M.H.Geoffrey & Co. Pipes - cheap tat or frightening value?

[OC Richard]

I guess what I'm asking is whether or not there is an affordable, entry level set of pipes (most likely import) or is one forced to buy-in at $600+US?

I've been playing the pipes for 35 years, and have had a lot of newbies come by the house with pipes they've picked up here and there, and tried to get all sorts of pipes going. I also check Ebay daily for vintage pipes.

Bottom line, avoid all Pakistani pipes like the plague. The only Pakistani pipes I've seen that worked at all were 1) the ones imported by the Florida company Mid East Manufacturing and 2) Hakam Din bagpipes (sold directly and by Scott Morton, thus sometimes sold as "Morton" bagpipes).

The drones on the above Pakistani bagpipes sort of play, but their tone and performance is not on the same page as ANY bagpipe made by ANY legitimate British or North American maker. I have never tried a pipe chanter by any Pakistani maker that worked in the least.

Many people have mentioned the wood, have mentioned Rosewood. Many Pakistani pipes are made out of horrid Sheesham wood which they often incorrectly label as "rosewood" or "cocus". It isn't either.

Many legitimate pipes have been made out of several varieties of actual Rosewood, which are great woods. Real cocus wood was the wood of choice of 19th century Scottish pipemakers but is rare and expensive now.

Several modern legitimate British and North American pipemakers are using Mopane and Cocobolo wood with great results.

Also, one sometimes encounters Pakistani pipes made of African Blackwood or Ebony. They don't play any better than any other Pakistani pipes, because it's not about the wood, it's about the internal dimensions of the bores, which the Pakistani makers never get right.

So... if you want to play pipes, you NEED to get pipes made by a legitimate North American or British maker. I won't wear a kilt or a sporran made in Pakistan because they don't look or perform like the real articles do, and the same is true of bagpipes. You're a great craftsman yourself! You have the "eye". You would be happiest with a set of bagpipes made by a like-minded craftsman, I think, someone like Rod MacLellan or Rick Pettigrew or Dave Atherton or Tim Gellaitry or Doug MacPherson.

Dunbar Bagpipes in Canada (Rick Pettigrew) and McCallum Bagpipes in Scotland both make pipes of "polypenco" (delrin). These look ugly but are affordable and play great.

But I would bite the bullet and buy a "real" set of pipes, a set made by a true craftsman in a fine wood like African Blackwood, Mopane, or Cocobolo.

The other option is buying an old set of fine British or North American pipes on Ebay. I see fine instruments going cheaply on Ebay nearly every day. You can get a very nice-sounding set of Scottish-made pipes, an old set made in the 1950's through 1980's, for around the $600 you mention. There are some up on Ebay right now- I just checked.

But have an experienced bagpipe person, someone good at identifying old pipes, shop with you as you browse Ebay! You'll learn a lot, and avoid the many pitfalls that await the ignorant.

For example there's a set now, which people are foolishly bidding on, which is being sold as an old Grainger set. Well, it's a cheap Pakistani set, made of Sheesham wood painted black, that happens to have a Grainger chanter stuck in it. I used to have a catalogue from a Pakistani pipemaker back in the 1980's, and these pipes, sheesham wood with aluminum mounts, sold NEW for $20 at that time. People have bid this set up well over $200! And it's not as if an old Grainger chanter is worth that much either.

So the options are:

For good pipes in the $600 range, you'll have to go with old pipes, nickle and/or imitation ivory, on Ebay or whatever.

For good-sounding new pipes in the $800 range you'll have to get Polypenco pipes from Dunbar or McCallum.

For new good wood pipes you'll have to pay $1000.

Check out Piper's Hut. They have the best prices on things. See what legitimate pipes by Dunbar, McLellan, Gibson, McCallum, Hardie/Henderons/St Kilda, etc etc are going for.