After many months of working on prototype models, and making choices of style and keywork, I have completed the bass regulator for my Irish bagpipes:
From back to front are the reed cap, mounted with Brazillian rosewood, the bass bar with a cocobolo ring, the tone-generating upper pipe called a "separator" of teak, and the bass regulator keyed body of Honduras mahogany with decorative rings of Brazillian rosewood (which plugs into the bass bar when assembled). The end cap is maple, though ivory or an ivory substitute would be more traditional. The separator has "O" rings to make it airtight and fits inside the bass bar; the bass bar will fit a clamp on the mainstock of the pipes, and receives air through the small tube projecting from the side.
The two main pieces are segmented turnings made of 4 pieces each, giving a square bore. The keyed body has the ordinary radial joints typical of segmented turning, and the separator tube was assembled with rabbet joints.
The brass keywork was a PITA; I ran into problems with the fact that my drill press table was slightly off alignment, and I had to re-work some keys as a result of holes through the wood not perfectly in line. Bending brass is somewhat problematic as well due to the inside radius of a full bend and the maths needed to calculate where to make the bends, so I chose to make the mounting tabs as separate, soldered-on pieces so that I did not have to re-make complete keys in case of mistakes. I did have to re-make the tab-saddle twice for one of the keys. I also avoided full bends by using the jeweler's technique of making a 90 degree groove 1/2 the depth of the metal on the inside of the bend line, so the inside walls of the tabs meet at 90 degrees; this is a lot more work, but it's fairly easy to get the bends in the right places this way without fiddly calculations.
A piper once joked that the perfect chanter (the melody pipe) would be one with no holes; after all the difficulty I've had with the metalwork I'd say that the perfect regulator would be one with no keys!
I just wish I could take the Irish pipes with me when I go to France in September, but I must take my Scottish pipes, and the air travel security situation is too complicated today to carry more than one instrument.
Regards, John
From back to front are the reed cap, mounted with Brazillian rosewood, the bass bar with a cocobolo ring, the tone-generating upper pipe called a "separator" of teak, and the bass regulator keyed body of Honduras mahogany with decorative rings of Brazillian rosewood (which plugs into the bass bar when assembled). The end cap is maple, though ivory or an ivory substitute would be more traditional. The separator has "O" rings to make it airtight and fits inside the bass bar; the bass bar will fit a clamp on the mainstock of the pipes, and receives air through the small tube projecting from the side.
The two main pieces are segmented turnings made of 4 pieces each, giving a square bore. The keyed body has the ordinary radial joints typical of segmented turning, and the separator tube was assembled with rabbet joints.
The brass keywork was a PITA; I ran into problems with the fact that my drill press table was slightly off alignment, and I had to re-work some keys as a result of holes through the wood not perfectly in line. Bending brass is somewhat problematic as well due to the inside radius of a full bend and the maths needed to calculate where to make the bends, so I chose to make the mounting tabs as separate, soldered-on pieces so that I did not have to re-make complete keys in case of mistakes. I did have to re-make the tab-saddle twice for one of the keys. I also avoided full bends by using the jeweler's technique of making a 90 degree groove 1/2 the depth of the metal on the inside of the bend line, so the inside walls of the tabs meet at 90 degrees; this is a lot more work, but it's fairly easy to get the bends in the right places this way without fiddly calculations.
A piper once joked that the perfect chanter (the melody pipe) would be one with no holes; after all the difficulty I've had with the metalwork I'd say that the perfect regulator would be one with no keys!
I just wish I could take the Irish pipes with me when I go to France in September, but I must take my Scottish pipes, and the air travel security situation is too complicated today to carry more than one instrument.
Regards, John
