windway cleaning

[jim stone]

I use pipecleaners
to clean the windways of my whistles.
Of course I use the kind without bristles,
however the end of these pipecleaners
is sharp metal (the wire that
forms the cleaner's core) and can cause scratches, I've found.

Anyone aware of alternatives?

[Constance]

There is a material called Pelon which is a stiffener for collars and is available from fabric shops. I cut this material in 1/2 inch wide strips about 3 inches long and use it to clean the airway. Works great!!!

[jim stone]

Thanks!

[Whistlepeg]

A feather is useful for cleaning a windway and also for administering oil to the inside of a wooden whistle.
Sue

[Dale]

Jim's post is poetry. Let's revise slightly.

THE WIRE THAT FORMS THE CLEANER'S CORE

by Jim Stone

I use pipecleaners
to clean the windways
of my whistles.

I use the kind without
bristles, but the end
of these is sharp metal.

because of the wire
that forms
the cleaner's core,

and can scratch
the windway's
fragile interior,

I have found.

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: DaleWisely on 2001-07-29 14:04 ]</font>

[Dale]

And Sue responds,

USES OF A FEATHER

by SUE

A feather is useful
for cleaning a windway
and for smoothing oil
onto the insides
of wooden whistles.



<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: DaleWisely on 2001-07-29 14:07 ]</font>

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: DaleWisely on 2001-07-29 14:07 ]</font>

[Dale]

Constance's reply is a bit more of a challenge.

[Whistlepeg]

Dale,
I like it!
Maybe all posts should be
Poetry,
Perhaps they are
Already,
But we would need a poet like you
To keep us true
And steady
Sue

[ndjr]

Oh, hie thee to Wal-Mart,
And hie thee there quick,
There to buy patches
To cut into strips.

Go! Find yourself patches,
The gun-cleaning kind,
The cheaper the better;
Your whistle won't mind.

This synthetic stuff
is fare-thee-well stiff,
and, worked through the windway,
will pull out the chiff.

[jim stone]

Sheesh!

[Grannymouse]

Neil ~ thanks for the afternoon of "Show & Tell" and the chance to experience that cleaning lesson first hand! Gm

[BruceW]

Not to cause to much ado by getting to the original post, but I use 2 methods to clean whistle airways. If something tough is there, I use a narrow strip of plastic cut from an old credit card to "scrape" it out. The plastic is softer than metal or hard plastic mouthpieces, but I'm careful with softer ones such as Generation.

My more gentle method which I use once a week or so is to take a piece of cloth ribbon (1/4" wide) about 8 inches long and feed it through the windway. Wet it under a faucet, and then "floss" it back and forth. Works great and won't damage the most sensitive of whistles.

Bruce

[jimr]

Depending on the whistle, a thin, wooden coffee stirrer, (I like the ones from Starbucks the best) works well. Scrapes it clean, burnishes away the crud and absorbes moisture. What more could you ask for....

[nickb]

I use a piece torn off one of those cardboard beer coasters they give you in pubs. They can do more than soak up spilled beer.