Reed Making

From Uilleann Wiki

1 Introduction
- 1.1 A note on dimensions
2 Staples
- 2.1 Bought Staples
- 2.2 Rolled Staples
3 Slips
- 3.1 Cane
4 Tying on
5 Scraping
6 Reed Gallery

Introduction

Reeds for the Uilleann Pipes come in two varieties: single and double.

The single reeds (also called drone guills or quills) are tubular and are usually made from a single section of small-diameter cane with a tongue sliced from the side of the cane in a lateral cut that leaves a strip attached at one end. As the tongue vibrates against the body of the reed, it causes the column of air inside the reed's body to vibrate which translates as the characteristic steady tone of the drones.

Double reeds resemble those in other wind instruments such as the Oboe, the Bassoon and the Cor Anglais. They work on the same general principle as the blade of grass between the thumbs. Two slips of cane are thinned and pressed together; when air is forced through the lips they vibrate rapidly producing a whinging crow. This sound is transmitted through the staple (a tube at the base of the slips) into the chanter or regulator whose bore shapes the sound into the melody played by the piper.

[edit]

A note on dimensions

Most hobby stores list tube sizes by their outer diameter rather than the inner diameter. To convert one to the other, assume that the wall thickness is 1/32". Following this convention, 3/16" I.D. is 7/32" O.D. and so on.

[edit]

Staples

The staple of the reed is a slightly tapered tube of metal (often made of copper) tied to the slips of cane that form the lips of the reed and placed in the reed seat of the chanter or regulator. The smaller end of the staple (called the eye) is usually flattened slightly and is sometimes even chamfered to allow easy binding of the slips of cane. The narrowest point of the eye should be about half the diameter of the staple.

The length of the staple should be 1/8" per inch of chanter lenght plus 1/8". So a 14" chanter would take reeds with 1 7/8" staples.

Note that only double reeds have staples as described here.

[edit]

Bought Staples

You can buy tubing from your local hobby store that is 0.014" wall thickness and 7/32" outer diameter (3/16" inner diameter) which should be good for most chanters. Once you have cut an appropriate length of tubing, use pliers to crimp the last 7/8" or so of the staple to form the eye.

[edit]

Rolled Staples

Rolling your own staples is usually done with small gauge metal sheets (again, you can probably safely go with 0.014") formed around a mandrel. Your shooting block should have a groove in it on top of which you place the sheet of metal (pre-cut to a reasonable size to allow for the correct diameter and length of your staple). Placing the mandrel on top of the sheet metal, gently tap the mandrel into the groove, forcing the metal to bend around it. Some metal sheeting may need to be annealed before this process. Some makers tool their mandrels to produce staples for a specific set of pipes, ensuring that future staple-rolling will be quick and easy.

If the mandrel you are using has a taper on it then you can form the sheet metal around the taper; otherwise, you can gently crimp one end of the staple to form the eye as with bought staples (see above).

[edit]

Slips

Slips are formed by cutting cane into strips, then thinning each strip and cutting it to help mount it on the staple.

[edit]

Cane

The cane used to make reeds is called Arundo Donax in Latin and comes from the family of true grasses like the common reed and bamboo (which it resembles). A large number of reedmakers use Spanish cane, although some also use Californian, Floridian, French, or Australian. Two different sizes of cane are necessary for reedmaking, depending on whether you are making drone reeds (single reeds) or chanter/regulator reeds (double reeds), as the cane for drone reeds needs to be a much smaller diameter.

Cut the tube cane to 3 3/4"-4 1/2" (95-115mm) in length. A chanter reed should be slightly narrower than the bell; measure off the width of the future reed and slit the cane length-wise into slips. Gouge the inner "fleshy" part of the cane to thin it to approximately 1/16"-3/32" (2-3mm) in the middle and more towards the edge of the slip. Sand the inner side of the slip smooth. Cut the slip in half and place the halves (or lips) against each other; the edges of the lips should touch sharply with no other point of contact. Bind the lips together 1/2" from one end using waxed thread or dental floss. Shape the other end into a tapered point 1 1/4" long; this end will be bound to the staple.

[edit]

Tying on

Tying the lips to the staple is done with waxed thread which creates an airtight seal. Placing the crimped end of the staple between the pointed ends of the lips, bind the lips to the staple.

[edit]