i dont know if youve got your answer for this question, but i figured i'd answer it for anyone else with the same question. i have been playing the pipes for about 6 years now, im grade three and i think ive figured out mainly what works and is good. deifinitly hide bags, preferably Gannoway hide bags. sure you have to season it every now and then, but i think it's a small price to pay for not having to deal with overly complicated water traps and playing what feels like a beach ball with baseball bats sticking out of it. so go for hide im behind them 100% and no one can say otherwise...

Hey. first of all i would recomend a synthetic bag for a beginer as they are virtualy maitainence free. And I would get ez-drone reeds. Depending on how big you are and If you are still growing i would get a full size bag. The synthetic bag and ez-drone reeds should be reliable and easy to maintain in comparison to a hide bag and cane reeds.