Pipe making / Foundry

The pipe-making workshop is
the heart of the specific manufactured sound of an organ company

The melted material will be laid in different thickness, therefore just a minimum of planing is necessary. Planing is done by machine, occasionally by hand when hammered material will be used. The planed material is stored for several months before further processing. About 30 steps of manufacture are necessary for each pipe. Handcrafted precision is a decisive factor for facilitating voicing. As with the flue pipes, the reed pipes are made from our own individual scales. Making own pipes is obligatory in the house of Schuke. The direct exchange by a close connection between pipe making and intonation is essential to the sound quality of our organs. The methods of pipe making have remained almost the same over the centuries.

This can be seen best by observing the tools of the pipe maker. Only tin and lead are used for melting different alloys. Additions are not used on principle. Pipes are made with sufficient wall thickness. Pipe making and the experienced knowledge of scaling are the heart of the specific manufactured sound of an organ builder. More than 500 scales for labial and lingual pipes are available in our workshop. These are taken from old instruments or developed for our own style of organ sound.

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