Chiff and Fipple Forums

I have brand new two generation C whistles that I want to make so that they can be tuned, because i need it in few songs with my band and they are out of tune. I tried to put the heads of the flute in hot water to separate it from the body ( as i did several times in past with older Generation whistles), but I can't.
It seems that the newer Generation whistles have a much stronger glue.
Could someone give me some advice on how to separate the head of whistle from body?
Has anyone done this on the new Generation whistles so far?
TIA, Marin

I found this video on YouTube where it is done.
I think that trick is quite basic, so maby that is what you already have tried.
https://youtu.be/ACM9yoMjG5k

In the old days (affects quavering voice), we did a similar trick but we poured the boiling water over the metal tube as it leaves the mouthpiece. The aim was not to heat the mouthpiece, just conduct enough heat up the tube to soften the glue. Rotate the tube as you pour the water.

But if that got you nowhere, and sometimes that was the case, you would run a small flame around the same area. The ideal small flame would be a spirit lamp because they burn clean. But apparently not all homes have a spirit lamp these days. (Must have been a flutemaker thing....) So you could substitute a cigarette lighter or even a candle. The candle will leave an awful lot of carbon but that will mostly wipe off! Again, rotate the tube in the flame and don't take the flame too close to the head or it will leave an ugly scar.

Once you have the tube out, you need to clean the glue off the end of it. Pouring boiling water over the glued area and wiping with a cloth should get most of it.

Sometimes you find it hard to convince the tube to go back into the head. If that happens, sand inside the head socket with some sandpaper wrapped around a stick. Be careful to avoid sanding under the blade! But I suspect that mostly happens to old whistles whose heads have shrunk over the years, probably due to the plasticiser volatilising.

You could could try the Joannie Madden smackdown method.

viewtopic.php?p=1158721#p1158721

Thanks Terry, i tried your suggestion with lighter flame and that worked, but very,very hard. Seems Generation use now excellent glue ...
@danish piper, thanks for your suggestion also, but she used same method as i used, but now without sucess.
Take care, Marin

A combination of the heating method along with dropping it down another tube will usually work, and if you’re lucky it won’t crack.


Just a side note- Oak C whistles have the head removable right out of the box, and are usually better than most recent Gens. I’m baffled as to why Generation glues the heads on.