Chiff and Fipple Forums

Hi, I received a new Burke Brass Narrow Bore High D Whistle about 2 weeks ago. I've been practicing about two hours each day. I've noticed recently that I have to suck out or push out pretty often to clear it. Sometimes depending on the song length I have to do it while playing.

I guess I'm making alot of clogs haha. What is everyone elses experience with their Burke High D?

I do blow it out and suck back when I finish and I'll also try to shake what I can out of the bottom and the holes before I put it away. I usually leave it out to dry laying down. Should I sit it up to drain out instead?

Any whistle can clog, given the right circumstances. Even my famously non-cloggy Susato will occasionally do it, though I'm sometimes just reacting when my ornamentations don't agree with the whistle and it makes its trademark grunting noise.

I have a Chieftain A whistle (all aluminium) that has to be warmed up properly to be in tune and to combat its tendency to clog. But, what really transformed it was using some dishwashing liquid (actually a watered down concoction) in the airway. It is a far better instrument to play afterwards and it doesn't need to be done very often. Once every few weeks maybe, though I tend to give it a wash and a dose before gigs.

As a woodwind player you may have heard of Duponol, which is a product that does the same thing using Sodium lauryl sulfate.

Do you think a new Burke would need that clean out with dish soap so fast? I've only had it two weeks?

It's not being cleaned out. It's being treated with a surfactant.

So should I go ahead and mix dish soap with water and pour that through even though I've not had the whistle long?

Matthewlawson3 wrote:So should I go ahead and mix dish soap with water and pour that through even though I've not had the whistle long?

It won't hurt, it may help, and you may find out how to solve the issue if/when it occurs in the future...

Best wishes.

Steve

Matthewlawson3 wrote:So should I go ahead and mix dish soap with water and pour that through even though I've not had the whistle long?

It's not about how long you've had the whistle and it's not about cleaning it. As mentioned above, you'd be putting a surfactant into the wind-way. Surfactants lower the surface tension of water and that means any of the moisture that would tend to collect/stick in the wind-way (ie. the clogging) will tend to be blown straight out whilst it's played and not clog the whistle.

Maybe I should have made that clearer in my original post

I make up a mixture that I drip into the wind-way using an eye-dropper. Some people use a piece of card and spread it into the wind-way. Others buy something like Duponol that is made for this purpose in woodwind instruments.

Okay thank you. I probably would go the dropper approach as that is what Burke recommends in his instructions.

Do you just drop a few drops in and let it sit on its side until it dries or do you turn it up after dropping it in and let it drip out the mouthpiece?

How long should I let it dry?

Thanks for your help!

Matthewlawson3 wrote:Okay thank you. I probably would go the dropper approach as that is what Burke recommends in his instructions.

Do you just drop a few drops in and let it sit on its side until it dries or do you turn it up after dropping it in and let it drip out the mouthpiece?

How long should I let it dry?

Thanks for your help!

I turn the whistle upside down, put my finger over the entrance to the wind-way, and then put a few drops into the other end of the wind-way via the fipple window. I then jiggle it all about for a moment, take my finger away and wipe away whatever comes out. No drying time needed, you can play it straight away. Apply again whenever you feel like. I've found that it can be quite a while before a new application is needed ... I think, I don't exactly count the days.

I did a Google search "clogging issues with Burke whistles" and right off the bat I saw two post from in The Sessions from 2010 and 2015 related to the subject.
I didn't delve into them to see what they specifically had to say about it, but there it was from years ago.

One fellow I like on YouTube who does whistle reviews said of a whistle he was recently reviewing that after about 30 minutes of play he had to clear the clogging. I honestly don't know what the standard is for tin whistles, but if you can play a half hour without having to blow out out a clogged, that seems acceptable to me.

It's going to vary with the whistle, the player, and the weather conditions.

In the Highland pipe world most pipers are aware of whether they're a "wet blower" or a "dry blower" or in the middle.

One piper's pipes will be pretty much dry inside after 20 minutes of playing, another piper's will be soaking wet... same pipes, same setup, same weather.

There was this old fluteplayer around here years ago that when he played "pure water" would pour of of the end of his flute the whole time. It was amazing.

MichaelRS wrote:I did a Google search "clogging issues with Burke whistles" and right off the bat I saw two post from in The Sessions from 2010 and 2015 related to the subject.
I didn't delve into them to see what they specifically had to say about it, but there it was from years ago.

One fellow I like on YouTube who does whistle reviews said of a whistle he was recently reviewing that after about 30 minutes of play he had to clear the clogging. I honestly don't know what the standard is for tin whistles, but if you can play a half hour without having to blow out out a clogged, that seems acceptable to me.

Which is countered by literally the first post on this thread. ie. that the whistle was clogging frequently.

As pancelticpiper increased clogging can be down to a number of factors.

Whistles don't behave in a certain way because the internet told them so

ecadre wrote:

MichaelRS wrote:I did a Google search "clogging issues with Burke whistles" and right off the bat I saw two post from in The Sessions from 2010 and 2015 related to the subject.
I didn't delve into them to see what they specifically had to say about it, but there it was from years ago.

One fellow I like on YouTube who does whistle reviews said of a whistle he was recently reviewing that after about 30 minutes of play he had to clear the clogging. I honestly don't know what the standard is for tin whistles, but if you can play a half hour without having to blow out out a clogged, that seems acceptable to me.

Which is countered by literally the first post on this thread. ie. that the whistle was clogging frequently.

As pancelticpiper increased clogging can be down to a number of factors.

Whistles don't behave in a certain way because the internet told them so

True. I'm just saying, if that's the issue someone was searching for, somebody else had questions about it too from years ago.
And I just threw that out there about the guy reviewing some random whistle, I don't recall the brand, and playing it for a half hour before it clogged, just as an aside. because I have no idea what the standard is for a whistle. Just for the heck of it, I'm clearing mine out after every two or three tunes as preventivemedicine.o

So maybe somebody can tell me something that's actually useful and mention what might be normal. or average for a whistle before you HAVE to clear a clog.
It seems to me that would be heavily player dependent. but is there some inherent design feature in certain whistles that effects that, or what? I mean, I'm sure it must be a design feature that affects that, but what in particular is it?

Numerous factors. Plastic fipple plugs for example in metal whistles, depending on the plastic used. Narrow windways can make a whistle clog. I have two whistles with the same construction from the same maker but one has a wooden block and the other a plastic block and the one with the plastic clogs, the other one doesn't. Sometimes it is also caused when beginners don't blow with enough breath pressure or unsteady breath.
I don't think that words like "normal" or "average" are of any use however. I sometimes have clogging issues with a whistle the one day and the next day it is gone. Beats me, probably has to do with temperature or something. I had clogging issues with my Killarney until I noticed that I simply have to blow with a lot more pressure -- especially the 2nd octave can take quite a lot of air and that prevents the clogging (and also improves the sound of course). I think clogging can even be influenced by what you have eaten on a particular day.

[quote="Sedid] I think clogging can even be influenced by what you have eaten on a particular day.[/quote]

I have found that to be absolutely true. Especially as I've gotten older.