Vintage Bagpipe Archive

Henderson, Silver and Ivory, Circa 1910

SOLD – This old silver and ivory Henderson set is in excellent condition. It appears to be blackwood, though the finish that was on the pipes was in good shape so I didn’t have it removed. The silver on the stocks is hallmarked 1910. The matching silver on the pipes has a different hallmark that I couldn’t trace but is clearly the same pattern and vintage.

The bass top is a Henderson replacement that may be older than the rest of the pipes. The silver pattern is different but equally lovely and in no way stands out. It is hallmarked 1909.

I played this set for a week and it is robust and steady in a fashion typical of blackwood Hendersons of this era: really a first class instrument.

If there have been any repairs done they are invisible to me.

R. G. Lawrie, Circa 1925, Ebony, Full Ivory Mounts

SOLD – This set of Lawries was purchased by the previous owner from Jim McIntosh some years ago. Jimmy identified them as circa 1925 Lawries, and I concur.

The are in ebony with immaculate full ivory mounts. There is no evidence of any repairs to the drones or stocks — rare for ebony pipes nearly 100 years old. There is no staining on the ivory, and the patina of the ivory is lovely, with the grain showing beautifully. The pipes were stripped, checked for cracks, and beautifully refinished by Dunbar Bagpipes, who, I am confident, do the best refurb work on the planet.

The set plays beautifully, as nearly all old Lawries do — they are full and balanced, steady and vibrant, and lock into tune in a way old ebony seems to do. They went well with both Ezeedrone and Canning reeds. I doubt you’ll find many vintage, fully ivory Lawries in ebony as lovely as this one.

R. G. Hardie, Engraved Silver and Ivory, Hallmarked 1964

SOLD – This silver and ivory Hardie bagpipe is hallmarked 1964. Except for some minor chipping on the bottom of one tenor drone bell, the set looks like it was played very little. The original finish is almost perfect. All original ivory hempstops and intact.

The original mouthpiece is missing, but aside from that, all other pieces are original. The only flaw is a crack in the ivory projecting mount on the blowstick, which has been filled. The blowstick has been rebored, since blowsticks of this era tended to be narrow and restrictive.

While the original chanter (not pictured) comes with the set, the silver sole was installed on a 1990s poly Dunbar chanter. This was and is an excellent chanter — a little lower pitched than today’s — and I saw no reason to change it.

Bob Hardie kept a large cache of well aged wood, and the quality of this wood is reflected in the tuning chambers of these drones, which are perfectly even and required no reaming.

In classic Hardie fashion, the set is steady and easy to reed. The drone sound is mellow, with a nice bass/tenor balance. Though the more subdued drone sound keeps Hardies from being played at the highest solo levels, I find these pipes perfect for a middle-age hobbyist looking for a reliable drone sound that won’t overpower the chanter, particularly if the piper’s tuning skills are not  yet at a high level.

Circa 1900 David Glen & Sons, Cocuswood, Nickel, Ivory Caps

SOLD – This is a lovely example of David Glen’s work, likely from around the turn of the 20th century. The pipes are cocuswood, the ferrules are nickel, and the stylish drone caps are ivory.

This set did not require any refinishing or major refurb work when I acquired them, except to invisible whip a crack in the chanter stock.

David Glen’s craftsmanship — inherited from his meticulous father Alexander — is still admired by pipemakers today, and his drones are known for their rich, subdued tone and steadiness.

He began making pipes with his father in the 1860s and took the business over after Alex’s death in 1873. Around 1900 he added “& Sons” to the business name of David Glen. He died in 1910, leaving a voluminous legacy of high quality instruments and collections of pipe music. The business continued for many decades after his passing.

David appears to have favoured cocuswood over ebony or blackwood right up until his death.

Dave Atherton, Macdougall Bores, 2007, Mounted in Palm Ivory

SOLD – This is one of Dave Atherton’s earlier MacDougall-bored sets, and has had only one owner, who purchased it new in 2007. It is mounted in “palm ivory,” a tropical nut. Very few sets were mounted in palm ivory due to reasons of efficiency: often flaws would appear in the nut only after considerable work had been done making the mount and the nearly-finished mount would have to be discarded. These mounts have turned a rich honey brown. Combined with Dave’s great eye for lines, this is one of the most visually beautiful bagpipes I’ve had on the site in a long time. The photos don’t do it complete justice. I have long contended that Dave Atherton is the premier pipemaker of the last 50 years, and this set does nothing to dissuade my belief.

