Help, bamboo is cracking up!

[sverretheflute]

Just bought a bamboo arabian (egyptian) flute (Kawala) from my irakian hair dresser. It's really fun to learn to play. But it's cracking up around the mouth piece even before I thought about oiling it. Help... It's dry and cold in Norway these days, and I guess that contributes.

1. The cracks are not all the way through yet. Is there any kind of glue that I can use? I have bee wax, but I guess that is not the stuff that prevent a crack to widen. I could use duct tape as I did with my low D bamboo whistle as it cracked up before a christmas concert. But duct tape is not a favorite decoration for a brand new arabian flute... Is there any nicer tape as good as the duct tape to recommend?

2. I've learned earlier at this forum that peanut oil is a good thing to use. On a sunday, that's hard to find, and I want to oil it as soon as possible. Could I use olive oil, or is it a certain reason to use peanut oil?

3. And if I should glue it, could I oil it before gluing, or is it better to first glue it dry and then oil?

Thanks for any advice!

sverretheflute

[highwood]

Its hard to glue oily things, if not impossible so do not oil first.

More humidity might slow down/stop the cracking.
I've never fixed a splitting bamboo flute so I don't have any more advice - just don't oil the cracks!

[Kypfer]

On my bamboo pipe (whistle) I've cut a groove completely around the instrument into which I've wound some thread, thus pulling the crack together. The thread was then varnished (laquered) to completely seal it and protect it from damage. Prior to this, I filled the crack with beeswax, most of which squeezed out when the thread was bound, but the crack is completely sealed and should not re-occur in the same location.

If you wish to use glue, DO NOT use any wax or oil first, this would most likely prevent the glue from sticking properly. Also, if you wish to bind the repair as I did, any glue you do use should set slowly enough to allow the thread to be fully tied.

Any oil will be better than none at all in an emergency, even cooking oil, but repair the crack first. When you get some "proper" oil, it will clean out any old oil anyway, so there should not be a long-term problem provided you do not wait too long before using the "correct" oil. Just don't use anything that tastes nasty !!

Good luck.

[sverretheflute]

Its hard to glue oily things, if not impossible so do not oil first.

More humidity might slow down/stop the cracking.
I've never fixed a splitting bamboo flute so I don't have any more advice - just don't oil the cracks!

Thanks highwood! I understand I should get some glue. The question folks, is what kind of glue do I use for bamboo? Something not too toxic, I guess. New cracks will probably appear later, after I've glued and oiled the flute. Maybe duct tape is the solution after all...

[sverretheflute]

On my bamboo pipe (whistle) I've cut a groove completely around the instrument into which I've wound some thread, thus pulling the crack together. The thread was then varnished (laquered) to completely seal it and protect it from damage. Prior to this, I filled the crack with beeswax, most of which squeezed out when the thread was bound, but the crack is completely sealed and should not re-occur in the same location.

If you wish to use glue, DO NOT use any wax or oil first, this would most likely prevent the glue from sticking properly. Also, if you wish to bind the repair as I did, any glue you do use should set slowly enough to allow the thread to be fully tied.

Any oil will be better than none at all in an emergency, even cooking oil, but repair the crack first. When you get some "proper" oil, it will clean out any old oil anyway, so there should not be a long-term problem provided you do not wait too long before using the "correct" oil. Just don't use anything that tastes nasty !!

Good luck.

Thanks a lot, Kyper! This was very useful. Bee-wax combined with thread seems to be a better alternative than glue. I would like to try this. But I'm not sure if I dare to cut in bamboo.

Three questions you may answer.
Was it a special kind of thread you used?
The varnish, something used for furniture should be good enough?
What do you consider to be "correct" oil?

Thanks for good luck!

sverretheflute

[Tonehole]

Sverre -

now that your bamboo has cracked, it will keep on trying to crack with time.

Many of the cheaper bamboo types aren't seasoned bamboo which has been left to dry and stabilise. They usually crack within a year or two of owning.

Your climate might be responsible - are you sealing your flute in a plastic bag with a humidity control pellet?

For the glue, you need something similar to Copydex. It has to be a flexible moving glue. Avoid superglue and woodglue completely.



After applying it, bind the crack again, at least 3 cm either way. You might need to bind the rest of the bamboo to prevent it cracking. The thread you need is hard to locate - I use the wax impregnated linen thread (avoid cotton). You can improvise with a rayon or plastic type binding thread too. There is no need to cut into the bamboo structure if you can wrap it externally with copydex underneath to stop the thread movement whilst you're working on binding.

[sverretheflute]

Sverre -

now that your bamboo has cracked, it will keep on trying to crack with time.

Many of the cheaper bamboo types aren't seasoned bamboo which has been left to dry and stabilise. They usually crack within a year or two of owning.

Your climate might be responsible - are you sealing your flute in a plastic bag with a humidity control pellet?

For the glue, you need something similar to Copydex. It has to be a flexible moving glue. Avoid superglue and woodglue completely.



After applying it, bind the crack again, at least 3 cm either way. You might need to bind the rest of the bamboo to prevent it cracking. The thread you need is hard to locate - I use the wax impregnated linen thread (avoid cotton). You can improvise with a rayon or plastic type binding thread too. There is no need to cut into the bamboo structure if you can wrap it externally with copydex underneath to stop the thread movement whilst you're working on binding.

