Saga of the nascent tweaker

squidgirl · Post by **squidgirl** » Wed Jul 07, 2004 12:32 pm

Having read thru various vintage threads on other newbies adventures with Clarke originals, seemed like maybe I should recount my adventures for future explorers, particularly as my story has a happy ending.

Once upon a time, long ago and far away, I played recorder and tinwhistle, but stopped during college 'cos in dorm-ish situations the contrast between my rudimentary talents and those folks who've played cellos & oboes since their days at exclusive performing-arts kindergartens was just too much for my then-fragile self-esteem. Multiple dogs lives passed, then recently I heard the Clarke original's soft flutey tone (my old one had been out there on the shrill end of the bell curve), and said "Hey, I want one of THOSE!!". Duly acquired one, noodled around with it, and became increasingly annoyed that getting anything above high F required that I hold the thing at this weird angle, with its nether end burrowing down into my bosom, and no matter how hard I blew, couldn't get a note above high B, which was squawky and unreliable at best. "This sucks," thought I.

Then I'm perusing the Ochs tutuorial booklet, wherein he helpfully mentions that experienced players flatten the airway to reduce wind requirements, then duly warns us newbies not to mess with it lest we kill our whistles. Congenitally unable to resist a "Don't try this at home, kids...", I start trying to squash my airway. When gentler methods fail, I end up putting the whistle on the floor, airway side down, and gently stepping on the bugger. CRACK! goes the whistle, and "Oops!" go I. But when I pick it up to play, it sounds better!! Cool! But now the sides are kinda separated from the wooden thingy, offending my sense of order, so I turn it 90 degrees and re-squish it, which more or less returns it to it's former state and former issues. Fascinating... back and forth we go, in search of the elusive happy medium, but instead I eventually manage to squash the airway shut. Oops...

So then I start inserting foreign objects into the airway to pry it open again, then re-squashing it, and generally testing the tone at various apertures and getting very stressed out whenever I render the whistle mute. I eventually discover that stuffing the non-pointy end of a flat metal nail-file in from front of the whistle seems to make just the right size of opening between the wooden block-thingy and the top of the whistle. Along the way I also managed to displace the sound blade upon occasion, so I had to adjust that too -- for this, I used the wire-circle end of one of those skewers one uses to sew stuffing into turkeys, since the bottom of the V in the sound blade fits nicely into the wire circle (at this point, I assumed the V-shape was somehow crucial, and should be retained).

This goes on for several hours (I can get a bit dogged about things), alternating between practicing tunes, attempting to improve the whistle tone, disabling the whistle entirely, re-fixing it, etc. I notice that there seem to be patterns in what I can achieve:
-strong lower register, lousy upper
-good upper register, funky-reedy lower
-both registers good, but C-natural won't sound
-elusive grail where it's all good
-damned thing won't sound at all (aaugh!)
At which point I start thinking that someone else musta travelled this road before me, and hopefully posted some kind of road-map the internet. So I google around and find Chiff & Fipple, though most of the info I found was about tweaking plastic-fipple whistle (sigh!). But by digging thru the forums, I pick up some tips for Clarkes, like flattening the sound blade, sharpening its edge w/ an exacto, etc.

Ever subject to the fascination of dangerously edged implements, I start the next day by locating my exacto knife and beveling/sharpening the edge of the sound blade. Aside from the general niftiness of whittling metal and creating more sharp edges in the world, this does seem to clarify the whistle's tone.

Encouraged, I use the circle end of the skewer to flatten out the V in the blade, then tried pushing the whole thing downward into the air-stream by hand, with very mixed results. We'll skip past all the experimentation, and just stay that I found that what worked best for me was stuffing the blunt end of the nail file into the airway to keep it from getting squished shut during subsequent operations, wrapping a tissue around the whistle below the sound blade window to keep from scratching the black finish, and using a pair of pliers to squish the sides of the blade down flat, then using the tip of a table knife to push the middle upward, since the V-shape kept wanting to re-emerge. Then lots of fiddling and testing to get the sound just right -- a matter of aiming the air-stream from the airway at the blade. I now have a whistle that plays two octaves without a whole lot of huffing and puffing, even if it took three days to get there.

