Reeds Flying Goose reeds

[Bobby G]

Never 'eard of 'em. Any good?

 

[Pee Dee]

Never 'eard of 'em. Any good?

Dunno, never tried 'em.

 

[Phil Edwards]

Got a freebie box of 10, first 5 that I've played have been really good/consistent. Always used to play RJS2M, recently found that RJS's had lost their consistency so tried a variety of others and moved to Vandoren Java 2. For me this box of Flying Goose 2's give just as good tone and playability.

Good enough to buy again if the price is right (which I suspect it is, but haven't looked yet)

Phil

 

[neil]

i have a box of flying gooses...as Phil said the consistency is very good...however they tend to sound a little bright (to me anyway), i normally play Java`s....they are amazingly cheap though and certainly not unplayable.

 

[DaveW]

I'm sure my inexpensive, no-name tenor off eBay came with a flying Goose reed.

 

[biker1941]

Never 'eard of 'em. Any good?

Hi Bobby
They are cheap and cheerful, Had one in a box of bits that I bought 25 years ago, It played very well, so I bought a box (10) from Ebay they are made in China and 10 played straight from the box.
rgds
Clive

 

[Bobby G]

Clive, if I read you right you had the original reed for many years before actually trying it? There's a lot to be said for curing a reed for a while but that is a bit extreme.

As it happens, I've found certain reeds that I've had lurking around for a few years ('previously enjoyed' at that) to be very playable - in fact, due to the non-availability in my immediate area of Alexander reeds I've become a bit of a convert to the Vandoren ZZ's having played with a couple I'd had lying around for years.

I've also got, for my soprano, some Buffet Crampon no 3 reeds, about which I know nowt - are they any good? Well, they work fine for me, so yeah, they are good for me at least, but how do they compare to, say, the much-derided Rico orange-box 'lolly sticks'? I can't complain about them at all really, Myatt's were flogging them off at 50p a box a couple of years ago and I ended up getting the last four boxes for a quid, thinking if nothing else I could perform my evil reed-scraping experiments on them, but they are surprisingly playable and very consistent.

 

[daveysaxboy]

Worth buying a box as a back up,there cheap so ya cant go wrong and if your in a hole just wack on 1 of them till your sorted with your main brand again,

 

[Mr Andersson]

Hi people, I ask about Flying Goose reeds cuz I just bought an alto sax & need new reeds. (I don't think the tenor ones I've got are quite right)
Anyway, this thread is 2 & 1/2 years old, so has anyone got any more opinions on Flying Goose?
Or should I just hang the expense & buy some Rico Royals or Vandorens?

 

[kevgermany]

They don't work well for me, too plank like.

 

[jbtsax]

A store owner asked me to try Flying Goose clarinet reeds a few years ago to see if they might be a low cost substitute for Rico reeds supplied with clarinet rentals. All of the reeds were cut without a "heart" in the center and made the clarinet sound like a kazoo. I told him they would be useful to make toothpicks or to start campfires. I don't know if they have improved since then.

 

[Justin Chune]

Rico Royals do it for me.

Jim.

 

[QWales]

I believe these and the RiYin reeds are made by the same company in the same factory in Shanghai. I bought a box of 10 RiYin on Ebay for just over £3 delivered but didn't get on with them.

 

[Nick Wyver]

They're crap. That's all you need to know.

 

[milandro]

They're crap. That's all you need to know.

actually, that's what I thought until I came across some alto reeds in an identical plastic box as some flying goose that I have had before but marked " Shanghai " and they are surprisingly good.

 

[zannad]

Flying Goose? The brightest reeds I've ever tried so far - very consistently bright...as such, in the right contest and setup these can be very useful indeed (not to mention the bargain price).

 

[reaper]

Well let me first say that as I had to give up the saxophone some while ago as my new dalmation couldn't stand it and I was in fear of being serverly chewed when playing, she will tolerate the clarinet though and I play on Flying Goose reeds. About 1 strength down on Vandoren and half a strength down on Rico, very consistant, bright yes but no worse than Rico plasicovers. Best reed case of any reeds as made of clear hard plastic and not the bendy nylon of most makes. A quick circular rub on the back on fine wet and dry after a quick soak in warm water and find them as good as Rico's. As the guy who sells them in the UK says there ok for practice and woodshedding and I get more good one's per box than some other brands.

 

[daveysaxboy]

If they work your sorted.At the price just keep a box lying about for spare.

 

[Wade Cornell]

Purchased a box of Flying Goose here in NZ off Trade me (local Ebay equivalent) from a Chinese fellow who was importing/distributing them. The thickness of the shank differed by up to two millimetres. Absolutely no consistency. I was able to make a few play via using my reed treating kit, but found them simply awful. Poor quality in every sense. You get what you pay for. If one is trying to get bang for bucks on reeds that are primarily for practice I suggest synthetic reeds as they are by far cheaper considering the life of each reed. Generally a fibracell lasts me four to six months with moderate to heavy usage (120 hours +). If you are lucky you might get 20 hours from a cane reed, and there's all the unusable/crap reeds you get in a box as well. Pretty easy to see how a $15 reed that lasts 120 hours stacks up against a $ 10 box with a few reeds that may give maximum 60 hours playing and a lot of time trying to sand, scrape and treat them so that they will work.

I still use cane much of the time for performance, but can’t be bothered when practicing. I just want to pick up the horn and play and not waste time mucking around with reeds. Another benefit for beginners and intermediates is that the synthetic reed gives consistency so that you can work and concentrate on developing embouchure; tone etc. without wondering if you are fighting with the reed, or some other part of your set up. Consistency allows you to progress faster as each time you pick up the horn everything should be equal. There are enough variables already in playing this instrument. Nobody would recommend learning to play by changing mouthpieces every time you pick up your horn, or changing horns. Reeds are not much different. Take advantage of the consistency you can get out of synthetics for learning and then go on your reed quest later. Similar situation for mucking around with mouthpieces when you haven’t got your chops together. Lean to play with a good basic mouthpiece and don’t buy into the idea that you will suddenly sound like (name your favourite player) because you are playing the same set up.

Far more important to eliminate the variables when learning practicing or stretching.

 

[daveysaxboy]

I am the kind who never treats reeds,sanding,cutting etc.If they dont work i put aside and at times they mature and end up working,if not so be it.Still for me the best by far reed i ever used is rico jazz select 2 hard on tenor.I just buy a box and say 4 play great straight out and last a while and sound great.Also use them on sop and alto.