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Organ Pipes, designing, making and repairing...
Here I will show how to design and scale, make and repair various pipes.
Index:
Reeds, how to Clean and Restore
Reed pipes speak badly, and refuse to hold their tuning, after they accumulate decades of dust, dirt and grease, over the decades. Grease comes from burning candles and perhaps an oil furnace. But Careful cleaning and regulating can make the pipes like new.
But reed pipes require delicate handling, and I've seen many stops damaged by inexperianced or careless cleaning. This article goes thru the steps to properly clean and repair a reed stop.
Reeds, making shallots
Henry Willis & Sons Ltd was restoring the 1926 Contra Trombone 32' from the organ of Liverpool Cathedral. It had been vandalized by others in a rebuild. The Willis company has supplied us with photos documenting the making of new 32' shallots for this reed. Original wind pressure is 17-1/2".
Metal pipemaking, Plans and instruction
Pipemaking is a craft that requires years of training, and many jigs, templates and custom made tools. You can't master it by reading a couple of books and a few Youtube videos. If you are serious about learning pipemaking, do what I did. Get a job at a pipeshop and serve you apprenticeship.
However, the links below will give you a tour of my pipeshop, and also some charts and graphs a pipemaker may find interesting.