The joys and dangers of Ebay pipes

**EagleJCS** · 11th March 21, 06:28 AM

If you take a close look at the picture, the inside lid of the case has a label. The bottom of the label tells us that the pipes are made by "Hakam Din, Sialkot, Pakistan with Grainger competition chanter".

That for me would be a starting point to try to find images of other pipes from the same maker for comparison, looking at the beading/combing and projecting mount profiles.

Now, the make of the pipes may have changed since the label was made since some people buy/sell/trade multiple sets over the course of their piping career. Others, like myself, do not.

**OC Richard** · 11th March 21, 07:44 AM

Originally Posted by WalesLax

It is always a little harrowing to buy a set of bagpipes you can’t hold/touch/see in person.

So true!

On Ebay, with only photos to go by, it's a matter of (educated) guesswork.

And so often the photos are blurry, or taken too far away.

A constant problem is Ebay bagpipe sellers having a single photo of the pipes themselves, and a dozen photos of the case, the accessories, a moth-eaten bagcover, all the ancillary things we pipers don't really care about.

The other problem is that Ebay bagpipe sellers have a strange talent for taking a half-dozen photos of the pipes but all from exactly the same angle! Usually slightly looking upwards at the drones, so no matter how many photos they have you can't see the tops of the drones (which is something I want to see).

And they'll say the pipes are "unbranded" even though in the semi-blurry photos I can see that there's a stamp at the top of the chanter. Of course we can't assume that the chanter make is the drones make, but at least it's something.

I always have to message sellers and tell them where to look for the maker's stamp, in the cord guide hidden under the cords.

**OC Richard** · 11th March 21, 07:54 AM

Originally Posted by EagleJCS

If you take a close look at the picture, the inside lid of the case has a label. The bottom of the label tells us that the pipes are made by "Hakam Din, Sialkot, Pakistan with Grainger competition chanter".

I didn't even try to read that! My bad.

Looking at the pipes themselves strongly suggested that they were Pakistani.

Yes the mounts are Catalin, long used in Scotland. We're used to Pakistani pipes having dead-white plastic mounts, but older Pakistani pipes are often Catalin.

The main giveaways about the pipes being Pakistani were 1) the cords and 2) the surface of the wood.

But why are the cords a giveaway? Couldn't somebody get UK/NA pipes and put Pakistani cords on them? They could, but so far I've never seen that happen. I've always seen it go the other way, as on this set: a Pakistani set which has been upgraded with and L&M bag and a Scottish-made chanter.

Even when you buy Pakistani-made cords & tassels they're nice ones that look like the traditional UK-made ones. The only place I've seen the distinctive ugly Pakistani-made cords & tassels, with the distinctive cloth-covered rubber O-rings, is when they come on a Pakistani-made set.

About the surface of the wood, it looks painted to me.

I will say that Hakim Din is the best Pakistani pipe maker I've seen. A guy in the pipe band used to play a Hakim Din silver-mounted set that didn't sound too bad. The odd thing was that the wood was a mix of African Blackwood and Ebony, in fact one section was half one, half the other! Glued together I guess.

**WalesLax** · 16th March 21, 07:02 AM

This is less about actual interest and more about sharing for the entertainment and discussion. eBay suggested this style bagpipe to me from three different sellers. I asked all three for sound/video of the pipes being played, mostly because I am curious. I am also curious as to whether anyone has seen these being used out in the real world.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/223755625883

Rob

**OC Richard** · 23rd March 21, 08:06 AM

Those horrid Pakistani ones, I suspect, sound like any other horrid Pakistani bagpipes.

However the excellent Canadian pipe maker Norm Kyle made at least one fine-sounding set of clear plastic.

Back around 1980 I saw and heard this set in person. Kyle had a booth at a large Highland Games, with this set on display.

Not just on display! Being played by any piper who fancied a go at them.

They were tied into a clear vinyl bag. As the pipes were being played you could see the inside of the bag and drones fogging up, and "pure water" dripping out the bottom of the blowpipe and pooling in the bag. Disgusting for sure.

BTW the very first plastic pipe chanters I saw were the ones introduced around 1980 by Norm Kyle. They weren't the dense hard plastic used today, but a flexible dark grey plastic. The top was knurled to make the chanter easier to remove from the bag. They sounded great!

**imrichmond** · 23rd March 21, 01:07 PM

Originally Posted by WalesLax

This is less about actual interest and more about sharing for the entertainment and discussion. eBay suggested this style bagpipe to me from three different sellers. I asked all three for sound/video of the pipes being played, mostly because I am curious. I am also curious as to whether anyone has seen these being used out in the real world.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/223755625883

Rob

I've never actually seen a set of these transparent, acrylic pipes, much less heard a set, but I recall that several years ago a Scottish maker--I think it may have been Ayrshire Bagpipes--was advertising such pipes as a custom order. I don't see why a set like this from a respectable maker would not sound as good as other polypenco/acrylic pipes.

**Ninehostages** · 23rd March 21, 06:09 PM

... delivered by Air Freight ...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SDfn8I4Ooi8

**OC Richard** · 24th March 21, 03:15 AM

About legit UK and North American made pipes on Ebay, this fine set of David Naill pipes just came up with a very low Buy It Now, half what this set would cost new.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/DN2-Bagpipe...p2056016.l4276

Until more recent makers like Dave Atherton came along, the pipes you saw at Gold Medal contests were generally either 1880-1930 classic sets, or new Naills.

**OC Richard** · 24th March 21, 03:25 AM

Originally Posted by Ninehostages

... delivered by Air Freight ...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SDfn8I4Ooi8

Ha!

Notice that the sound was recorded in a recording studio and later added to the footage. (The pipes are close to the mic and there's no wind noise. Plus, they added a cat!)

There are (or were) a number of videos on YouTube showing people bungy jumping while playing the pipes...well, there's not much playing going on! They usually loose control of the instrument immediately. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KaLCw06chTs

BTW it's a way to get your palate pierced with a foot-long spike! Which could be life-threatening. McCallum makes a flexible rubber blowpipe for the Middle Eastern mounted Pipe Bands for that very reason.

**Ninehostages** · 24th March 21, 06:17 AM

Originally Posted by OC Richard

Ha!

Notice that the sound was recorded in a recording studio and later added to the footage. (The pipes are close to the mic and there's no wind noise. Plus, they added a cat!)

There are (or were) a number of videos on YouTube showing people bungy jumping while playing the pipes...well, there's not much playing going on! They usually loose control of the instrument immediately. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KaLCw06chTs

BTW it's a way to get your palate pierced with a foot-long spike! Which could be life-threatening. McCallum makes a flexible rubber blowpipe for the Middle Eastern mounted Pipe Bands for that very reason.

Is it designed to wrap around the camel hump?

Is it on "Alibaba" yet?