Whistle Case or Carrier - what do you use?

[rpthomas]

What to people use to protect or carry their whistles in? An old tin? A hand-made case? I've just got a lovely new Milligan whistle (see my other post), but I need something to put it in to protect it when not playing. I'd love to know what quirky, brilliant, protective things other players use....

[pancelticpiper]

This.

[kkrell]

So basically a furniture moving blanket. You need it to fit an MK low D.

[sfmans]

I use a photographic tripod case from UK camera shop Jessops, which comfortably carries my default collection (low and high whistle, fife, sopranino recorder, and rauschpfeife).

The rauschpfeife sits inside a length of plastic drain pipe, the low whistle in the soft case Overton/Goldie supplied with it, and the others live in a pencil case, and the whole assemblage (plus spare reeds, a shoulder strap, and a few other random bits of cruft) all live in the tripod bag.

Works a treat and (so far) has comfortably survives everything festivals, gigs, sessions and Morris tours have thrown at it - and apart from a reapplication of waterproofing a couple of years ago it's been zero-maintenance. If only I could work out some way of getting the concertina in there too so I only had to carry one bag

[BillChin]

I used a rolled up baby blanket and secure it with a shoe string. I also have used a hollowed out bicycle pump for my Clarke original, though this does leave an indentation in the tin. Small PVC whistles have an advantage in durability over some others.

Others have used drum stick holders, shipping tubes, pvc piping. For me, the baby blanket does very well. A trifold of cardboard, the length of the whistle, could be used for added protection if a person is packing the whistle in a suitcase.

[Feadoggie]

What you use to carry your whistles probably depends on what you have to carry. My needs vary quite a bit so I have a number of options on hand - some hard cases, some soft cases.

This is one of several TuffBaggs cases I use.


And sometimes I have to carry a few more whistles so I use a percussion stick bag.


Here's a list of some options to consider that I compiled a while back.

Anyone got any ideas on how what i could use?

Welcome to C&F!

As has been said above, what you might use depends on what you have to carry and how well you need to prtect it. Here are some ideas not already mentioned.

- Wear clothes with big pockets, some cargo pants work well. You’ll want to watch how you sit down depending on which pockets you store the whistles. If you prefer more formal attire, suit jacket pockets can do the job.
- Roll the whistles in a cloth or small towel and secure with a rubber band or string.
- If you sew or know someone that sews you can easily turn a towel into a whistle roll bag with compartments for each whistle..
- Plastic freezer bags come in sizes that will accommodate many whistle sizes.
- Shoe box or other cardboard box. Simple enough.
- If they are high D’s, plastic pencil/ruler boxes work. They are cheap and durable. You may still want to use a cloth to keep them from clanking against each other or just buy enough whistles so that they can’t move around much.
- Look for old wooden knitting needle boxes or the cardboard and plastic tubes that supplanted the wooden boxes. I know this is a stretch, but if you are my age you may remember such things.
- Cardboard or plastic document mailer tubes come in a variety of sizes and can be cut to length depending on the key of the whistles you transport. Add padding as needed such as bubble wrap (keeping with the packaging products theme.
- Rose Plastics make square ratcheting tubes in a dizzying rainbow of colors as well as the simple translucent variety. These are used by a few makers to ship their whistles. They are available at some plastics/packaging suppliers but you may need to buy them in bulk (I’ve tried).
- Look through a craft or art supply store. You might find a plastic or even a wooden case made to carry art supplies.
- Use a tool roll like those made to protect woodworker’s chisels. These can be cloth or sometimes made of leather.
- I’ve thought about ammo belts like those worn by the bad guys in western movies of years gone by. Match your whistle keys to the caliber of the cartridges the belt is designed for. Just slip the whistles into the cartridge holes. You will want to use a whistle with a larger head than body so they don’t just slip right out though.
- Coroplast or Corlite corrugated plastic portfolio cases come in a variety of sizes. Elastic cord or velcro tabs keep them closed. Add padding as you see fit.
- For a two-piece high whistles you can look for the padded zipper cases sold to hold palm pilots or expensive calculators/hand held computers. I bought a few on clearance at Staples a couple years back for a couple dollars apiece. They are well padded and stiff sided.
- Messenger bags were originally designed to carry small packages by bicycle messengers but have become widely available as book bags for students.
- Soft bags designed to carry laptop computers are darned-near ideal. They can be found in many stores and sometimes you can find a real bargain. These usually have multiple compartments and one is always well padded. They come in attaché and backpack varieties as well.
- Re-purpose an attaché case. Use foam padding to make berths for each whistle or part of a whistle as needed.
- Similarly, you can use aluminum or plastic cases sold to carry poker chips or hand tools. eBay is full of these.
- Fly fishing rods are sometimes carried in elegant cases. They may be made from cloth, molded plastic or even aluminum. These can get pricey too.
- Plastic gun cases are frequently used as flute cases and come in sizes suitable for whistles. Plano cases come to mind. I have a Plano handgun case made to carry two pistols that holds a lot of whistles. Some pistol cases are too small to fit a one piece high D so check your measurements before you buy one.
- Pelican and others make hard cases to protect, store and transport cameras, computers and other high tech gear. Whistle size cases are available.
- Buy a purpose made whistle bag or case. Several are available through whistle retailers online. Mike Burke offers a nice whistle roll bag that will protect a few whistles. Lots of single whistle bags are available.
- I have about a dozen different bags made by Kate Lozier of TuffBags. Each is constructed of Codura nylon pack cloth lined with polar fleece and designed to hold specific sets of whistles from two high D whistles to a dozen whistles in different keys. They are well made and have been “tuff bags”.
- Sassafras Grove bags are the pinnacle of soft cases and can’t be beat for design and craftsmanship.
- Do you know any woodworkers? If so, you might have a wooden case made to order. These can be simple boxes like those pen turners employ to display their handmade pens. A whistle box is usually a bit longer than a pen box.
- Or look into a case made like a custom wooden flute case or jewelry box. The sky is the limit if you go this way. It all depends on what you want to store and carry.

