I just received my Penny Chanter from Mr. Daye, and I'm impressed with how marvelously made it its. I've spent the last 45 mins trying to play it (with a Daye reed as well), but it seems as if there taking a good deal of air. I've pulled the bridle up just a wee bit, but it hasn't seemed to remedy the problem. Does the reed need to be broken in? Prior to this chanter I was using a polypenco one with a plastic reed; do you think my baseline concept of proper strength might be skewed? I don't have an instructor out here in Hawaii, but I've played big pipes for fourteen years or so. It seems to me that a lot of air is rushing pass the blades before they "respond". I've checked the the chanter against the tuner, and all the notes are true, even with a little pressure variance. I'm down right scared to manipulate the reed as I don't know what I'm doing yet. Any help would be GREATLY appreciated.
The bug bite me again so I'm going to go and give it another lash.
I've looked at Mr. Daye's site before. I get an error message when I try to view the reed making booklet. I'll probably try and e-mail him, but I'm hesitate, as to all these pipemakers seem to be rather busy.
I've gotten use to pumping harder....I think. There doesn't appear to be any leaks in my system, so I'm pretty sure it's the reed. I shifted the bridle up and squeezed it to get the proper profile at the lips (), not too open, and not pinched off either. That made it a little easier to play. Now the D's are in but the rest of the notes are a bit flat. I chopped off the ends of the lips to try and correct it; it's still a bit flat on the other notes with the D's still in tune. Now it feels alot more responsive than before, but I'd like to fix the pitch.
That's all I'm confident on doing at the moment. I don't want to get crazy.
Do you think it needs time to play in? Should I be giving it a little more pressure on the other notes?
Common Problems and Remedies
for Penny-Chanter Reeds
"Perm" entry means that remedy is a permanent, irreversible alteration of the reed. Temporary adjustments are always preferred at least initially -- especially for learners.
Problem Remedy Perm? Side-Effects
Individual
note sharp Cover top edge of hole with sticky tape and/or ease blowing pressure on faulty note. . Excess tape quiets note, blowing irregularity complicates playing fast tunes.
Individual
note flat Use tape and/or rushes to flatten other notes and/or blow harder on faulty note. . As above.
Too strong Slide bridle downwards and/or pinch bridle more closed. . Reed becomes more sharp in first octave except for back D, easier to blow on 2nd octave, more likely to gurgle on bottom D and vary with pressure on back D.
" Sand entire surface of blades lightly and carefully making them very slightly thinner. ** Reed becomes more flat overall, easier to play, may become more difficult to jump to 2nd octave. Back D may become more willing to vary in pitch or gurgle.
Too weak Slide bridle upwards and/or pinch bridle more open. . Reed becomes more flat in first octave except for back D, harder to blow on 2nd octave, less likely to gurgle on bottom D or vary with pressure on back D.
" Trim end of blades very sightly making them very slightly shorter. ** Reed becomes sharper especially in 2nd octave, may be resistant and gurgly or squeaky in 1st octave requiring sanding as above.
Sharp Pull reed out in reed seat. . Flattens top holes more.
" Add wire "rush" inside bore. . Tone more mellow, 1st octave notes flattened more.
" Loosen bridle carefully and move to lower position if there is room; retighten carefully to restore desired strength. . Flattens top holes more, may make back D more sensitive to pressure. Hard D may become easier to make.
" Sand entire surface (see above). ** (See above).
Flat Push reed deeper into reed seat. . Sharpens top holes more.
" Remove "rush" from bore if present . Sharpens 1st octave more.
" Loosen bridle carefully and move to slightly higher position; retighten carefully to restore desired strength. . Strengthens and sharpens back D. Hard D may become more difficult to make, may gurgle.
" Trim end of blades (see above). ** (See above).
First octave
sharp In dry air: Add wire "rush" or push bridle up or more open. . (See entries above).
" In usual or damp air: sand or scrape lower half of scrape thinner. Test frequently. ** Hard D flatter and easier to play, reed easier to play overall.
" In usual or damp air: lengthen V of scrape at the bottom. Remove bridle, scrape with blade toward binding. Unwrap top of binding and extend V up to 1/4" into binding area. Rebind and fit bridle. Test frequently. ** Overall pitch lowers permanently and significantly. Reed can become slightly easier to play, flatter on bottom notes.
" Or trim reed slightly shorter to sharpen 2nd octave, sand entire scrape to re-flatten entire reed. ** (See entries above).
" If making own reeds: be sure staple is correct size /shape; make next reed blades wider or with more inside volume. . Back D flatter, may be more pressure sensitive.
First octave
flat In damp air: remove rush if present or pull bridle lower or more closed. . (See entries above).
" In usual or dry air: insert thin straight wire rush into staple, hold with spot of glue. . May make back D more prressure sensitive.
" Or sand reed edges carefully to make reed slightly narrower (1/64" or 0.4 mm) ** Back D stronger and sharper.
" If making own reeds: be sure staple is correct size /shape; make next reed blades narrower or with less inside volume. . Back D sharper, more stable.
2nd octave
hard to jump Reed too open/strong, tighten/lower bridle. . (See entries above)
" Reed easy & very free in first octave: Centerline too thin especially upper half. Trim reed length slightly as discussed above, take care not to over-thin centerline when re-sanding. ** (See entries above)
2nd octave
hard to hold Tighten/lower bridle . (See entries above)
" Trim reed slightly shorter especially if more than 3.25" long ** (See entries above)
" 1 or more edges too thick/stiff. Sand/scrape along the sides of the scrape possibly aas far as any thick edge(s), especially upper half. ** Back D more likely to gurgle.
2nd octave
progressively
sharper on
higher notes If making own reeds: be sure staple is correct size /shape; make next reed blades narrower and/or longer above binding, possibly staple slightly longer. ** .
" Take reed apart, squeeze upper end of staple thinner over top 1 1/8" of length but leave the eye unchanged. Reassemble to exactly the original length. ** Reed will become slightly more open; edges may open if bridle is moved up for strong, loud reed.
2nd octave
progressively
flatter on
higher notes If making own reeds: be sure staple is correct size /shape; make next reed blades wider and/or shorter above binding, possibly staple slightly shorter. ** .
" Take reed apart, squeeze upper end of staple fatter (more open) over top 1 1/8" of length but leave the eye unchanged. Reassemble to exactly the original length. ** Reed will become slightly more closed; lips may shut if bridle is moved down for easy, quiet reed. Take apart and gouge slightly more room for staple below the eye level.
" Take reed apart, superglue paper or thin metal or plastic .010" - .020" over top 1 1/8" of length of one side of the staple up to the eye, to make staple fatter on the outside. This makes cane head contain more air space. Reassemble to exactly the original length. ** Reed will become slightly more closed; lips may shut if bridle is moved down for easy, quiet reed. Take apart and gouge slightly more room for staple below the eye level.
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Bottom of Problems with Penny-Chanter
ere is david dayes chanter reed ajustment guide
Alright, I've settled down now.....I was just really excited about playing that new chanter.
So let me get this straight. Bridle down (towards staple) makes it easier, and towards the lips makes it harder. It's they other way round with reeds for other instruments, but I digress.
It feels more responsive now, I can get the second octave. The top hand notes (not sure if that's proper in terminology with UP) are a bit flat however (D's are still on). I remember reading somewhere that the appropriate pressure for the notes varies. Am I suppose to give it more the further up the chanter?
Where would be a good place to get supplies and tools to make reeds?
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