StarBox: Willie McCallum

He’s one of the most accomplished competitive pipers in history and, fresh off winning another Uist & Barra Championship, shows no sign of rallentando.

But what does this piping magician haul around in his pipe case? Should it be as stuffed full as his home in Bearsden, Scotland, could well be? Or, like McCallum’s humble and self-effacing personality, are his house and pipe box lean and light?

As part of our ongoing StarBox series, we asked him to list every single item in his pipe case, and here’s what he came back with:

– Bagpiper Flight Case (Bagpiper Case normally)

– Peter Henderson bagpipe c.1893

– McCallum McC2 pipe chanter 2007

– Bannatyne hide WMC bag

– Bannatyne Dri-Flo Moisture Control

– Tube water trap

– MacPhee chanter reed

– Ezeedrone tenor reeds

– Ezeedrone Moisture Absorbent Bass Reed

– Two Tone Protector Caps

– Tone Protector Reed Case

– Reed case with MacPhee chanter reeds

– Spare Ezeedrone drone reeds

– Two McC2 chanters

– Chanter tape

– PTFE tape

– Waxed yellow and black hemp

– Kintyre practice chanter

– Scalpel

– Scissors

– Reed poker

– Emery paper

– Chanter gouger

– Hand reamer

– Swiss Army knife

– Tuner

– Bag zip lubricant

– Screwdriver

– O-ring

– Rubber band

– Dental elastics

– Allen key

– Beeswax

– Chanter tube

– Cork

– Vaseline

– Silver cloth

– Pen

– Towel

Our thanks to Willie McCallum for taking the time and the pics to share what’s in his case.

Stay tuned to pipes|drums for future StarBox features from the world’s best players!