Calling all UK-based amateur whistle tweakers!

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emmdee
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Calling all UK-based amateur whistle tweakers!

Post by emmdee »

I bought a blacktop Oak on a whim about 10 years ago. It wasn't very good. I've done the usual plasticine in the mouthpiece fix, which has improved it a little, but the second octave F# and G are fragile and scratchy. My tweaking skills stop at plasticine!

If any would-be tweaker would like to try their hand at improving it, I'd be happy to send it on the understanding that they'd do it for free and send it back, but if they made an ar$e of it there would be no great loss to anyone. I'd prefer within the UK to save on postage. Perhaps someone wants to test their methods??

Please p.m. me here or email markmalinky at hotmail dot com

m.d.
Tyler DelGregg
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Re: Calling all UK-based amateur whistle tweakers!

Post by Tyler DelGregg »

It may be easier for you to order an O'Briain tweaked whistle in case your Oak fails. Jerry Freeman also makes first rate tweaked whistles. I putty-cavity tweaked two Oaks and they came out pretty good. Doing things to the windway/blade etc. takes a good bit of skill.
emmdee
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Re: Calling all UK-based amateur whistle tweakers!

Post by emmdee »

Thanks, Tyler.

I don't really want or need an O'Briain or a Freeman, as I have 3 good D whistles already. I just found this slightly crappy old Oak in a drawer and thought maybe someone who wants to try their hand at tweaking might fancy trying their tricks with it on the basis that they couldn't make it any worse...

m.d.
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mickey66
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Re: Calling all UK-based amateur whistle tweakers!

Post by mickey66 »

Do you know how to do the putty-cavity tweak? If, you want to cover postage to the states(Arizona)I'll have a go at it! I have an Oak High D and a Oak C that I tweaked and they both sound and play pretty good. If, you want to have a go at it yourself? send me a PM here C&F and I'll Coach you through the process. M
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mickey66
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Tell us something.: I am a Professional Musician in Phx, Az. Lived in Calif(Hollywood) for about 10 years(1970's) working in the studios and on the road with stars of the day. Started to follow my roots which took me back to the old country and the Irish Tin Whistle. I wound up here on C&F forum!
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Re: Calling all UK-based amateur whistle tweakers!

Post by mickey66 »

plas·ti·cine

a soft modeling material; I just re-read your post.....looks like you have done the soft putty trick! so, probably needs work on inside of wind-way and blade....... Polishing! Also Polish the the tube if its Brass but most likely its nickel . Polish inside w/water using a Vinyl strip. A back and forth motion(remove head)Polish like a Barber sharpening a straight razor! Good Luck! M PS: You can find vinyl on the front and back of school notebooks! Here in the states, I go to the dollar store to find them. Cut a strip of Vinyl from front or back of notebook. There,
you have a Barber strap....dig? Now use a weighted object (on a table)to secure one end of Vinyl strap. You thread the strap through Fipple and hold the other end w/hand! Wet strap with water or whatever you want to use! A back&Forth motion with free hand......this will take some time! I do an hour /take a break and so-on. This really does work on SOME whistles! You can also use soft leather as a strap if you like. Forgot....Thread strap through wind-way and polish upper & lower wind-way next, polish Blade...thread strap through window and out bottom end of Fipple(where tube goes in)polish blade with back&forth motion like a Barber sharpening a straight razor! When you finish and during testing of said whistle and you get it where you want it to sound.....give whistle a bath and wash off polishing cream if not using water! Polishing creams/oils I have used....Coconut oil, olive oil, lite rubbing compound(automotive),soap,I like water to work with but the oils work very well as a polishing compound too. They are messy to clean tho.....that's why i like water!
emmdee
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Re: Calling all UK-based amateur whistle tweakers!

Post by emmdee »

Thanks for the tips, Mickey.
m.d.
emmdee
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Re: Calling all UK-based amateur whistle tweakers!

Post by emmdee »

I'd like to say a big thanks and a hats-off to Mack Hoover, who agreed to try his luck and has managed to turn an unplayable whistle into a very nice "house whistle" - the one that sits next to the kettle so that I can play it while the tea brews!

m.d.
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Jerry Freeman
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Re: Calling all UK-based amateur whistle tweakers!

Post by Jerry Freeman »

Get some aluminum foil tape. This is a kind of duct tape that is nothing but heavy aluminum foil with a pressure-sensitive adhesive backing. In the US this tape is .005 inches thick (.125 mm). When I first began using it I was concerned it might come loose from exposure to moisture. I contacted a major manufacturer and their engineering department assured me the adhesive is waterproof. I've used it in thousands of whistles over 14 years and have only had one or two instances in all that time where it came loose. I suspect those may have been due to someone jamming something into the mouthpiece (e.g., the end of a cleaning swab).

The important thing here (along with filling the cavity under the windway as you have done) is to adjust the "step." The step is the relationship between the bottom of the soundblade and the windway floor. If the bottom of the soundblade is above the windway floor, that's a positive step. If the bottom of the soundblade is exactly on the same line as the windway floor, that's a zero step. If the bottom of the soundblade is below the windway floor, that's a negative step. You can evaluate the amount of step by sighting through the beak of the mouthpiece (with the tube removed) toward a bright background. The amount of daylight you see above the windway floor is the step.

The optimal amount of step varies depending on other elements of whistlehead geometry, but all the mass-produced whistles have too much step to perform and sound their best.

To adjust the step, you can laminate material onto the flat surface inside the mouthpiece on the underside of the ramp/soundblade. Aluminum foil tape works well for this. It's easy to use and you can remove the tape if you don't like the result.

In the US, this tape comes in 2 inch wide rolls. I crosscut the tape into strips the width of the voicing window. I remove the paper backing and insert the end of the strip of tape into the voicing window so it goes under the soundblade and far enough in to cover the flat underside of the ramp. I use something flat that will fit inside the whistlehead to press the tape up against the underside of the ramp and make sure I've pressed all over the flat area so there are no spots where it doesn't adhere.

With an X-Acto knife, I carefully trim the tape off the end of the soundblade so it's exactly even with the soundblade and none sticks out. Then I look inside to see if there are any little globs of adhesive clinging anywhere. If there are, I tease them out with the tip of the knife.

You can use multiple layers. I just finished tweaking a vintage pre-1980's redtop Generation that took three layers of aluminum foil tape under the soundblade to clean up the parts of the upper register you are complaining about, sweeten the whole upper register and make the voicing more balanced between octaves. You may try several layers and then decide you like fewer layers better. You can try different amounts of adjustment to the step until you're happy with the result.

I hope that makes sense.

Best wishes,
Jerry
You can purchase my whistles on eBay:

https://www.ebay.com/sch/freemanwhistle ... pg=&_from=

or directly from me:

email jerry ("at") freemanwhistles ("dot") com or send a PM.
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