I am sure there are other solutions as well. Welcome to the board.

Feadoggie

Personally for the Milligan I'd go the hard case route, either a hard plastic case or a wooden case. And be mindful of swings in humidity with that blackwood whistle.

Hope that helps.

Feadoggie

[DrPhill]

What you use to carry your whistles probably depends on what you have to carry.

So true.
I really only use one whistle most of the time. I like to carry it often, and I like to protect it well. I am still making this case:

Click on the image for a more detailed image, or here for more info.

Phill

[hoopy mike]

Wow, Phil, that's very nice!

One thing that might be worth considering when choosing a whistle case is that the plastic tube solutions don't allow moisture to escape, which can be a problem if a whistle is put into a tube after playing and left there for a couple of days...

[JackCampin]

Most of those solutions leave the labium exposed so it can bang against other whistles in the bag. The labium is the bit of the whistle that needs the most protection, so that makes no sense at all.

I use separate fleece pouches, longer than the whistle or recorder, in different colours so I can tell them apart, and put the instrument in them mouth end first so it can't slip out and knock against anything. The fleece pouches sometimes go inside other containers - a zipped case for a portable computer keyboard and a larger one with Sonic the Hedgehog printed on it which was made for holding game cartridges.

Except for a couple of things I normally carry separately in plastic drainpipes, and a Susato G sopranino recorder which fits in a tubular case made by cutting down a bicycle pump (the screw fitting that the shaft goes through makes a screw cap, the other end is sawn to fit and permanently capped).

[Infernaltootler]

I don't have a massive collection of whistles and generally only carry a high D and a low D. I got the perfect bag which carries the two from Big Whistle (but I don't think he does it anymore). It's basically two padded nylon (breathable) bags with the small one strapped to the big one and a long strap attached so you can put it over your shoulder. You can take the small one off if you want to replace it will an E or Bb for example.

I was attracted to the whistle because of it's simplicity and portablilty. Carting round a massive bag of whistles when you'll only play two seems daft and dare I say it, a bit show offy.

[hoopy mike]

I was attracted to the whistle because of it's simplicity and portablilty. Carting round a massive bag of whistles when you'll only play two seems daft and dare I say it, a bit show offy.

I guess it depends on where you play / how many you need to carry. I play at church, where I need to play in whatever key the music is written in so that I can fit in with the other instruments, so I need to carry seven or so whistles with me. I wrap them up in a gamosa and carry it in a shoulder bag. Even then I find that I could do with more - a whistle in B would be useful, and one in F#. If I was in charge of picking the songs, it'd be very different - we'd play everything in D or in G then!

[tomcat]

Well I have created the ultimate cheap version. I picked up a used backpack for $1.50 at Gooodwill, then went to the hardware store and but for $1.45 a tube of gray pipe insulation. The foam insulation works well when cut to the right length for each whistle. I duct taped a piece of cardboard on the bottom of each sleeve, and a wire loop on the side. This way I can throw about a dozen or so whistled in the back pack or hang the sleeve on the wall from the wire loop. Seems to do fine and cost less than $8.

[Peter Duggan]

Most of those solutions leave the labium exposed so it can bang against other whistles in the bag.

Not really, Jack. If they're well-designed, those with individual channels and folding flaps are protecting the whistles from one another by effectively completing the separate tubes once the flap's down and they're rolled up.

The labium is the bit of the whistle that needs the most protection, so that makes no sense at all.

So, yes, it needs careful handling (or better no handling at all!), but is also recessed and shouldn't be able to bang off other parallel whistles even without separation.

(My Whistle Rolls.)

[Tommy]

[benhall.1]

I just sling my whistles loose into the compartment on the outside of my fiddle case, where they bang against each other and scratch themselves to bits. My sterling silver Copeland low D is looking particularly fine right now.