So anyway, this was long and rambling, but I thought I should relate the tale chronologically and at length to convey to other budding tweakers that the process involves a fair amount of time and testing, but that it can be achieved with household implements that some random chick has lying around in drawers (nail-file, pliers, table knife, etc).

Now, if anyone who knows more about this process than me has made it past all the above verbiage, I have a major question. Up above, I mentioned that there were some distinct problematical stages in the process:
-strong lower register, lousy upper
-good upper register, funky-reedy lower
-both registers good, but C-natural won't sound
Could some experienced tweaker tell me which means the blade is too low, which means it's too high... and why does C-natural (i.e. oxxooo) disappear like that?

Also, is there anything I've done that's deemed highly inadvisable by the cognescenti of tweakerdom? Don't want to pass along bad advice to other newbie tweakers...

Finally, Oh, my goodness! What in the world? is that loud CRACK sound that happens when one first squashes the airway? Is it the fipple coming unglued? Mine still seems firmly attached (at points I tried tugging on it to see if moving it changed the sound). I noticed when perusing other forum threads of people attempting to tweak their Clarkes that this alarming sound was a major deterrent to further exploration...

Noel

Bloomfield · Post by **Bloomfield** » Wed Jul 07, 2004 12:41 pm

Squidgirl, will you marry me? A girl who puts a Clarke on the floor and steps on it, then spends three days messing with it until it is right (and uses turkey-stuffing implements for it) is a girl after my heart. Actually, forget about the marriage-bit, I'll never hear the end of it from susnfx. But my deep respect and admiration to you! Welcome to Tweaking!

As for your questions: Who cares! It's an art not a science.

Oh, but the crack thing: That is the metal coming away from the sides of the wooden fipple plug. Can be avoided if you squoosh with your thumb rather than step on the whistle, but perhaps the thumb thing is a male thing.

One bit of advice: rub (bees-)wax around the wooden fipple block and the metal afterwards to prevent air leaks. Makes a difference.

jen f · Post by **jen f** » Wed Jul 07, 2004 12:54 pm

Wow, that was quite entertaining.

mvhplank · Post by **mvhplank** » Wed Jul 07, 2004 1:40 pm

What a hoot! I can't answer any of your questions but I love your story.

M

satyricon234 · Post by **satyricon234** » Wed Jul 07, 2004 3:48 pm

That is a very uplifting story. At least if I ever try to tweak one of mine I won't feel bad if I don't get it right the first time.

I am at the stage when I don't know if it's my lack of experience or the whistle

boomerang · Post by **boomerang** » Wed Jul 07, 2004 7:32 pm

I have been down the same path (well not such a rocky road as you) but still......
In the past i placed the sides of the clarke firmly in a vice, and gently tapped the top of the windway down with a piece of timber on top of the windway and a hammer, hitting the timber,
i had somewhat of an adventure with this as is described in a previous thread http://chiffboard.mati.ca/viewtopic.php ... 1&start=15
I have since considered that the following may work much better in achieving a more effective windway squashing,
place the whistle in a vice, if using a metal vice use wood blocks to prevent damage to the whistle, tighten firmly but not too tight,
place an appropriate piece of timber over the windway, and use a G clamp to gently and evenly squash the windway, a little at a time till the best result is achieved,
the timber on top of the windway will distribute the pressure evenly, and hopefully prevent and undue damage,

Using a vice to clamp the whistle also eliminates and gaps around the fipple plug,
there has been much written on this board about tweaking clarke whistles, run a search on the topic and im sure you will find all you need to know, especialy by authors such as jerry freeman, bloomfield and vomitbunny
Hope this helps
Regards
David

Bloomfield · Post by **Bloomfield** » Fri Jul 09, 2004 12:23 pm

So how about an update, squidgirl?

jolsen · Post by **jolsen** » Fri Jul 09, 2004 10:38 pm

I don't have a lot of experience, but here's what I've found. One bit you can change is the ease of popping up to the second octave. Smaller distances between the windway and the blade make it easier to jump up, going to the extreme of not being able to get the lower octave. But other things can also alter how easy it is to jump between octaves.