The tone is full and seamless, with a rich, dominant bass and excellent blend with the chanter. The blowstick is lined with stainless steel to prevent cracking.

There are no cracks or flaws. Besides being an outstanding musical instrument, the mounts and its distinction as one of Dave Atherton’s earlier bagpipes make it somewhat of a collector’s item.

Henderson, Silver and Ivory, Hallmarked 1935

SOLD – This set is a gem, physically, tonally and historically: silver and ivory Henderson, hallmarked 1935-36. All pieces are original. There are no repairs to the wood. Several of the ivory projecting mounts had small cracks opening in them. These have been glued, and while they show when you get close, they in no way detract from the overall appearance of the pipes, and no further cracking should occur.

The finish is in good shape and appears to be original.

The original chanter has cracked near the bottom and has had external whipping done to it. The sole is in magnificent shape and can be moved onto a modern chanter.

The pipes are exceptional tonally, even for Hendersons — a big bold sound, very steady, and with a very forgiving tuning range that makes the old Hendersons one of the steadiest makes ever.

The pipes were first purchased for a grandson of Andrew Carnegie. Carnegie had a strong piping connection as he owned a castle in Scotland and for many years employed as his personal piper Angus MacPherson of Invershin, son on Calum Piobaire and wife of Mrs. MacPherson of Inveran. The pipes were sold out of the Carnegie family some years ago.

As the photo shows, the silver is exquisite. No recent work has been done to these pipes.

Circa 1949 Robertsons, Full Ivory, Engraved Silver Slides

SOLD – This set of Robertson pipes came to me with a brass plate on the bass drone giving the owner’s name and the words “Christmas, 1949.” I have taken this as the date of manufacture. The plate did not compliment the look of the pipes and has been removed, though it will be included with the pipes.

The pipes are full ivory mounted. They were in storage for some time, so some of the ivory has slight stain marks, though the overall patina is a lovely honey colour. The original finish was in very good condition and has been left.

The engraved slides lack hallmarking and were most likely added later. The hand-engraving is deeply cut and beautifully done. While the original chanter is missing, the sole remains.

The pipes were free of any cracking and the bores are straight and true. The drones play with typical Robertson power and steadiness and were easy to reed.

The stock bores are slightly tapered, as was Robertson’s practice in earlier days. The sole can be taken as is or added to a chanter for CAD $95.

Circa 1900 David Glen & Sons, Cocuswood, Nickel Ferrules, Ivory Caps

SOLD – This is a great old Glen set that I’ve priced well because they are visibly whipped in several places.

They are cocuswood, with button mounts, nickel ferrules and ivory rings. The bass middle joint is not original to the set, but it is a Glen of the same era in ebony and matches the set perfectly. The tone of this set is classic Glen cocuswood — not booming, but ample, very rich, and really, really steady. The set has been owned and played by several good competition players over the past few years who have since moved onto higher-end sets.

The whipping is external, and locations can be seen in the photos. This work was done several years ago before the refurbisher developed the invisible whipping technique. The whipping is quite apparent up close. As a result, I was able to acquire the pipes for a very good price and am selling them for a price that might work for someone who can’t afford some of the other sets here.

The set plays really well and, in typical Glen fashion, is easy to reed.

There are two blowsticks — they match, and one is longer than the other. One may be a blackwood reproduction.

Robertson, 1956, Silver and Ivory

SOLD – This hallmarked silver and ivory Robertson set was made in 1956 and shows the distinctive ivory projecting mounts this maker was so famous for.

The set has been refinished, but had no cracks or flaws in the wood. A number of the ivory mounts show some spider cracks, one large one in particular, but these are not unusual and they threaten the mounts in no way.

The original ivory mouthpiece bulb is not present, so the original engraved silver sleeve has been fitted to a new mouthpiece.

