Mounts are available in boxwood or polyester “ivory substitute”. Water buffalo horn is available as an alternative mount for lighter-colored sets. White antler mounts are available but entail an extra charge on most configurations, please enquire if you would like antler mounts. For most timbers, boxwood is my recommended material for mounts.
Surcharge for nickel silver: typically +10 per key, +200 for a half set, +500 for a full set.
Surcharge for sterling silver:
charged according to materials cost
and labor; typically
around +30 per chanter key, +400 for a half set, +>800 for
a full set, but
please enquire for a quote. Britannia (95%)
silver is also available on request for half sets.
The bass regulator requires the most
silver of any component, and so ¾ sets in silver are considerably less
expensive than full sets.
Other configurations and special materials are available on request.
I have over 20 timbers on hand to choose from (subject to availability and previous orders). Extra charges apply for the following rare timbers: old-growth european boxwood, macassar (striped) ebony, snakewood. Other suggested timbers include european pearwood (recommended primarily for narrow bore/flat pitches only), ebony (African or Asian), european boxwood (buxus sempervirus) of Turkish origin, violet rosewood (dalbergia louvelli), plumwood, castella boxwood a.k.a. curly lemonwood, and ‘tulip rosewood (dalbergia frutescens). I also have some plantation-grown 'sonokeling' rosewood (dalbergia latifolia) for those who prefer a “greener” alternative to exotic woods harvested through traditional forestry.
I also have some small quantities of more unusual
species such
as Palo Santo (similar to greenheart/lignum vitae), leadwood (extremely
dense
and hard), “partridgewood”, serpentwood. Olive wood and dogwood
are
available on request. While I do not prefer blackwood to ebony, I
am
currently sourcing some sustainably harvested blackwood which may be
available
in future for those who want it. I have a modest quantity of
laburnum, and
also am working to source other suitable native hardwoods such as
hawthorn and
holly, but as these are rarely commercially traded, supply is limited.
If you
are interested in these woods in particular, please enquire.
Mainstocks
Not all of the above woods are available (or suitable)
for mainstocks; for
mainstocks I suggest cherry (American or European), walnut, figured
maple,
pear, ebony, macassar ebony, castella 'boxwood', indian rosewood,
european
boxwood, or violet rosewood. I normally reserve exotics like
rosewood, ebony,
or boxwood only for full or ¾ sets constructed of matching materials,
i.e. Violet rosewood for a violet rosewood ¾ set, boxwood for a boxwood
fullset, etc. I will consider other timbers based on
availability and
subject to the appropriate seasoning time, typically about 2 years from
order.
Ebony mainstocks can be supplied for flat pitch ebony instruments on request, for an additional fee of 200 euro. Because ebony is a somewhat brittle timber, I don’t recommend hollow ebony mainstocks for sets with a bass regulator (i.e. Full sets) which will be subject to heavy use. I am using a stress-relief attachment system for bass bars, to reduce the strain on the hollow stock and better distribute the forces over the wood; such a set (with an ebony stock) would probably be OK, but please understand that I cannot at this time warrant hollow ebony stocks with bass bars attached.