Henry began making pipes in 1889 and the company continued into the mid-1900s. Henry Starck came from a German woodwind making family that immigrated to London in the early 1800s. This set of 1940s Henry Starck pipes comes from the estate of Captain John MacLellan, who purchased them in Edinburgh in the 1970s. It is quite good, though I can’t say for sure who made it. While Lawrie drones are top-of-the-heap, the chanters… not so much. Where the bulb meets the stock is not a perfect match in diameter, which it would be if it were the original Lawrie chanter. The chanter doesn’t appear to be original to the pipes. The pipes play with great power and steadiness - typical Lawrie attributes. The hand-engraved silver is outstanding, as evidenced by the photos of the chanter sole and the three ferrules. One of the ivory ferrules on the bass has some age cracks on the bottom, but the ferrule is still solid. The ivory blowtick bulb has been lost, though the orignal engraved mouthpiece sleeve remains. The wood appears to be a mix of blackwood and ebony.Īll pieces are original and there are no cracks. The pipes were apparently bought new in 1952. Two of the pieces (including the chanter sole) are hallmarked 10 years later, but are perfect matches. The chanter is original and looks like it has been broken and expertly put back together again. The pipes play beautifully - steady, rich and bright. The wood and ivory on this set are gorgeous, and they sport the distinctive one-piece-full ivory caps typical of the Sinclair brand. Both are lined with polypenco to prevent cracking. Barely visible on the top of the slide on the bass bottom is “432201-945” - the last three numbers matching the hallmark date on the silver.Ī new blowpipe and stock were made with original mounts to replace the cracked originals. The Sinclair practice of putting serial numbers on chanters has been followed here as well. The slides are engraved sterling silver, hallmarked 1945. This is an absolutely lovely set, in superb shape, with great lines and a lovely, bright sound like my set. I won the Gold Medals at Oban and Inverness and the Clasp at Inverness on a set of silver and ivory 1948 Sinclair drones. Though the Sinclair chanter has been an iconic band chanter since the 1950s, Sinclair drones have gained an equal reputation for craftsmanship, steadiness and tonal brilliance. William Sinclair & Son has been a premier pipemaker since it was founded in 1931 in Edinburgh. The set is bold, rich and steady in the old Lawrie tradition. The blowpipe stock was cracked when I received the pipes back and that has been invisible whipped and the blowstick bored out.īut for a couple of small age chips, the ivory and wood are all in excellent condition. The invisible whipping I have done on pipes now is almost imperceptible, but I have gone over these with a fine tooth comb and I can’t find any whipping. I don’t have a record of what work was done during refurbishment other than refinishing. These pipes came back to me from a previous customer who purchased them several years ago, has added to his collection and decided it was time to downsize. It can be difficult to date these models, but the use of high-grade ebony and the ivory patina on this set suggest late 1920s or early 1930s. This set is superb ebony with ivory projecting mounts and caps, and classic Lawrie tapered nickel ferrules. Lawrie pipes were among the best of the early part of the 20th-century, and this includes mid-range work-a-day sets like this one.
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