O'Grady Half Set

JamieKerr · Post by **JamieKerr** » Mon Oct 07, 2002 7:44 pm

Well,

My Neil O'Grady half set has finally arrived, actually three days short of the estimated delivery date. I'm very new at this, but I am very pleased with the set. While simpler in looks than most sets, it looks pretty good to me - very well finished. It made noise right out of the box (once I put the reeds in). I'm in the process of playing-in the chanter reed. I have to get used to the finger spacing on the chanter, but it's not too different from some of my whistles. I just can't feel the holes as well. I was able to get the drones tuned and sounding pretty good, but until such time as I'm better on the chanter, I'll leave them switched off. One small problem (probably my fault) is that the chanter is slipping easily into the second octave, especially when I go from a to g. I'm also not sure of my bellows technique. I know I am controlling the air with my bag arm, but it seems somehow that I am also controlling with my bellows arm. Any pointers on working on this would be appreciated.

Thanks!

Jamie

Tony · Post by **Tony** » Mon Oct 07, 2002 8:16 pm

Jamie,
Pump up the bag and apply pressure from the bag to play the pipes. It takes time to develop the technique, but you'll learn to 'ease up' on the bag pressure to allow the bellows to refill the bag while sustaining the drones. Don't overfill the bag to the point where you're driving the pipes from the pressure of the bellows.
Depending on your practice and learning curve, it may take several weeks to be able to hold a single note at will, without any change in pressure.

Is O'Grady still using a leather hose between the bellows and bag? If so, you'll have to be careful not to twist the hose or it will choke off the supply to the bag. I cut the strapping from one end of the hose and inserted some clear flex tubing and retied the hose. This cured the problem of it binding.

John Allison · Post by **John Allison** » Tue Oct 08, 2002 12:05 am

To get used to playing from the bag and not the bellows start at the bottom of the scale and play each note for a full 30 seconds at a time. Let the bag get about half empty (or half full) before refilling it again with the bellows (this might also depend upon the size of your bag). Try to do it without changing the volume of the note being played or without any wavering.

JamieKerr · Post by **JamieKerr** » Tue Oct 08, 2002 6:11 pm

Thanks to both of you for the suggestions. I'm having a much easier time after practicing the scale by playing reaalllyyy looonnnnggg notes. However, I'm still having a problem whereby my G and sometimes my F are jumping right into the second octave. I'm trying some of the first exercises in the Heather Clarke tutor, but going between the G and the A is quite difficult when the chanter jumps up to the high G. It seems a minute change in pressure drops the note back down. Hopefully, this is something that just becomes instinct.

I know I'm supposed to play the reed in for 3 or 4 hours, but is this something that is supposed to happen?

Also, the chanter is a tad sharp, so I expect I'll have to seat it a little higher. Do I do this by adding new hemp, or unwinding what is already there and rewrapping it a bit lower?

Lastly, how do you remove the wincap without touching the reed? Man, I thought I had steady hands, but I can feel the reed touching the inside of the windcap, and it scares me to death!

Thanks in advance...

Lorenzo · Post by **Lorenzo** » Tue Oct 08, 2002 6:50 pm

At some point you'll have to get the cap off.
If the reed is scraping then the reed is not centered properly. Check for center before replacing and place the reed on a steady little finger while guiding into the cap.

To avoid the upper G and F first slide the bridle up just a minute bit to open the reed. This usually cures the problem. Make sure you try different fingerings for the particular chanter, ie, use two open holes for lower G or some variation.

Don't trim anything for quite a while even though that will open the lips. Try humidifying your place a little and try different temperatures before making adjustments, and of course play it in.

You can unwind and rewind loose hemp or winding to size it up, or alternatively you can place a new piece over the top. If the reed tends to loosen easily at the seat use a tiny bit of wax on hemp to secure, I mean very little.

Welcome to the world of reeds! It's a very fine art to get one working properly. As the years go by, and you try other reeds for comparisons, be prepared for many pleasant surprises and disappointments in the learning curve. Right now you have no comparative value to know if the results are acceptable. And remember, what you think is wrong may be okay to an experienced piper.

Brian Lee · Post by **Brian Lee** » Tue Oct 08, 2002 7:14 pm

Jamie! SWEET!!!

