Well, another show at the Portland Expo and this summer we have a corner booth !! LOTS more rare,antique whistles for sale. TWO large boards with a variety mixed together.

One section will be dedicated to Metropolitan Police whistles dated WW1

One case will be for Rare and another for VERY Rare whistles —  if you have aspired to that level. If not, it is always fun to peruse what is out there. Then there will be a case for new arrivals, so you can see what pops up or ones that you haven't seen just yet.

We loaded up an electronic picture frame that holds just over one hundred pictures of a variety you would probably never see unless we brought them in. Saves time and space at the booth and yet shares potential for the serious or just curious collector and student of whistles.

Posters will be for sale to save you mony and the trouble of searching forever !! Yup, all the whistles you would want in a case ( well picture of a case anyway ) on your wall for a fraction of the cost 🙂

This year we will be bringing a LOT of books and even have a discount for the expo if you want a set of three.

To go along with this interesting hobby please check out the website SPOTLIGHT on whistle chains tied in this month. LoTS of pictures and a great article that took a long time to put together for your enjoyment.

C YA !!!

why buy whistles from the whistle gallery ?? Just for us to make money ??? HAH !!!!!!!!!

We lose money every year 🙂 In what ways you might ask ??

Well many times we buy just to compare whistles for descriptions and the learning curve and then TRY to sell them off — many times at cost ( including postage )

Other times we buy for rarity to be able to do SPOTLIGHTS  for you and us, admittedly we keep them, unless they are doubles and then we buy them because we are constantly asked for more rare ones than we can find.

Then there are those 'papers' we have to actually BUY for research and publications. Patents papers, registration copies, advertisements — all proving model numbers and sizes. along with — obviously —  the actual makers !!!

Beyond that there are materials to buy and use, travel expenses for shows ( the way we actually turn whistles most at )

It goes on and on,  but be assured that when you purchase whistles it is PLOWED back into your favorite reading subjects !!!!

yeah, still thinking ( or shall I say smarting over ) about the rarest whistles–the ones that got away !!!

There's that double ended one, the ring whistle and oh another ring whistle…

Then there was that outstanding extractor whistle of pure silver and oh that Uneedit whistle from South America…

A wonderful speaking tube whistle, and couple of shorter speedwell double tube whistles !!!

Even the smaller angled two tube by DeCourcy… and of course that fantastic horse shaped vesta that was four inches long and went for a thousand dollars

Can't leave out the 1860 stevens tube shaped whistle and Swaine with ivory mouthpiece…

Maybe I will have to continue this tomorrow again ???

Oh and that railway Pringle….ratz …..

the rarest whistles, are the ones that get away don't you think ??

Take for example the Maidstone beaufort that came up for auction years ago. It was in need of a little restoration as the hollow knop top was dark grey to blackish. The rest of the body was dark silverish. I still have the picture. It went for under 200 dollars because I was too chicken to bid on it. There is a perfect example of another one on page 33 of More Whistles by Gilchrist.

It had ( has ) a mouthpiece too, not like most beauforts that just end at the bottom of the whistle. This one was cast. Found out later it was made by Dowler and of course very rare. However even more rare now that it went somewhere else !!

Then there was that round with the two windows — in fact two of them !! And they both went to the same buyer. Pre 1900, unusual curved openings, perhaps made by Linegar even. One had a drain hole for saliva and the other didn't. Heavy brass. I still have the pictures….

Recently missed out on a 1908 siren that went to the same buyer that got the Maidstone, albeit 5 years later. I waited for many years to see one come up for auction and came in second cause it went very hiiiiiigh !!! Great knop on the side instead of the top. It had an open top too. You can see it in More Whistles.

Loved this simple brass dog whistle with a finial top. Haven't seen another since. I have pictures still of the siren and the dog whistle

beginning to see a pattern here ??

1) we remember everything about the whistles we miss………….
2) have pictures still
3) see them in books too
4) haven't seen any more

I can go on and on….maybe I will tomorrow….
 

when you punch in Porteous whistles you come up with an old blog of ours that asked some relavent questions about him, now known as Richard Porteous. We left it 'as is' and then added that the May SPOTLIGHT of 2013 answered most of the frustrating questions raised there.

That is the nice thing about the internet. One can make changes and update things easily for everyone to reference. When written in printed form they are hard to get back to of course to make needed corrections aren't they ??

On the other  hand ones can make guesses or outright assumptions — publish them on the internet and they get repeated over and over again because they are posted on the internet too. Not a great recipe for accurate information.

Errata like Porteous first appearing on whistles made by Stevens or saying that Porteous was an engineer or … well, it certainly is a far cry from well done research and credible resources. — you know — with recorded and verifiable bibliography.

