Someone on maybe the uilleann list (that would make sense) recommended Ian Mackenzie's pipes out of Australia. They are unbelievably low priced and someone said they are a great deal, especially with the exchange rate. He has a website with a link to a performer, whom I emailed about a cd. He said he likes the Makenzie pipes. Any comments, impressions?
Tony

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http://tinwhistletunes.com/clipssnip/newspage.htm Officially, the government uses the term “flap,” describing it as “a condition, a situation or a state of being, of a group of persons, characterized by an advanced degree of confusion that has not quite reached panic proportions.”

Australian pipemaker, Ian Mackenzie has been trading under the name of SIMACK, his website is:
http://www.users.bigpond.com/cjhardiman/
Don't go by the prices shown as they are 2 years old and Ian is having his website re-vamped.
I've ordered a custom chanter that is soon to arrive, so I will post my findings. I verified with 3 of his references in the US, all of whom LOVE his pipes. My last conversation w/ Ian was he has upgraded his sets where all of his chanters will be blocked for future keys and all of the bags will be fitted w/ the cup for future drone stock. This way a piper doesn't have to sent the entire set back to him for upgrades.
Dollar for dollar his prices are equal to the higher prices US sets... it's the conversion of the US dollar where his pipes become more attractive. Last month The American dollar was nearly twice the Australian dollar, but as you have it, it's dropped somewhat... still a good deal to buy but I'm hoping the rates improve again.

I checked the exchange rate, The Australian dollar is worth $0.53, so the rate is still good. I emailed Ian for his current prices. I'll let you know.
Tony

_________________
http://tinwhistletunes.com/clipssnip/newspage.htm Officially, the government uses the term “flap,” describing it as “a condition, a situation or a state of being, of a group of persons, characterized by an advanced degree of confusion that has not quite reached panic proportions.”

I've been checking conversions through a few sources
http://www.xe.com/ucc/
http://www.oanda.com/convert/classic
and Yahoo...
http://finance.yahoo.com/m3
http://finance.yahoo.com/m5?a=1&s=USD&t=AUD
today's figures are $1USD=$1.89AUD
a bit higher than last week. The nice part of Yahoo is the chart showing the past figures.
Keep in mind, banks may not give these numbers AND there may be other processing fees to contend with. If you have a credit card, call them for rates on wire transfers. This may cut through all the complications and make payments faster and easier.
So, tell me... what are you interested in buying ??

Well, I get good recommendations on the Mackenzie, and I recently heard someone play a Charles Roberts half set, which sounded great. It looks like the Roberts are available new for under $2000.

Ian Mackenzie emailed me back today. As of Nov 1, his price for a half-set will be $2500 Australian. Yesterday, the rate on some site was 0.53 American to 1.0 Australian. Still a good price. Ian said his new chanters will be fully blocked and he will include a wood case with the set. I'm not sure what the price is between now and Nov 1.

Basically, I want what everyone (I presume) wants, good sound, good price, reliability, etc. The sound is of ultimate importance to me. I've been following these posts. I don't want to wait years, and I don't want a very loud set.

I haven't dealt with buying items from people second hand over email, internet, etc. It makes me nervous if I don't know them. So, I'm inclined to buy new for peace of mind. A guy on the uilleann list said he flew to a seller's home with cash in hand and got what he was looking for. It would be my luck to fly across the country and decide against a set.
Tony (Higgins)

_________________
http://tinwhistletunes.com/clipssnip/newspage.htm Officially, the government uses the term “flap,” describing it as “a condition, a situation or a state of being, of a group of persons, characterized by an advanced degree of confusion that has not quite reached panic proportions.”

If you just can't wait and you've 'gotta have pipes' I suggest you contact Song of the Sea for an O'Grady half set... in stock!
$1,400 for a 3 key chanter w/ extra reed. You could be "pipin' your heart out" come Thursday morning!!

The good news is my Simack chanter was completed last week. The bad news is the backlog of parcels waiting to come to the US hasn't started diminishing... I may not see it for another 2-3 weeks.
I was on the phone with Ian Mackenzie for about an hour talking about reeds and volume of chanters. For what it's worth, wide bore chanters play better louder than softer, with respect to intonation. Although the reed is everything, over adjustment may change the tuning beyond the range of the chanter.

Simack chanter arrived...
I'm prepared to give a complete description of the instrument, my first thoughts and how it plays

Awesome !!