Question about The Irish Flute Store & Chuck Tilbury Whistle

[sfwhistle]

I'm relatively new to the whistle world. I haven't been able to find any reviews or comments on The Irish Flute Store or Chuck Tilbury whistles. Has anyone had experience with either? BTW I love this site. So glad that it's available. I've already spent hours reading your comments. Thank you.

[BigDavy]

Hi sfwhistle

I have no experience with Chuck Tilbury, but Doc Jones (Irish flute store) is a gentleman.

David

[kkrell]

Previous messages on Chiff & Fipple Message Board about Chuck Tilbury Whistles (Granite Falls Manufacturing)

http://bit.ly/fSVZYM

And Doc Jones at the Irish Flute Store is a gentleman AND a vet.

Kevin Krell

[Whistle Free or Die]

I received a whistle from Doc. It was a great purchase and prompt too.

But wait theres more.....

A portion of the sales from some of his whistles goes to an orphanage in Haiti that he is involved in.
Thats good enough for me.

[Byll]

Doc is the best. Fear not.
Cheers.
Byll

[Steve Bliven]

And - Doc's policy is that if you don't like it, send it back.... Whistles can be very personal tastes; one person's perfect sound may not appeal to another. So that return policy makes it possible for you to be sure that it's a good whistle for your ears (and those around you).

Additionally, both Doc and Chuck post here regularly.

Best wishes.

Steve

[JTC111]

I own a Tilbury Bb/C combo ...very nice whistle ...one of my favorites actually. Chuck does nice work; you won't be disappointed.

[Pipe Bender]

The craftsmanship of Chuck Tilbury's Aluminum whistles is outstanding. In my mind one should have a little experience under their belt prior to trying the Tilbury Aluminum so I would not categorize the Aluminum model as a beginner's whistle.

He is a real gentleman to deal with as well.

[JTC111]

In my mind one should have a little experience under their belt prior to trying the Tilbury Aluminum so I would not categorize the Aluminum model as a beginner's whistle.

I'm still very much the beginner so maybe I don't know enough to notice this but I'm curious as to what you mean. I've not gotten to stage where I can make a Gen or a LBW sound good, but I can sound half decent on a good whistle such as an Oz or a Copeland. I can also sound decent on my Tilbury, so to my way of thinking, it's a pretty good whistle for my stanky whistle skills.

You're obviously coming at this with a different perspective. To be clear, I've no intention of arguing with you, I'm just interested in hearing how someone more experienced sees it.

He is a real gentleman to deal with as well.

Agreed. Chuck's a peach ...and he gets whistles in the mail quickly.

[livethe question]

You'll never be treated better by anyone in this world!

At various times I've purchased whistles and a flute from him, traded instruments with him, and he sold a high end whistle for me.

Doc is all class and has a huge heart.


jim

[sfwhistle]

Thank you all for responding. I can tell that I'm going to start feeding my addiction very soon.

[ecohawk]

Sorry, I just had to add my two cents since I've done business more than once with both Chuck and Doc.

They are both gentlemen and they understand customer service.

Doc is a great source of advice as well.

I own Chuck's whistles in D and Bb. I like them both. The D qualifies as a session whistle IMO. It has plenty of backpressure and you will need to be prepared for that. Both whistles are in tune with themselves.

I play them often. Chuck also stands by his instruments. I had a high D with a problem that I though was me for about six months then Chuck told me he thought the whistle had a problem. I returned it to Chuck and he built a new head for me.

Nice guys, both of them. Buy their stuff.

Michael

[hoopy mike]

I'm still very much the beginner so maybe I don't know enough to notice this but I'm curious as to what you mean. I've not gotten to stage where I can make a Gen or a LBW sound good, but I can sound half decent on a good whistle such as an Oz or a Copeland...

Can of worms time. Some might ask, "Would you learn to drive in a Rolls Royce?" and will suggest that whistlers do their time on cheaper whistles before graduating to more expensive whistles, or even stick with a cheapie, cos a tweaked cheapie is good enough for professionals. Others will say that there's no point in struggling to learn to drive an old banger if you can afford something better, so go for a reasonably expensive whistle if you want to invest an equivalent amount of time in learning to play. Sit back and enjoy the ride.

I think that experienced players can make 99% of all whistles sound good, whereas beginners find some whistles easier to play than some other whistles. Will a good whistle cover up poor technique? I doubt it. Will a cheap whistle limit a good player? I doubt that too, although I'd love to think that a "better" whistle would solve all of my inadequacies at the stroke of a credit card.

If you've started on a Copeland or an Oz, what's the point in picking up a cheapie?

I'm gonna hide now....

[Pipe Bender]

It has plenty of backpressure and you will need to be prepared for that.

This is the sort of thing I meant by not being a beginner's whistle. I believe many experienced whistlers appreciate being able to "lean" into a tune, but I'm not sure a beginner would initially find this as asset.

And a beginner may not be prepared for how loud some whistles with backpressure need to be played to get the full value of the whistle. I'm thinking of spouses and family here (and the fellow in the apartment next door). Plus if one is self-conscious about loudness it not very pleasurable to practice. These comments are really aimed at the complete beginner to try and make their learning experience more fruitful.

Chuck's Aluminum whistles are so outstanding in looks as well as craftsmanship they can easily temp the complete beginner where my thinking is that they should hold off a bit first and progress through a few good low-end whistles first.

In any case just humble opinions.

[Mr.Gumby]

If you've started on a Copeland or an Oz, what's the point in picking up a cheapie?

Ultimately, the deciding factors are tone, responsiveness, volume and the sound you strive for, aren't they?

Each could be the point of a move to a different whistle.