Bodhran Tippers Of The World-Part 2

A few months ago I asked the bodhran community to send me photos of their tipper collections, big or small.

The goal was simply to share our mutual passion for bodhran and possibly even enlighten others about tippers from around the world.

I figured I’d get a good response, but I didn’t anticipate quite so many entries so I’ve had to break the album down into several parts to showcase the collections best.

So, here it is, Part 2 of the ‘Tippers Of The World’ album.   If you’ve sent me your photo, but don’t see it here or  in Part 1 don’t worry. It will be featured in an upcoming instalment.

Enjoy the wealth of information shared here, but please don’t feel like you need to rush out and buy twenty new tippers. Many of the larger collections have grown over the years, but all you need is one really good tipper to get started.

With that said, if you’re looking for a new tipper I suspect these collections and accompanying descriptions will be extremely helpful.

For a larger view of each collection click on the individual photos.

Drum On!

~ Michelle

                                    Part 2

Crieff, Scotland, now living in France

Sweden

• 1 & 2 – Maker/wood unknown, both ~ 9 inches. Came with a drum.
• 3, 4 & 5 –  Ebony. Made for me by a friend here in Nova Scotia. ~ 9.25 inches (3 & 4) and ~9.5 inches (5)
• 6 – Made by Brian’s Bodhran Beaters in the US. Wood unknown but it’s very lightweight. ~ 10.5 inches – Great for triplets!
• 7 & 8 – Effects tippers by Christian Hedwitschak in Germany. #7 has thin skewers tapered at the end for a nice soft sound. #8 has thicker beech skewers for a higher, louder more clicky sound.
• 9 – Split tipper by Christian Hedwitschak in Germany. Made of ebony, it has a beech centre at the split end and has a nice subtle click sound. ~ 9.5 inches. Great for triplets too.
• 10 & 11 – Falconwood Tippers in The Netherlands. Not sure of the wood as I bought them secondhand, but I think #10 is ebony and #11 is snakewood. ~ 9.25 inches. They are very thin and light making them very fast and quiet if needed. I use these a lot when I want to play, but don’t want to disturb the rest of the household.
• 12 – Christian Hedwitschak in Germany. Snakewood ~ 9.25 inches. This one is really fast and light.
• 13 – Pretty rainbow laminate. Unknown maker ~ 9 inches. I wish I knew who made this one, I love it! Great solid sound, but not too heavy. This one, along with one of the CH effect tippers came with my drum. (purchased used from another BEPM student).
• 14, 15, 16 & 17 – Made by Alan Kirkpatrick in the US. #14 is rosewood ~ 10.5 inches, #15 is laminate ~ 10.5 inches. #16 is rosewood ~ 10 inches – this one arrived broken neatly in two (glued together by Hubby, but I doubt it will hold). I contacted the maker asking for suggestions on how to repair it if possible and he immediately sent me a replacement (#14). Great customer service! #17 is ebony ~ 9.5 inches and my current favorite. It reminds me of Michelle’s famous “birthday tipper”.

 Valerie Turner – Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada

Wales, UK

Hi Michelle, no idea where most of them came from.

The ones I actually use are the ones on top of the wrapper in the middle. namely a 

• Cormac Byrne Bodhrod
• Seamus O’Kane weighted fiddle bow type
• Couple of home made hotrods, one single ended and one double, weighted with a brass rod through the middle.

There’s a few good ones in there, but most are really kindling.

My favourite thing there is the old Test Tube stand from a school chemistry lab. It still smells of “Chemicals”.

Also included a picture of my Bodhran Collection, well most of them, there’s a few others scattered about the house.

Cheers,

Mike Quinn – Wales, UK

Oregon, USA

Left to right:

1. Glen Stout
2. Home made fiddle bow
3. Rod
4. Bamboo skewers
5. Bamboo skewers
6. Brian’s JJ Speed Beater
7. Merlin’s key
8. Christian Hedwitschak snakewood
9. Christian Hedwitschak ebony
10. Click
11. Hi-hat
12. Chili pepper brush
13. Mexican brush
14. Alfonso laminate
15. The Unknown Tipper that just showed up one day.

By the way, the Hedwitschak ebony (ball ends) is perfect for the beginner as it makes triplets super easy.

Tippers 11, 12 & 13 have foam pencil grips. Tippers 6,8 & 9 have gel pen grips.

Joy Hagler – Oregon, USA

New South Wales, Australia

 

Hi Michelle,

Wendy Flannery from beautiful Lennox Head, New South Wales, Australia here.

Thought I may as well share my tippers with you as well.

So here they are 🙂 left to right:

North Carolina, USA

Robert Boer – North Carolina, USA

Minnesota, USA

Starting from the bottom:

• Beater that came with my Pakistan drum
• Rosewood by Roosebeck, Pakistan, ordered off eBay

The rest are self-made:

• double ended felt (cherry wood)
• small single end felt (East Indian rosewood)
• “stick” (Brazilian cherry)
• bamboo skewers

Patrick Conroy – Minnesota, USA

California, USA

Lindsay Stark’s Collection#1

• 1. Cocobolo bell end 9”
• 2. Paduk-ball end. I really liked this one, so asked for a heavier one (it was my dogs favorite too)
• 3. Same tipper in Cocobolo

• 4. I sent Brian the paduk one to copy before Dave sent me another. Also in Cocobolo
• 5. Brian modified what I sent and made this one. It’s a bit shorter, thicker and made of kingwood
• 6. Purple Heart, Bell n Ball 9” 2 oz.
• 7. Old Growth Walnut (200 yr old tree, under water 150 yrs) 9” 1.4 oz. shows that all are 1 of a kind

• 8. Cuyler’s Ebony, T-Rod 9.5” .90 oz.

• 10. Snakewood FW-02 SW 22.5 cm
• 11. Kingwood FW-02 KW 22 cm

• 12. bbq skewers ½ end cap and shrinkwrap with o ring. Sanded/Rounded ends 9”
• 13. 6 craft rods. Glued in the middle, drum stick wrap, sanded and rounded to protect drum skin. 9”

Psychedelic Tipper Wrap

Alberta, Canada

To view Part 1 of the Bodhran Tippers Of The World Collection Click Here

Check Out Part 3 Here

To view Part 4 Click Here

To view Part 5 Click Here

If you have any of the tippers featured in the collections or want to share insight that might be useful to your fellow drummers please leave a comment below.

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