Drones are the easiest to assemble - they only play one note. The pitch depends on the length of the 1/2" pipe, which is the main part of the drone.



Drones (and the chanter) make sound by vibration of the membrane (the plastic bag). With the bag stretched taut around a 3/4" pipe, the 1/2" body pipe is slid inside and contacts the membrane. When air is blown into the 3/4" pipe, it travels up, past the membrane, and into the 1/2" pipe. This causes the membrane to vibrate!



In case that was a bit too brief, an excellent demonstration and assembly video can be found here - kudos to this guy for inspiring me to make my own pipes!



To assemble a drone, cut two small sections of 3/4" pipe and put them on either end of the pipe T. Also cut a long 1/2" section for the main drone piece. Be sure to make this extra long, since when we tune it up we'll be cutting it down.



Try sliding the 1/2" tube into the tee until it's flush with the opposite side, and put some hemp on it where it just begins to enter the tee. This will force the air up into the flush side and make the membrane vibrate.



Now stretch your membrane over the flush side and cap it lightly with the 3/4" coupling. Be sure the membrane has no wrinkles or holes, as these greatly diminish sound quality. Try blowing into the 1/2" part of the tee and slightly adjusting the 1/2" drone length against the membrane until you get a solid drone. You'll know it when you hear it.



If this sounds a bit too loud for your tastes, you can add an additional 3/4" section and a 3/4" cap to the coupling that secured the membrane. I usually cap my drones, but leave the chanter open. This gives an even sound overall.



Now for proper tuning. I made two drones - one tuned to low A, the other an octave above. Grab a guitar tuner (or find a tuner app for your phone) and blow on the pipe to see what frequency we're at. If it's too low, chop off some of the 1/2" drone length to raise the pitch. Small adjustments are needed - as little as 1/4" can change the pitch significantly.



When you've got the tuning exact, chop off just a little bit more - this'll make it tune slightly high, but also means we can tune it with another pipe section. I found that a 3/4" CPVC length around the end works best to tune the drones - simply slide it out to decrease the pitch or bring it back to increase. You can also do some fancy dremeling on the end of the drone to allow air to escape in case you accidentally cover the end (e.g. poke it into the sofa or your leg).

