sick of chain talk ?? Sorry….

When do you 'introduce' a chain to your whistle ?? See how they go together ?? Certainly don't want to offend your whistle by overshaowing it with a chain that is too forward. My, my, what to do ??

Matching metals is nice 🙂 Never have tried variety I admit… will have to give that some thought now though !!!!

And there is the matching of ages so that a new chain doesn't try to get together with an older more sophisticated whistle. That would be a faux pas…

Some whistles come with certain types of chains. Some don't ever come with chains at all . Then there are those terrific watch chains that you can even modify.

Perhaps you have gotten an older whistle and it came with a chain and you want to keep it 'as was found'. I guess bottom line is it is your whistle after all and nobody really has any say huh ??

Heavy links, lighter links, shapes of links, complicated links …and of course all those silver chains ( we rarely use them ) — the list is actually endless…..

sorry, but another word ( or two ) on chains….

We received a DeCourcy Constabulary whistle today. Been waiting for what seems a month for it !!! Droooooling really. I know, whats another whistle ?? — nothing , you are right !!!

BUT what came with the whistle ?? —– YUP a chain !!!!

AND not just any chain, but an A.V. link NICKLE SILVER with a matching hook aaaaand matching ring —— TO DIE FOR !!!!

Envious ?? Should be  🙂  So, THEN it came off the police issue, which is nickel silver and great in its own right, and the decision …. hmmmmmm  — where does it goooooo ?????

AHA !!! The neglected KING whistle NEEDS a chain of this merit !!!!!

PERFECT…..

….can't let go just yet of this chain thing in regard to whistles.

You know you never see copper chains from out side the USA do you ?? And even then gotta be careful !! — Why you ask ??

Cause they plated them with an oxidation that looks terrfically like copper !!! Beautiful, but not 'puuuuuure'  So one has to get out their magnet that one keeps handy their at their research desk and checks them out right ??? From the ring to the hook everything has to checkout 🙂

We find that Horstnmann used copper a lot, but there is another smaller obscure maker that used it too. Otherwise be careful !!!

Like whistles,  chains are plated regularly too. Raw and pure is the best though — no games, just the original beauty..

And a person has to decide what lengths are appropriate, because they come in different lengths aaaaand accompaning ring sizes.
 

Beyond that, if you get 'hung up' on them as we do, you have to figure out how to store and display those 'outfitted' whistles !!!! I have seen terrific displays with rows of whistles and nooooooo chains !!! Where did they go ??? Send 'em here !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 

…an area quite neglected in the whistle world is whistle chains. Why do you think ?? Perhaps because they are so easily replaced or added, exchanged at the owners whim ?? Perhaps like many whistles, they are just plain obscure !!!

There is a fine line between what constitutes a whistle chain too. For example earliest chains may date back to Boatswain whistles and may have been quite customized. Other very old attachments were likely cloth or strings.

Watches have for centuries had fobs and Ts with ornamental chains and we also see crossovers there used on whistles. Buyers choice right ?? Certainly.

However, chains were eventually made specifically for whistles by actual whistle manufacturers — including button hooks — and we see them done so and classified in Hudson catalogs and made as well by  DeCourcy — who came from Hudsons.

Check out the eBay auction sale going on of whistle chains from the whistle king himself —  Leif Bailey on eBay — 271158445630

Our absolute favorites are Dowler chains from the 1880s with heavy links made of pure nickle silver. We have 'outfitted' our favorite whistles with them 🙂

For the really eclectic you can even tell the difference in the hooks, how large the openings, how large the hooks are and the materials used, whether it is plated or 'pure'.

Brass chains, steel chains, copper chains — it gets quite complicated !!!  —- Whoda thunk ???

Then there is the subjet of 'jump' rings…..

what is your favorite type of whistle ??

Beaufort
Escargot
Extractor
Boatswain
Police
Fire Brigade

Lots to choose from and many actually do become quite choosy. One friend collected only Boatswain. Specialization — why do we ?? Perhaps the same reason we collect whistles at all ( they are all special  right ? )

The question begs to be asked  … what do we not collect when it comes to whistles ?? And Whyyyyyyyyy ??????

For everyone the motivations are different of course, but there are some similarities to consider. Like what we might ask ?? Well let's look at merely ONE thing… the chase….it is in camouflage below other driving forces….

Perhaps we identify ourselves by what we pick ??
We find comfort in obtaining a buffer against the world ??
Or maybe dip into immortality with those ageless whistles ??
 

Buried below is the excitement called the thrill of the kill when we track one down !!! The 'find of a life time' and it's dreaded counterpart — the dessimation of ego if we get duped into a dud !!!

Surprisingly there are a lot of antics involved in the chase and acquisition of a rare whistle. Ever really think about how you go about finding them ?? And what you do to get them ?? Buried even further below is anxiety…

In a world where we want to be happy, do you ever wonder why we might risk living in such anxiety in the constant search for new game where at any time we can find ourselves precariously balanced between the two.????     …. I do…..
 

wow, got an old Dixon beaufort in the other day and still marvel at it, days later…..

No big deal I suppose for most, but to a whistle geek the world !!! Why you ask ?? It trills when blown !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

No pea like in an escargot !!! Now that's news !!! How'd they DO that anyway ?? Just the right angle for air to pass through the holes ???? Perhaps the PARTITION is just loose enough to rattle inside the cone shaped body ??