Blade elevation relative to the base of the windway can have a major impact on tone, ranging from "no workie" to breathy to clear and pure. Look through the windway to see where the blade lies. On most whistles it will be between the middle and the base of the windway.

Many other things alter the various features you mentioned, and I only have a vague notion about how some of them might work. I'm eager to hear from others who do a lot of tweaking or building and understand it much better.

squidgirl · Post by **squidgirl** » Sat Jul 10, 2004 9:49 am

boomerang wrote:Using a vice to clamp the whistle also eliminates and gaps around the fipple plug,

Sounds way more sensible than my method, only I don't have a vice... well, actually I have several of vices, but they're along the order of handrolling tobaccoes and microbrews, not the useful mechanical kind -- those just aren't part of the standard girly toolbox, y'know. But hmm, but I do have a bunch of little C-clamps left that I was using to making tatting shuttles (tatting = a form of lace making, so tools to make tatting shuttles become girly by contagion)

boomerang wrote:there has been much written on this board about tweaking clarke whistles, run a search on the topic and im sure you will find all you need to know, especialy by authors such as jerry freeman, bloomfield and vomitbunny

I've been finding more and more of these, seems to be a matter of refining my whistle vocabulary so I know what terms to try searching on. My profound thanks to everyone who's posted this stuff!

Bloomfield wrote:So how about an update, squidgirl?

Still quite pleased with my Clarke Original as tweaked (though I do still fiddle with it on a near-daily basis). But yesterday I found myself being annoyed by a high pitched squeaklet before hitting the middle register D (and sometimes C natural), and I'm having a hard time getting rid of it. This may be because I've taken to practicing outside and/or blowing a bit more softly -- it only happens when I attach the note rather gently. Annoying though, because surrounding notes play nicely at that breath level...

Anyone able to tell me what causes such squeaks? It sounds like the air stream is being misdirected into some weird little eddy... a high pitched squeak means the air column is quite short, right? What might cause that to happen here? It only happens on notes where the top hole is open, which might explain where the air column is getting shortened, but how to fix it? Anyone have suggestions?

Also just got my Sweetone in the mail -- why did I think green would be an amusing color? I like it's timbre (not qute as nice as the original, but pleasant) but it unfortunately seems to be mildly out of tune... subtle enough that I can't tell if it's just a little flat or sharp or what. I think I'll see if my roommate's guitar tuner can finger the problem, or try downloading some pitch-measurement software. If it's sharp, I can adjust that by ungluing the fipple and sliding it back a hair, right? But what do it do if it's flat?? Fine down the front end of the metal tube?

jolsen wrote:Smaller distances between the windway and the blade make it easier to jump up, going to the extreme of not being able to get the lower octave.

On a plastic whistle, I've read about how to do this via glueing shims to the blade, but how would one do it on a Clarke original? Moving the block?

Noel

Jerry Freeman · Post by **Jerry Freeman** » Sat Jul 10, 2004 9:59 am

You'll need to figure out a way to work a small bevel (between 1/32 and 1/16 inch) onto the exit corner of the block, where the air spills into the voicing window (rectangular opening on top). Be careful not to overdo it.

This helps stabilize the whistle by allowing the air to adapt more gradually to the big increase in volume available in the window area compared to the much smaller volume of the windway. It results in less turbulance/swirling under the main airstream.

You may have to readjust the position of the soundblade then, but putting a small bevel on the block should clean up the squeaks. It will also open up the sound of the whistle somewhat, making it sound stronger, more confident.