It takes time, money and effort to PRINT — well reliably anyway….

saw an escargot on eBay yesterday….

The interesting thing was that although it is new, it actually said on it Alfred DeCourcy — stamped right on it !!! Wow !! Who makes these ?????????? DeCourcy stopped making whistles almost a hundred years ago !!! So how does this happen ???

AND then I see another White Star Line round whistle that claims to be made by Auld, who also stopped making whistles a hundred years ago. Bought out by Hudson — why don't they speak up ???

Now, the first time I saw a round like this there was this flat out lying introduction about it coming from a pursor who collected nautical items and was letting go of his private collection and I even saw one sell for hundreds of dollars. Then I saw the same lies dwindle down in price over a couple years…..Now they are 15 dollars. Hmph…always WAS 15 dollars without the smoke screen.

Then there are those handmade 'antique' brass whistles that were fraudulently sold off as old when they were new and  handmade by the same maker !!! Yup, although different 'old' looking whistles sold off by different sellers they ALL had the same hand with the same watch holding them in the pictures. Smart enough to make some well crafted frauds, but not smart enough to unload them !!!

The point being ?? >>>>>>> watch out for fakes…..caveat emptor

or not…..

In the past we have talked about refining our collecting in order to keep the collection down, curtail bills and keep things simpler for peace of mind.

However, if refined to much then it becomes very restrictive and perhaps no fun anymore.

What about expaaaaaaaansion ??

On the flip side, there is a lot to be said for variety !! Looking into different areas of whistles.

For example, one may be strictly militaria, BUT may like some police issues…

Then there are scouts, cycling, boatswains, round whistles and even more eclectic — corkscrews and extractors. All very interesting and leading into other areas like multichamber, beauforts, dog, flat whistles, and of course this leads into other areas…..

Now, what about rare makers ?? One may want to look into police issues and focus on Hudson, DeCourcy, Barrall, Dowler. All very interesting and leading into Yates, Ward, Stevens and this may lead into…

One may then wonder about different countries beyond the UK like USA, France, Germany, Russia. However this could lead to China, Israel, Argentina and yet lead to…

When one considers dates then another line of collecting developes, or perhaps models of the same design, or materials….

What is the point ?? There is multi layers of depth to this fantastic emerging area of collection, study and classification — we just need to define and redefine what we are looking for to keep it alive and fresh !!!

well, this time I have some questions for YOU !!!

What do you think of the site ??
Should we continue ??

What do you like best ??
What would you change ??

What would you like to see added ??

Over 40,000 page loads now since November….We know you are out there …..🙂

PATENT  is stamped on your whistle, so what does it mean. Well, beyond patent I mean of course…

To begin with it refers to something done to the whistle that the manufacturer is stating for everyone to take note of and that they filed for that patent. Nobody else should be using that technique — whatever it is !!

So lets say that a manufacturer makes a different kind of top ring and then patents it — so what ??

BIG what for us whistle geeks !!! Why so, you ask ?? Well, since you asked….

dating 🙂 Yup, you can now date that whistle very aptly. It may take a little extra effort to address what the patent applies to,   but after a little practice you will deduce it. Then you add in the length of the patent according to the time frame you are in and voila !! A window of production !!!!

Let's try it right now….. that'll help right ??

Say you find a metropolitan GSW ) general service whistle ( — they look just like police ones, but don't say the police force on them ) and on it you see it says PATENT…. For what you stop and think… then you look at the address, hmmmmm it says 13 Barr street. Now you say to yourself that Hudson was at that address from 1889 to 1908 give or take some months. The only patents issued to them during that period was a diaphragm patent — 1898 and a two piece top cap 1908. Then you notice that the top is one piece cast.

There you have it. The patent applies to the 1898 diaphragm and they were at that address for 10 more years so you have dated your UK whistle from 1898 to 1908 or within ten years. Pretty cool huh ?? 

I was wondering if you could tell me how much my whistle is worth ??

Wow, what a landmine this is !!! Why ??Is it  because one never knows the motivation behind it. What might this be ??

1) I just want to sell it and get rich
2) I have had it for 30 years and and hoping it is not only cherished but secretly worth a fortune.
3) It wa given to me by a close friend, relative, celebrity… and I hope they spent a lot on it and it is very valuable.
4) It belonged to my great grandfather who was a guard and perhaps it is an expensive antique now like on the antique roadshow.
5) I don't knopw a thjing about whistles, is it rare ( i.e. priceless )
6) Never seen another like it ( well hardly ever looked and even if I did they aren't very common ) undoubtably worth a mint.

yup, in the end almost aaaaaaalways money….

Here is for those of you who honestly care about your whistle….it isn't about money, BUT—

It may be rare. It may be valuable, or not. It may be unique or common — but what is attached may be priceless.