My Elder Penny Whistle won't work :(

[littlebiglane]

I made a penny whistle today....but without covering the end and all the note holes no sound comes out. If I do cover them...and the end hole a note comes out. Now I thought all Penny Whistles had open ends to them. Have I got the diameter and length proportion wrong? Does it not allow for enough pressure to build up inside to sound notes?

In the end I lost patience and cut the end off and made it into a bog standard whistle, I blocked the end and it makes a sound.

Also...is Elder safe to make whistles from? I might say no.....but have seen tutorials using it elsewhere.....

 

[launditch1]

First off, Elder is safe to use as its sometimes known as nature's medicine chest!
Perhaps its not working because it needs to be clean of fibres inside?Ive got a flute made from bamboo and the maker pushed a hot poker into it burning it clean..maybe that's it?
How long was yer whistle?

 

[gregorach]

I've tried to make a whistle like this, with identical results. A proper penny whistle should have an open end, but getting the fipple to work is evidently a lot harder than you might think...

I'm not convinced that elder is a good material either - not dense enough, and you can't get a really sharp edge to the fipple.

 

[durulz]

That thread title sounds like a euphemism.

 

[gregorach]

Or it could refer to an eldritch penny whistle from beyond time and space... Probably with tentacles.

 

[Shewie]

Fipples and tentacles, sounds a bit ...... rude !

 

[launditch1]

Now youre taking the pith..

 

[jojo]

Now youre taking the pith..

I would have thought a tube is a tube

Here is a link to make a pennywhistle out of almost any material.

 

[littlebiglane]

I would have thought a tube is a tube

Here is a link to make a pennywhistle out of almost any material.

Thank you :You_Rock_

 

[Jeannius61]

It could be that the airway opening in your fipple plug is slightly too big - the bottom of the space (the flattened part of the plug) has to be exactly in line with the lowest point of your mouth angle (labium). It looks a little large to me. Try cutting another one. Also - the tube inside wants to be as smooth as possible, and sealed to prevent air loss through the walls. One easy way to seal a smooth tube is dilute pva 50/50 water and pour it in, swishing it around so the entire interior is covered. Tip it out, and drain well. Allow to dry and try again... If need by, give a second coat once the first is dry.

Hope this helps.

 

[Black Sheep]

I've made a few Whistles out of Elder, like wise the first few didn't work too well.

I cut a few lengths and left them to dry/season these worked well but never tried to make a penny whistle

Richard

 

[jon r]

I have made plenty of Elder whistles before and i have even written a tutorial about making them but i have never made a penny whistle... so this is interesting!

From what i can see it looks like your penny whistle should work fine but after reading that article that jojo showed in the link, im guessing that the key is to have the splitting edge of the flipple lower down than the outside of the tube (if you get my meaning). Do you think this is right?

 

[gregorach]

I would have thought a tube is a tube

Here is a link to make a pennywhistle out of almost any material.

Fantastic find there Jojo, I've been looking for something like that for ages!

 

[rose883]

I have been working on making whistles, and have made a native american flute with a fettish, but when I started making flutes using a simple fipple, I had the same problem: I could not get them to work if the end was open, but they tooted just fine when it was closed.

I could not figure it out, until I started looking at the flow of air and considering the principle that makes a whistle work: Bernouli's principle states that fluid/air moving at a high velocity has lower pressure (and the converse is true of lower velocity air). When a whistle with an end works, the air travels inside the whistle and comes out the same hole it enters. The lower velocity air (that circulates around the whistle) interacts with the higher velocity air (coming out of the fipple) and causes the air to vibrate....after playing a pennywhistle, I knew that sound (and hence, vibration) could be achieved without the end on the whistle, but the dilemma was how to do it?

I looked at the penny whistle...notice that the 45 degree cut on a traditional pennywhistle does not go completely across the top of the whistle. It has sides. This gives more resistance to the air...and the air is directed (at a high velocity) into the whistle where it interacts (I checked out diagrams of this on the internet), with the lower velocity air traveling up the whistle from the outside. The interaction of the two different velocities causes the air to vibrate and make sound. Without the sides on either side of the slit, too much of the air escapes and the velocity of the incoming air interacting with the air coming up the whistle is reduced...sooooooo no sound is produced.

In short, do not make your 45 degree cut all across the top of the whistle. Instead, drill a hole where it is going to be and chisel out the slit with sides. The make your fipple as usual...being patient until a nice clear tone is produced. Then drill your holes for the different tones you want...and there it is a wooden flute! Good luck! Have fun.

 

[Chopper]

Make sure you blow and don't suck.

 

[gregorach]

In short, do not make your 45 degree cut all across the top of the whistle. Instead, drill a hole where it is going to be and chisel out the slit with sides. The make your fipple as usual...being patient until a nice clear tone is produced. Then drill your holes for the different tones you want...and there it is a wooden flute! Good luck! Have fun.

Useful advice there mate, thanks a lot. I guess I'm going to have to go looking for some decent bits of elder again soon.

 

[ickyan]

nice opinel

 

[littlebiglane]

I have been working on making whistles, and have made a native american flute with a fettish, but when I started making flutes using a simple fipple, I had the same problem: I could not get them to work if the end was open, but they tooted just fine when it was closed.

I could not figure it out, until I started looking at the flow of air and considering the principle that makes a whistle work: Bernouli's principle states that fluid/air moving at a high velocity has lower pressure (and the converse is true of lower velocity air). When a whistle with an end works, the air travels inside the whistle and comes out the same hole it enters. The lower velocity air (that circulates around the whistle) interacts with the higher velocity air (coming out of the fipple) and causes the air to vibrate....after playing a pennywhistle, I knew that sound (and hence, vibration) could be achieved without the end on the whistle, but the dilemma was how to do it?

I looked at the penny whistle...notice that the 45 degree cut on a traditional pennywhistle does not go completely across the top of the whistle. It has sides. This gives more resistance to the air...and the air is directed (at a high velocity) into the whistle where it interacts (I checked out diagrams of this on the internet), with the lower velocity air traveling up the whistle from the outside. The interaction of the two different velocities causes the air to vibrate and make sound. Without the sides on either side of the slit, too much of the air escapes and the velocity of the incoming air interacting with the air coming up the whistle is reduced...sooooooo no sound is produced.

In short, do not make your 45 degree cut all across the top of the whistle. Instead, drill a hole where it is going to be and chisel out the slit with sides. The make your fipple as usual...being patient until a nice clear tone is produced. Then drill your holes for the different tones you want...and there it is a wooden flute! Good luck! Have fun.

Wow. I just noticed this post. This is also great advice. Thanks!