There should be no need to change the length of the voicing window on a Clarke Original, no need for a soundblade lamination tweak.

Best wishes,
Jerry

squidgirl · Post by **squidgirl** » Sat Jul 10, 2004 11:27 am

Jerry Freeman wrote:You'll need to figure out a way to work a small bevel (between 1/32 and 1/16 inch) onto the exit corner of the block, where the air spills into the voicing window (rectangular opening on top). Be careful not to overdo it.

Hmm, figure out a way is right -- just spent the last half hour trying to poke my exacto in thru the window to bevel that edge, with a very small degree of success (and then of course I'd mucked up the windway and blade positioning and had to re-fix that....) Is there a safe way to get the block out to bevel it? .And if so, how do I re-affix it (glue? nails?), and what do I listen for when re-positioning it after removal?

This helps stabilize the whistle by allowing the air to adapt more gradually to the big increase in volume available in the window area compared to the much smaller volume of the windway. It results in less turbulance/swirling under the main airstream.

Ooooh, that makes a lot of sense. It really helps me figure this stuff out when I can imagine what's happening inside the whistle.

Thanks, Jerry!

And hey, do you know what's going on when C-natural disappears as I'm adjusting the windway & blade? It's the most frustrating thing for me -- I often get everything else sounding great, full two octaves, then try C-natural and it's all faint & whispery, and then I need to readjust it all over again. Very Frustrating.

Noel

Jerry Freeman · Post by **Jerry Freeman** » Sat Jul 10, 2004 11:42 am

You might try taking something with a flat end that's narrow enough to fit into the window. Wrap sandpaper over the flat end of the whateveritis. Insert the sandpaper end of the whateveritis into the window at a suitable angle and sand the corner of the block. Even rounding the corner very slightly can make a noticeable difference.

I don't know what's happening with the Cnat. If you figure it out, let us know.

Best wishes,
Jerry

squidgirl · Post by **squidgirl** » Sat Jul 10, 2004 7:42 pm

Aaaaugh!
I murdered it...
RIP, little whistle

Somehow managed to permanently fry the upper register. No amount of tweaking has brought it back, alas.

So I promptly went out and bought 2 more. The first store only had the Clarke originals in C, but my Bill Ochs tutorial's cassette (creaky medieval property of the library system -- I feel guilty each time I rewind) is in C, and a C whistle will let me play along with it w/out horrific dissonance Plus it was really cheap. (Is generating multiple justifications to buy whistles a sign of incipient WhOA?) Then went back to the pricey music boutique where I picked up the first whistle to get another one in D, and when they heard that my first whistle had lacked the upper register to begin with (the reason I started all this tweaking), they gave me a discount on its replacement. So I got 2 whistles for the price of 1&1/2, and can feel that I've saved money by buying whistles. Hah!

I've mooshed the airway on both of them, and for now, that seems to be enough to make them well-behaven...

And I'm now determined to extract the block from the dead whistle to get an up-close and personal post-mortem on Oh, my goodness! What in the world? I did to it (whistle autopsy?)... currently easier said than done. What kind of space age adhesive to they glue the blocks in with?? I'm been using my full collection of girly tools to try to pry it out, and its stuck in there but good...

Joseph E. Smith · Post by **Joseph E. Smith** » Sat Jul 10, 2004 9:34 pm

You know, if I didn't know any better, and after having read your first post and subsequent entries, I'd swear you were really an Uilleann Piper!!!

Chuck_Clark · Post by **Chuck_Clark** » Sat Jul 10, 2004 10:46 pm

Squidgirl, you're going to fit right in here, especially with the "can't resist mucking with it" segment of the board.

I feel copmpelled to point out, however, that you can buy a pre-tweaked Clarke or Sweetone from Jerry or the Whistle Shop. While slightly more expensive than an unmodified version, its still cheaper and less time consuming than buying multiple whistles and learning on he job.

But now that you're hooked, lets see you make a a store-bought Generation sound good.