of delrin (?), and the tiny metal pin that holds them together.

Image
Image
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Re: O'Riordan contact information?

Post by brewerpaul »

Thanks, those are a help. I'm not sure how I'd get that flush brass pin out to disassemble the head. If it went all the way through sideways I could push it out. I might be able to drill it out, or excavate around it enough to grip it with a needle nose pliers or hemostat. It looks like the roof of the wind way is arched, but the top of the plug is flat, right? I might be able to machine a new outer head piece and new plug, hoping that the ramp is still basically intact. It can't get much worse! If I tackle the project I'll post before and after pics.I'd need to find a new photo host since Photobucket went to an all pay model.

colomon wrote:Here's a couple more pictures for you. This is a 2002 Traveller Eb whistle, but it's the identical design/size to the D. You can see into the airway here, the way the head is two pieces of delrin (?), and the tiny metal pin that holds them together.

Image
Image
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Tell us something.: Whistle player, aspiring C#/D accordion and flute player, and aspiring tunesmith. Particularly interested in the music of South Sligo and Newfoundland. Inspired by the music of Peter Horan, Fred Finn, Rufus Guinchard, Emile Benoit, and Liz Carroll.

I've got some compositions up at http://www.harmonyware.com/tunes/SolsTunes.html
Location: Midland, Michigan
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Re: O'Riordan contact information?

Post by colomon »

brewerpaul wrote:Thanks, those are a help. I'm not sure how I'd get that flush brass pin out to disassemble the head. If it went all the way through sideways I could push it out. I might be able to drill it out, or excavate around it enough to grip it with a needle nose pliers or hemostat. It looks like the roof of the wind way is arched, but the top of the plug is flat, right? I might be able to machine a new outer head piece and new plug, hoping that the ramp is still basically intact. It can't get much worse!
Roof of the wind way is arched but the top of the plug is flat, exactly.

I never really thought about this before, but I just pulled it out and compared -- my Traveller D (199x) is basically the same, but there's also a hole which goes through the head from side-to-side, a bit further in than the pin. If my memory's not playing tricks on me, a young Sean Gavin used the hole like that through his whistle to tie it onto a string around his neck and wear it like a necklace.
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Re: O'Riordan contact information?

Post by ytliek »

Paul can you post images of the damaged whistle you're considering fixing or helping with suggestions? For image storage suggestion try Postimage dot org

Here is another search for images:
viewtopic.php?p=509354#p509354

I'm no expert but try to follow the wooden whistle trail. I think the wood concert whistles were somewhat different from the aluminum Traveller. I'm sure those individuals who are interested have done the google search(s) but here's the smorgasbord of images anyway.
https://www.google.com/search?hl=en&tbm ... tWUli9XdE0

It seems that O'Riordan had several styles for different whistles or purposes. Also could be the progressive improvement of design/materials development. They sure are beautiful instruments... all of them!
Last edited by ytliek on Tue Aug 29, 2017 9:16 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: O'Riordan contact information?

Post by Loren »

Paul, could be the brass pin pushes in for disassembly. Pushed in enough it would clear the outer sleeve, allowing the block to be removed. I can imagine at least a couple of ways the block could have been constructed which would have allowed for assembly with the the pin up, and then pressing the pin down into its current position for fixing in place. I could certainly be wrong as I've never owned or looked really closely inside the windway or bore of one of Pat's whistles, but looking at the pin position, I now see how what I describe could be done. It would required a hole or slot in the face of the block, or a hole in the block Where the windway is carved, which wouldn't really affect airflow during playing. Either would allow for the pin to sit higher in the block so the block could be fitted into the head, then with a tool inserted either into the bore, or the windway, the pin could be pressed down to engage with the outer head sleeve, as it appears in the photos, fixing the block in place.

Edit: Of course the pin might also be designed to push out to release the block, this would require the same access to the pin as described above, via an opening somewhere on the block.
Last edited by Loren on Tue Aug 29, 2017 10:34 am, edited 1 time in total.
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I've got some compositions up at http://www.harmonyware.com/tunes/SolsTunes.html
Location: Midland, Michigan
Contact:

Re: O'Riordan contact information?

Post by colomon »

ytliek wrote:It seems that O'Riordan had several styles for different whistles or purposes. Also could be the progressive improvement of design/materials development. They sure are beautiful instruments... all of them!
Just did a quick survey. All my higher O'Riordans are basically identical, with tiny variations in pin placement and whether or not there is the string hole.

The "alto" whistles (Bb/A, G) appear to have identical construction techniques, but they heads are bigger.

The low whistles (F/E, D) are built on similar principles, but now the part of the head with the windway is enlarged, I think maybe to allow for a deeper windway?

None of mine are wooden, so I cannot say how those might have been different. I will say that I visited his workshop a decade ago, and as I remember it he was doing loads of experimenting with different approaches -- I particularly remember a really sweet high D with a noticeably different head design, and two low Ds, one quieter than mine ("so you can practice without disturbing your wife"), one louder.
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Re: O'Riordan contact information?

Post by Loren »

And looking in one of the referenced threads, I was reminded that I have owned O'Riordan whistles and I forgot! Sold them during very tough times, which I remember now. Seems so long ago, where does the time go....
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Re: O'Riordan contact information?

Post by ytliek »

colomon wrote:If my memory's not playing tricks on me, a young Sean Gavin used the hole like that through his whistle to tie it onto a string around his neck and wear it like a necklace.
An old for sale:
http://www.ebay.fr/itm/Flute-Pat-Oriord ... 1398841937

Dang EXCITING !!!
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Tell us something.: Whistle player, aspiring C#/D accordion and flute player, and aspiring tunesmith. Particularly interested in the music of South Sligo and Newfoundland. Inspired by the music of Peter Horan, Fred Finn, Rufus Guinchard, Emile Benoit, and Liz Carroll.

I've got some compositions up at http://www.harmonyware.com/tunes/SolsTunes.html
Location: Midland, Michigan
Contact:

Re: O'Riordan contact information?

Post by colomon »

ytliek wrote:An old for sale:
http://www.ebay.fr/itm/Flute-Pat-Oriord ... 1398841937
Dang EXCITING !!!
Weird! An Eb/D/C set, but a totally different design for the tuning slide / bodies. If it really went for 181 Euros, it was a real steal!
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Re: O'Riordan contact information?

Post by ytliek »

colomon wrote:
ytliek wrote:An old for sale:
http://www.ebay.fr/itm/Flute-Pat-Oriord ... 1398841937
Dang EXCITING !!!
Weird! An Eb/D/C set, but a totally different design for the tuning slide / bodies. If it really went for 181 Euros, it was a real steal!
The differences I mentioned earlier were in reference to the tuning slide lengths and sometimes the fipple is entirely delrin (or ebonite?) the length of the tuning slide, while other times with the long tuning slide PO had a shorter fipple of delrin/ebonite and a joining piece to complete the full length of mouthpiece. Not sure I'm clear here so I'll try posting pics.

Image

Image

Image

Image
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Re: O'Riordan contact information?

Post by brewerpaul »

Brace yourselves.....

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