Welcome to the dark side of WhOA!! The pipes are a beast at times, but can purr and sing as sweetly as an angel at others! GOOD LUCK!!

Bri~

Tony · Post by **Tony** » Tue Oct 08, 2002 7:20 pm

Jamie,
O'Grady bridals are very stiff. You may get some resistance when trying to move it up.
Go easy, as the adjustment needed may only be the thickness of a pencil line or about 0.5mm.
This will also flatten the notes a bit. Check the tuning before seating the reed differently.

Uilliam · Post by **Uilliam** » Wed Oct 09, 2002 1:38 am

Jamie afore you do anything keep on at least one drone(stick something over the ends of the other 2 bluetack or similar)this will let you get used to the correct pressure as you will hear a wavering of the drone if its wrong.Also its a good exercise to get bellows /bag coordination.DON'T be too quick to feck about with the reeds a good reed should need little or no adjustment whatsoever.I have reeds made by Alan Burton and Andreas Rogge Alans has been playing for 5years and Andreas for 8 years both have had no bridle adjustment at all.I very rarely even think about them.The regs are a different matter altogether but even they only need adustment in or out of the seat.
Slan go foil
Liam

tansy · Post by **tansy** » Wed Oct 09, 2002 8:14 am

i had to put a little note in the lid of my case, it says "don't mess with the reed".things got much better after that. i caught myself making constant adjustments, where i find if i play it for a while things usually work themselves out. i found mounting a humidty gauge in the case and always noting its reading helps one understand what is going on.eventually you'll naturally read the weather and your room conditioning system . have fun, tansy

JamieKerr · Post by **JamieKerr** » Wed Oct 09, 2002 7:39 pm

Progress Report: I think my problem was I was squeezing too hard, causing both the sharpness as well as the jumping into the 2nd octave. I worked a bit on the other reed that was supplied , and I had the same issue. The set takes very, very little pressure to play in tune. From G down, it almost plays itself.

I've got a long way to go, but it's getting better... I'm determined to not play with the reed until I've played much more.

Thanks to all who have offered their advice.

JamieKerr · Post by **JamieKerr** » Thu Oct 17, 2002 3:59 pm

I have a couple more questions about my O'Grady set, especially for Tony, who can probably answer being another O'Grady user.

My first question is about the little leather straps on the bellows that are used to hold the large and small belts. To me, these look like something that might wear and eventually break. Tony, how are yours holding out?

Thanks!

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: JamieKerr on 2002-10-18 11:17 ]</font>

Tony · Post by **Tony** » Thu Oct 17, 2002 8:44 pm

The bellows straps will stretch a bit. That's normal. Just watch the nails in the brass squares that hold the leather, they may pull loose on the rear ones. I went to a shoe repair and had new strips cut. It was easy to pull the nails and reuse the squares so it looks new again.

The leak in the tube... Hmmm, depends where it's coming from. The joints are glued, stitched and tied to the stock and bellows fitting with nylon cord. You might get away with a drop or two of contact cement right at the point of the leak. Better yet if you remove the cord from one end, seal it from the inside. I don't know if O'Grady applied any seasoning there, I doubt it was necessary,so the leather is dry and the cement should take well. You might need to re-singe the ends of the cord to keep them from unraveling.

JamieKerr · Post by **JamieKerr** » Fri Oct 18, 2002 4:47 am

Tony,

What glue is suited to leather seams?

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: JamieKerr on 2002-10-18 11:13 ]</font>

JamieKerr · Post by **JamieKerr** » Fri Oct 18, 2002 6:14 am

On 2002-10-17 22:44, Tony wrote:
The bellows straps will stretch a bit. That's normal. Just watch the nails in the brass squares that hold the leather, they may pull loose on the rear ones. I went to a shoe repair and had new strips cut. It was easy to pull the nails and reuse the squares so it looks new again.

Tony, after you pulled the nails, how did you reuse them? Did you fill the holes in on the bellows first, or did you just nail them back into the same holes? I would expect that the nails would fall out even easier after a repair. I don't know if I'll ever have to do this, but I am curious. Thanks!

Kevin Popejoy · Post by **Kevin Popejoy** » Fri Oct 18, 2002 8:08 am