The stocks show bore flaring that is typical of many of the higher-end Robertson sets, said to enhance tone and steadiness. (This means any canister system used will need to employ sleeves rather than inserts.)

I’ve never played a set of silver and ivory Robertsons that weren’t absolutely superb, and this set is just the same:  a robust, seamless, steady tone. It’s a great old set and quite lovely.

While there was no original chanter or sole with this set, I do have a matching sole made in the same pattern by the same Birmingham engraver. The only difference is that it is hallmarked for RG Hardie, 1968. It has been installed onto a McCallum MCC2 blackwood chanter.

Lawrie, Circa 1920s, in Ebony, Nickel

SOLD -Lawrie drones of this type in ebony may be one of the most common vintage pipes available today. They are steady and tuneful. This set was likely made in the 1920s, though this dating could vary by a decade either way. The bells, cord guides, projecting mounts and tapered nickel ferrules are classic Lawrie.

This set was refinished three years ago, and at that time there was invisible whipping done beneath the top three combs of the bass drone stock. A couple of the ferrule tenons showed some slight checking, so these were whipped under the ferrules at that time as well. One new visible whip now appears at the top of the chanter stock, though this will not be visible until the neck of your bag cover. Blackwood hemp stops were added to all four tuning pins.

This very affordable set has a big Henderson/Lawrie wall of sound. The ebony material provides a level of steadiness and richness unequaled by blackwood of the same era.

This set was sold on this site in 2010. The photos were taken then. The finish on the pipes is slightly worn since then as the pipes were played continuously over the past three years.

Dave Atherton “MD” Macdougall Reproduction, 2012, Blackwood, Full Holly-mounted, Engraved Silver Slides

SOLD -With all due respect to the rest of today’s craftsmen, Dave Atherton was the finest modern bagpipe maker I’ve ever seen. His acoustical knowledge and his obsessive attention to detail resulted in a remarkable instrument that holds its own against some of the great vintage bagpipes.

Though he made many instruments for C. E. Kron during the early 2000s, the Duncan MacDougall reproduction he created once he went into business for himself in Chicago is his masterpiece. I was fortunate enough to work closely with Dave during the development of this model and can attest to the care and knowledge that went into every set. This set, made this year in African blackwood with full holly mounts and engraved silver slides, is a superb example of his work.

The blowpipe stock is poly (as was Dave’s style) and the blowpipe is a brass-lined, blackwood stick.

The tone of this set is full and all-encompassing. It is more aggressive than Henderson pipes, and belies the myth that Duncan MacDougall pipes were subdued, a myth perhaps resulting from so many David Glen sets being misidentified as MacDougalls.

As an aside, when I played in the Spirit of Scotland Pipe Band at the World Pipe Band Championship in 2008, I played an early Atherton MD set. The band’s drone tuners — both prominent pipers — came to me at one point asking what drones I was playing. I told them and they remarked that they were the steadiest in the band and the most vibrant to the touch. “I can feel the wood shaking in my hands as I’m tuning,” said one. I thought that was a remarkable thing to hear, given the caliber of player and bagpipes in that remarkable band.

Atherton drones won the Gold Medal at Oban this year, as well as the M/S/R at the Glenfiddich Championship.

Hallmarked 1954-55 Silver and Ivory Robertsons

SOLD – I love these old Robertson sets! When I see/buy them, I know exactly what I’m getting, and I’ve never been disappointed. So much faith do I have in them that it is the only bagpipe that I would ever think of selling to someone without having tried them. (It would have to be exceptional circumstances for me to do that!)

This set is hallmarked 1954-55. The wood, ivory and silver are all in immaculate shape. The original finish has been left intact as it is still in very good shape. The original ivory blowpipe bulb and engraved silver sleeve were missing, but I have one with a matching silver pattern, so it has been added to the set. The original Robertson chanter was not present, nor the sole. I do have a matching engraved silver sole that can be added to the set for CAD $350.

Robertson sometimes tapered his drone stocks. These are tapered. This means that if a moisture control system were used, it would need to employ cups, not inserts.

The pipes are the usual Robertson rock-steady, bold, rich sound. I put a set of Kinnaird Evolution reeds in the drones, struck up, and they were perfectly in tune in 30 seconds.

Classic Robertson.