A Reed Making process for the Great Highland Bagpipe David Jones October 2007 What follows are

the steps in the method I am currently using to make reeds for my highland bagpipes. Disclaimer: I am not nor do I claim to be an expert in reed making. I do not and have no plans to ever make reeds for commercial purposes and I am probably the wrong person to ask for advice if you're doing this yourself. The instructions which follow are the steps and measurements I am currently using and may have changed by the time you read this. I play my own reeds in my chanters and make specialized reeds sometimes for my students and friends. The first step is cutting the tube of cane. I split the tube into quarters. Cane can be had for as little as 90 cents per tube. Each tube has the potential to yield between 4 and 8 reeds, depending on the length (they usually come in different lengths). As of this writing, I am getting about 2-3 good reds per tube. The low yield is due to my developing skill. I am hopeful over time to have a better record! Even if I only get 1 good reed per tube of cane, I am still doing better that $14 USD a piece, which is the current price of my favorite commercially made reeds. This process takes me about 30 minutes from start to finished product playing in the chanter. I measure out 90 mm of one quarter of cane and cut it with a fine tooth saw. I now have a slip.

Using a chisel against the edge of the table, I cut the slip down to about 14 mm in width. It's a little wide to leave room for sanding later when I match up the sides.

I use a gouge to gouge out the pith of the cane slip. The in-cannel gouge I purchased from Na Piobaire Uilleann for making reeds for my uilleann pipes.

The "shooting board" I made myself, but they can be purchased commercially.

I dont do much gouging. I turn the clip over and use a flat 1/2 inch chisel to carve out the back side. This part is taking me some practice. Having extremely sharp tools is a must.

This is the part where you really set the thickness of the reed, which is something I have not yet settled on. I have made nice reeds whose thickness is only .045". Commercial reeds I have measured sometimes did NOT have the blades at exactly the same thickness. I think, however, that they should be. This step should be taken with some care.

I use calipers to measure the thickness. I have found my best reeds are thinner than many commercially-made reeds. I dont yet know why that is. Here you see the reed in question at the average commercially-made reed thickness: about .055"

I next sand down the flat side of the reed to even it out on 320 grit sandpaper.

I next sand the inside of the reed over a tube to keep the curvature. I have used various sizes. This tube is 2" in diameter.

I draw a line at the halfway length of the slip.

I find the center of the ends and draw lines to create a diamond shape.

I use my chisel against the edge of the table to cut the slip along the lines. Sometimes I do this with a reed knife, but I get straighter cuts with the chisel. (It is pictured here on the shooting bard because I couldn't hold the camera and hold it against the table.)

Here's the slip. I usually run the inside over very fine sandpaper around the plastic tube one more time and assure that the inside is as smooth as possible. I have been to reed making classes where the instructor (Benedict Koehler) remarked that the inside of a reed is best done with a blade. Sandpaper leaves rough edges of a microscopic size that swell and rise up when moist, thus distorting the sound. Sometimes I use a curves blade to scrape the inside for this reason, but I have a hypothesis that the nice buzzing sort of mellow tones I am getting with my reeds is due to just this effect.

I split the slip in 2 over a curved piece of wood to avoid cracking.

I trim 5 mm off the tails.

Here's a little chopping block one can get from any reed making supplier.

I line up the blades and rub the sides over sandpaper to even out any irregularities so that the sides line up as perfectly as possible.

20 mm of the tails will be tapered. This is also the length the staple will be inserted.

5 mm I will do my best to leave alone on the center of the reed. The scrape will begin from there to the lips.

I use a chisel on the shooting board to taper the tails. I make 2 cuts: 1 first from the 20 mm line, then another half way.

I also usually start the scrape here using the same method.

The blades are put together. They are tied up tightly at the lips with waxed thread or dental floss. This should be tight!

The staple (I am reusing staples from other reeds) is inserted 20 mm - to where the taper starts. The ends of the tails should be paper thin!

I now wrap the reed from the tails toward the lips VERY tightly. The wrapping should not go past the point where the staple is inserted on the inside. The blades must close tightly and have no leaks. This is one part where I seem to make the most errors. Sometimes I get cracks as I wind it (reed too thick, although some makers dip the tails on water before wrapping). Sometimes I get leaks. Although leaks can be staunched with wax, I prefer to have it tightly wound without wax. I have sometimes found that a small leak by the staple will close as I finish the reed and open it up. I have a variety of threads used for oboe and bassoon.

To finish the reed, I insert in into a large oak dowel so I can handle it easier. I insert a plaque (made for oboe reed making) to help me perceive depth as I carve. I usually finish the reeds under a magnifying lamp.

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Lately, I have taken to sanding the reed against the grain on the side of the table. The blades are purposefully about 2-3 mm too long so I can trim the lips down to the right pitch in my chanter and to have extra room in case I goof up thinning the lips.

I have started wrapping some hemp around the 5 mm area in the center of the reed that I do NOT want to sand. This keeps me from ruining it during finishing.

Here it is: sorry the images are so poor. I usually have to open it up a bit to get a nice squawk. My reeds are typically rather flat at first on account of their length and width (I rarely make them less than 13 mm wide). As I thin the blades and chop the lips to bring it to the desired pitch in the chanter, it sharpens up. If the reed passes the test of playing nicely in my chanter, I finish it off by putting a thick coat of clear nail polish on the wrapping.

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