Ruairi Glasheen

During the first lockdown in March 2020 I took it upon myself to take the extra time indoors to make my own bodhrán tippers. I have been customising and adapting tippers for years by adding my own grips, sanding and treating the wood, and even gluing the wood dowels to increase tension and durability. I’m delighted to finally have designed two tippers which really satisfy my needs as a player, and to have made a batch to share with you all.

Generally, I don’t like having lots of different tippers, and I would describe both these two designs as all-rounders. The RG HotRod tipper has more crunch and baseness whilst the RG CoolRod is more sensitive and will give you a crisper sound and more articulate stroke.

When I’m playing, practicing or teaching for hours at a time, it’s important for the tipper to feel snug and comfortable in my hand. These tippers feel great to play which is also incredibly important to me in addition to making a beautiful rich sound from my bodhrán.

Each tipper is made with my own hands using carefully sourced and high-quality materials. Solid wood dowels which have been thrice treated to improve their strength and durability, and fine Italian suede which is a soft but strong natural grip.