Thank you, Tonehole! This was also very useful!

My arabian flute is made by a local craftsman in Egypt, bought by my hairdresser and brought to Norway. I guess it's stored for a while by the guy I bought it from.

My pakistan/indian low D whistle which I LOVE in spite of warnings against cheap whistles, did crack up within 1-2 years, yes… Maybe both would crack anyway, oiled or not. The mouthpiece which get warm and humid and then dry again, is the problem with both, not so much the rest of the flutes.

The pakistan whistle has binding made by the maker, but not at the mouth piece of course, where it's cut in half.

No, I do not keep my flutes in a plastic bag with pellets. They are kind of part of the furniture, and used often, at times every day. But maybe I should consider the bag. The pellets, are they easy to find?

Thanks for advice for glue. It seems that you consider copydex better than bee-wax. I will try to find the tread. Maybe some maritime shops offer such threads.

sverretheflute

[Feadoggie]

Here's a couple of links that illustrate flute binding.

http://www.clintgoss.com/flutopedia.com/binding.htm

http://paleoplanet69529.yuku.com/topic/ ... PtHd2-XIl9

Silk thread also works and is available from shops that sell fly rod making supplies. Other threads will work as well.

Feadoggie

[MTGuru]

Just noticed this thread was in the wrong forum (Whistles). Moved. - Mod

[Kypfer]

I'm not sure if I dare to cut in bamboo

... I did this for aesthetic reasons. I did not want the finished binding to be higher than the surrounding bamboo, also it helped keep the binding thread neatly in place. My bamboo still has a natural finish, for that "rustic" look, so getting a binding to lie neatly on the surface was difficult. I used some fine dacron fishing line, all that I had to hand that was strong enough. I completed my repair with some coloured laquer which was built up and sanded to fill the groove. I think the result looks "different" and quite nice, more like a decoration than a repair!

If you do not want to cut a groove, apply some beeswax to the surface where the binding will be. This will help stop the thread slipping whilst you tie it. Any surplus wax can be easily wiped off afterwards.

I'm sure any furniture varnish would be adequate if carefully applied just to the thread. In this instance the lacquer/varnish is only being used to protect the binding thread, not to reinforce the repair. I used some decorative laquer that I had to hand.

I use walnut oil, simply because it is one of the alternatives suggested by Dolmetsch for their recorders ( http://www.dolmetsch.com/recorderoil.htm ) and I have some in the kitchen (and it tastes nice

[brewerpaul]

How long have you had the flute? You might want to give it some time to fully acclimate to your home and then fix the cracks.
I'm thinking that Egypt except near the Nile and Norway in winter are both quite dry. Bamboo gathered by local craftsmen is not always properly dried before it's used, unfortunately.
Binding with thread is good-- be sure to pull it nice and tight. Before you bind it you might want to try to close the cracks with a metal hose clamp placed on either side of the crack:
After you wrap the flute, you could apply cyanoacrylate glue to the windings for even more strength.
You could also apply some wrappings to other areas of the flute even if there are no cracks there. This could help prevent future cracks. Good luck.

[O_Gaiteiro_do_Chicago]

I wouldn't use hose clamps, they might scar the cane the flute is made from. Good old cable ties work great and you just carefully clip them off when done. Before repairing any cracks you need to make a wet chamber to increase the humidity around the flute. Get a PVC tube, cap the bottom and put nearly boiling water in it. Then take the flute and tie a string to it so it suspends from the top of the tube and cap off the top. The trick is to make sure the flute doesnt touch the water at the bottom of the tube. This creates a large amount of humidity and will close the crack. Now get yourself some cable ties and a thing of superglue. Superglue is best because it is NOT flexible. After 6 hours pull the flute out and find the crack, you'll probably notice it closed back up from the humidity. Gently pry the crack open and pour a small amount of superglue into the crack, just enough to fill it. Close up the crack again with cable ties and then hang the flute back in the chamber quickly. Leave it in there another 6 hours and pull it out. Clip off the cable ties and then very carefully with the back of a razor blade scrape off the excess glue. If you desire bind the area(the diagram for doing it was posted above) using upholstery thread, or even fishing line. This method is tried and true and has never failed me. In fact I have one of my main bansuri that was repaired in this manner and I never put the binding on it, the crack has still never opened back up. I learned it from a shakuhachi maker who's used the technique for the past 30 years.

[O_Gaiteiro_do_Chicago]

Actually if you wrap the surface to protect it hose clamps are probably fine. I just know from experience the cane used to make kawla is often soft enough to dent with a fingernail.

[MeMyselfandI]

Just chipping in about the oil, I would be careful with peanut oil, as many people (me included) are highly allergic to peanuts, so I wouldn't dare play and flute/whistle that was oiled with peanut oil at any point in it's previous life. I use almond oil. Also about glue, I don't know anything about this "Copydex" but I do know that E-6000 is a very good, rubbery, adhesive that can be used on almost anything. It's almost like a movable (rubbery, squish-able, but it still sticks nicely) superglue. I don't know, however, the appropriateness of that particular glue for this problem. Besides, it has an odor that could take a while to go away, or it may never go away.

[brewerpaul]

Actually if you wrap the surface to protect it hose clamps are probably fine. I just know from experience the cane used to make kawla is often soft enough to dent with a fingernail.

Thanks-- I meant to mention that.