Well, anyway, besides that is has a fantastic round cast mouthpiece and that's another unusual thing as Dixons aren't known for having them. Now I have to go through all the beauforts I see and have pictures of and re-examine them for possible mislabeling !!  OOOOH !!! I'm excited !!!

Back to the drawing board 🙂

How much does traveling to find whistles pay off ??

Depends where you live !!!

We live on the west coast of America. Probably 200 years old at best. Not much history of whistle makers here !!! And believe me whistles do not travel much to areas here. For many years ( many ) we tried to find them in antique stores and found very few. In fact we have 3 original whistles from our first 25 we found before going viral on the internet.

1) Purina dog chow dog whistle
2) Faurot police issue
3) BGI made 601 bullet

The rest have faded by comparison and are down the road now. These are nostalgic. Even the bullet is for sale cause we 'upgraded' which we do all the time now. Or just get out of and sell off.

The east coast might be better hunting grounds, but we're talking a vast coast line. Perhaps again, the northeast area where some early manufatirers were located might bring better results. Still LOTS of traveling and at almost 4 dollars a gallon, THAT could pay for a lot of whistles. Not to mention the time involved.

Boy o boy, to live in the UK and go to those boot sales and antique fairs !!!!! Or Germany and the antique shops ??  Wow, what finds could be there. Not too big of an area to travel thru. Besides the antique stores.

What about France ??  — again, terrific hunting grounds at fairs. Argentina, I don't have a clue. Seems that antiques are just looked at as OLD STUFF in many places. So hunting on foot might really pay off, but much harder work !!!.

All in all, foot work is arduous and time consuming as well as easy to fall short. Prices might be a whole lot better ( or worse ) but the best source is turning out to be the internet. WHY IS THAT ??? Seems like the prices are higher — oh really ???? CONSIDER…..

No fuel costs
No labor loss ( hunt at ease )
No wear and tear on your car
No lodging fees

When you pencil it out buying over the internet is the best deal going !!!!

— one of my favorite things in whistle design is the stophole. Know why ?? Of course not, but I will tell you anyway 🙂

Although they are installed on many different designs of whistles, I love to see them on round whistles the most becaaaaaause…… wait for it ……. it makes the whistle look like a face with a cyclops eye !!! Unfortunately with the window opening it usually looks like a sad faced cylops   🙁   ….. You know, because of the frown ….

Bet you didn't 'see' that one coming did ya ??? Yeah, I know, kinda dumb. After all the stophole is for making the whistle vary in sound now isn't it ?? In fact you could even use it for Morse code, which was touted by the Boy Scout whistle supply houses.

Nah, not me. I just like collecting rounds and in the process lining up all my little soldiers on their respective hooks and then being able to look at them giving me the ONE EYE !!!!

Yup — cyclops, no winking either, very vigilant guys. Never blinking.

Now, for collectors,  the placement may help in identifying who made them, but the type of stophole ( yes there are different types ) can vary quite a bit even in a single manufacturers model. Some whistles have the hole, but nothing attached that arises out of the whistle. No it isn't missing, they just didn't want one there and so made a hole for old man Morse's code…

Makes one wonder, could a collector specialize in just stophole whistles ?? That would be a first now wouldn't it ???

For a brief period there were some fantastic dual chamber whistles made. Heavy too. Brass. And constructed like battleships !!! Circa 1880 to 19oo ?? Not a very long period of time huh ?? 20 years is all, but WOW what a period that was !!!!

 Don't you wish they still made them like that ??? Alas, all good things must come to an end I suppose. And it does give us a special period of time to investigate, study and learn about.

It went by so quickly though. Perhaps about 20 years is all. Then the inevitable — cheaper ones came along.

However Ward, Barrall, DeCourcy, Lilly, Yates, Stevens? Even Hudson,  you know, all the BIG name whistle manufacturers in the UK got in on the action. Curious not seen outside the UK huh ??

Usually pure brass and thick metal tubes. The mouthpieces were in line and also very heavily made. I love 'em. But they are hard to come by.

Multichambered whistles can vary up to even 6 tubes. We see so many variations that perhaps these heavy walled ones get mixed in, but we think they deserve and extra moment of applause !!!!

Still, it is very curious we have only seen ones from that period and from the UK only…… hmmmmmm…. makes one wonder if…..

Reed and Barton silver whistles are pretty decorative, but collectable ?? Don't know.

I see five shapes usually. Are there more ?? ( hope not ) 

1) Owl
2) Pineapple
3) Clover
4) Butterfly
5) lady bugs

Picked one up the other day and to my dismay my wife liked it and wears it now !!! Now I have to look at it all the time. Besides that we all know of my aversion to silver whistles. AND all the R&B whistles come in silver !!!!

Really flat and kinda large, they border on obnoxious —- to a reeeeeal whistle connisseuuuuuur you know. And to top it off, ours is a very high ptiched whistle — help !!!!

I was just being nice to the guy who wanted to sell it off. I didn't expect to have to see it,  more than any other of our whistles. WRONG !!

Well, here is to hoping that my wife gets tired of it soon…..