Whistle case/roll design preferences ...

[Jerry Freeman]

I have someone thinking about whistle cases for my whistles in China. They like leather, from a style point of view. He has concerns about moisture from the whistles causing mold, wants to try for a way the case can have some ventilation. I'm concerned that the case should protect the whole whistle (or group of whistles). Any thoughts/suggestions?

Thanks!

Best wishes,
Jerry

[ghicken]

My wife is making a quilted roll for me. I suggested and we bought a netting material that will go on both ends of the whistle pockets. I don't have a finished roll yet but rolling the whistles, the netting should allow for air flow through them. The quilted material will provide some protection and the material will extend beyond the whistles to provide a little lateral protection as well.

[megapop]

FWIW, I use to wrap an old t-shirt around the whistle I want to carry about; for carrying more whistles, I've sewn myself a roll from a fancy scarf (large enough for several layers when rolled, providing some protection). Ironically, the only time I got one of my whistles seriously damaged was when I had it in a plastic carrier.

There are also those Ashbury whistle bags, which are rather inexpensive. I haven't tried them yet, though.

I think whistle cases are a bit overrated. A whistle can well be protected against dirt, scratches and minor dents by a lousy piece of cloth; for severe shocks you'd really need hard case. A (soft) case just looks more neat and pretty...

I guess this didn't help you at all.

[sfmans]

My gig-bag of whistles was manufactured and sold as a camera tripod bag, but got the job after I realised that it happened to be exactly the right length for a low D whistle.

So in a single easy-access bag with a zip at one end there's the Overton D and the rauschpfeife in their respective fabric sleeves (the rauschpfeife also gets a plastic tube for extra protection), and a bag with the shorter pipes e.g. D and C fifes, high whistle, sopranino recorder in slid down the side of the longer tubes.

Waterproof, breathable (which would be my main concern about a leather bag, apart from the provenance of the Chinese leather that is), easy to carry around, and (touch wood) it has so far survived many years of everything life in the Morris side, the ceilidh band, one pretty serious car crash, and gigs, festivals and sessions, have tried to do to it and its contents.

[ytliek]

I like thick leather for the case. When I started with whistles, still a newbie here, I used an old slide ruler leather case. Yes, I still have that slide ruler laying around, hoarder that I am. Perfect fit and the open end had a fold over flap that tucked in. Plenty of air could get in. For another whistle I went and had a cobbler/leathersmith stitch two leather strips together leaving one end open, but, approx 1" longer. Snug fit and tough. Now I'm thinking about having the leather "hand tooled" with celtic design, but, I'd have to lessen the whistle whoad to afford it. Next time with same cobbler, I'm having him stitch two leather strips together and adding a small button snap on the open end.

I like leather and haven't had any problems, but, I don't session play nor travel any distance in rough circumstances to put the cases to the test.

I haven't experienced any mold issue and if I do, I'll just find something else. No biggy.

[Steve Bliven]

Maybe your Chinese contact could wrap tooled leather around one of these....



It has a 6" diameter so you could put one of each of your entire whistle smorgasbord inside.

Best wishes.

Steve

[I.D.10-t]

Well, Clarke has a ready made solution made of leather, I'm sure any shoemaker could do as well. Tandy Might be one place to look for some ideas too.

[Jerry Freeman]

Steve, I knew I could depend on you.

This is all very helpful, and I hope you'll continue to post more ideas.

Best wishes,
Jerry

[MTGuru]

He has concerns about moisture from the whistles causing mold

Hmm. No instrument should be stored wet in its case for any length of time. A case is for carrying, storing and protecting. A stand or table top is for drying.

[bradley]

Be aware that tanned leather often contains many salts that can react with the copper in brass tubes resulting in corrosion (verdigris). Leather also retains moisture, hastening the corrosion.

Use of a good quality leather and keeping things dry will help, as will coating brass with a protective oil/grease/was/laquer. Perhaps a leather case with a cloth or fleece lining?

[Lars Larry Mór Mott]

Be aware that tanned leather often contains many salts that can react with the copper in brass tubes resulting in corrosion (verdigris). Leather also retains moisture, hastening the corrosion.

Use of a good quality leather and keeping things dry will help, as will coating brass with a protective oil/grease/was/laquer. Perhaps a leather case with a cloth or fleece lining?

Second that! You should have seen my Buck 110 knife after a year in its sheath.. it was emerald green!

[jack.zhao]

Thank you very much for your advice, I will reconsider your whistle bag material.

[Klaunstance]

Unless you have some poncy thing made of Dappled Yew (or some other esoteric wood) plastic (shudder) or a composite material, do you really need a case/roll for your whistles? Apart from Shaws most whistles can endure a bus running over them before they sustain any significant damage. I stick all mine in a rucksack, every two or three months I soak them overnight in some soapy water and run a bit of old credit card through the mouthpiece. I concede they may have a scratch (or two) but they all play as good as the day I got them.

Then again I am a person that 'famously' used to play a mildew covered saxophone much to my bandmate's horror (that's what happens when you keep things cooped up in cases)

[Tor]

Well, I can assure you that a Waltons Little Black can't take a trip in a rucksack.. mine got a nice ding from that, even though I was aware of the whistle being there all the time during the trip, and being very careful. The metal is extremely thin, the whistle weighs almost nothing. Now I keep it in a plastic 'telescopic carrier' from Bigwhistle, they're nice and I have one of those for every whistle I own now - if I need to bring whistles somewhere I put them in carriers and can then safely throw them into a rucksack. Sometimes with a rubber band around a handful of them. I'm not worried about putting them into checked-in bags either. I don't think (most of) my whistles would survive being run over by a bus though, with or without the carrier. The carrier protects against more "normal" abuse, like what dinged my Waltons, or a worse variant that could ding or damage the more solid-type whistles.

And another important thing - those carriers are square-shaped, so, unlike the bare whistles, they won't roll off uneven surfaces..

Of the whistles I own I guess the Impempe can survive maybe even your bus on its own.. but I'm not so sure about the regular Generation style whistles.

-Tor

[sfmans]

Unless you have some poncy thing made of Dappled Yew (or some other esoteric wood) plastic (shudder) or a composite material, do you really need a case/roll for your whistles? Apart from Shaws most whistles can endure a bus running over them before they sustain any significant damage. I stick all mine in a rucksack, every two or three months I soak them overnight in some soapy water and run a bit of old credit card through the mouthpiece. I concede they may have a scratch (or two) but they all play as good as the day I got them.

Then again I am a person that 'famously' used to play a mildew covered saxophone much to my bandmate's horror (that's what happens when you keep things cooped up in cases)

Well I've got an Overton low D and one of David Angus' fine stainless steel D fifes in my bag, both of which probably would survive Eric Pickles sitting on them, but I do like to try and look after them and all my other instruments whilst they're not in use. And I'm not sure I'd fancy having anything I put that near my mouth just kicking about loose in a rucksack ... the mildewed saxophone (great tune title BTW, suggests something minor with some weird enharmonic passages in the B part) just sounds revolting!