why does oiling a flute improve its responsiveness?

The Chiff & Fipple Irish Flute on-line community. Sideblown for your protection.
cac
Posts: 121
Joined: Sat Jun 18, 2016 6:47 pm
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Tell us something.: Simple system wooden flutes, keyed and keyless. xxxxxx xxxxxx xxxxxx xxxxxx xxxxxx xxxxxx xxxxxx xxxxxx
Location: Ontario, Canada

why does oiling a flute improve its responsiveness?

Post by cac »

I've only owned 6 wooden flutes, but with each of these there was/is a marked improvement in ease of playing/responsiveness after oiling. This improvement was temporary and only lasted for the first playing session after the oiling. My practice is to oil the flute with almond oil and let it sit a day before playing it. I sometimes swab the oiled flute out before playing it and sometimes don't. Why should this oiling have the effect that it does? All of these flutes except one had/have a highly polished bore and I wouldn't think the surface would be smoother with a light sheen of oil (with possible imperfections).
User avatar
plunk111
Posts: 1522
Joined: Thu Jul 19, 2007 3:02 pm
Please enter the next number in sequence: 1
Location: Wheeling, WV

Re: why does oiling a flute improve its responsiveness?

Post by plunk111 »

My guess (and it's only a guess) is that the oil briefly seals the "micro leaks" that result from the joints (and maybe the pads if it is a keyed flute). It would be interesting if your "experiment" could be performed on a keyless, one-piece flute. I should mention that I haven't noticed this after I oil my flutes, btw, but I never thought to check.

Pat
Pat Plunkett, Wheeling, WV
psychodonald
Posts: 355
Joined: Thu Jun 29, 2006 8:37 pm
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Tell us something.: Very much enjoy all flutes, bagpipes and whistles. I'm an older player; however, an active learner. I take current lessons from an Irish Flute tutor, a Boehm Flute tutor and a Highland Bagpipe tutor. I'm a great believer in lessons and without the assistance of a tutor, I find that I would be repeating the same mistakes over and over again, making me proficient in poor music.
Location: U.S.A.

Re: why does oiling a flute improve its responsiveness?

Post by psychodonald »

I have had exactly the same experience with both a key less boxwood and a 6 keyed boxwood flute. It happens after every oiling and lasts for about one session. Like Pat, I've assumed that the oiling fills whatever micro cracks or imperfections that might be in the tube. Also oil the tenons and that may make a better seal and account for the difference, don't know. I protect the pads from any oil on the keyed flute, so I'm quite certain it isn't the pads. I've had this experience using different kinds of oils, I now use Bore Doctor Oil. My teacher has told me that she has also had the same experience with her black wood keyed flute; have no idea what kind of oil she uses?? Whatever the reason, it is kind of cool because I almost sound decent for a brief period of time. :D
Kade1301
Posts: 167
Joined: Fri Mar 02, 2018 4:44 am
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Tell us something.: I've been trying to learn the recorder for about 5 years now and want to add a new instrument (tin whistle) to my repertoire. I hope with only 6 holes life will be a bit easier... (John Sheahan's Marino Casino in the Gaiety theatre has something to do with it - whereas my head knows that 40 years of practice is the reason why it sounds so good, I'm still hoping...)
Location: France
Contact:

Re: why does oiling a flute improve its responsiveness?

Post by Kade1301 »

cac wrote:... All of these flutes except one had/have a highly polished bore and I wouldn't think the surface would be smoother with a light sheen of oil (with possible imperfections).
I think it's about surface smoothness - my recorders sound best when sopping wet.
Last edited by Kade1301 on Wed May 16, 2018 5:36 am, edited 1 time in total.
will marshall
Posts: 25
Joined: Wed Mar 05, 2014 8:53 am
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Location: Yorkshire

Re: why does oiling a flute improve its responsiveness?

Post by will marshall »

I wonder if there is a touch of psychology here...an expectation of a better sound from a newly oiled flute allied to a sense of virtue at having carried out the task. I say this because of a parallel experience as a player of sackbut (trombone). When it has had one of its twice-yearly polishes, I feel that my sound is smoother and richer for a time. The instrument is shinier and therefore I imagine that my sound is better.. and it can only be my imagination. I experience a similar illusion with a newly-oiled flute or recorder. The acid test would be whether or not an objective listener noticed a similar before-and-after effect.
thefolkie2018
Posts: 7
Joined: Tue May 08, 2018 2:49 am
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Tell us something.: I'm a former professional musician sadly retired due to ill health. Sadly selling off a rather beautiful flute. ?Been aware of this forum for years, visited for research etc. You're doing a smashing job
Location: Wales. UK

Re: why does oiling a flute improve its responsiveness?

Post by thefolkie2018 »

It would depend on the woods used for the flute. boxwood has a different tonal and resonant quality to African blackwood, as it wood to ebony, so I'd guess that due to the "soak in point" and micro-fractures in the wood whilst it's being machined, scraped, etc, then sealed, then there'd be a difference in tonal responsiveness. it's like German Plum wood when sealed, it has a real character and presence to it, yet isn't as bright as blackwood, yet the soak in period and character given by oiling is negligible .

I hope it answers your question to a degree.
User avatar
Conical bore
Posts: 505
Joined: Sat Aug 04, 2012 7:12 pm
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Location: Pacific Northwest USA

Re: why does oiling a flute improve its responsiveness?

Post by Conical bore »

It's not something I've noticed, but then I only oil my flute twice a year, and only have the one flute as an example. I do think my flute sounds better after it's been played-in and damp, but it's impossible to tell whether that's the flute sounding better due to a more slick bore, or just the player getting into the groove.

It's difficult to rule out subjective factors like that, when the human aural memory isn't exactly reliable. It's like players of mandolins (my other instrument), who insist that their mandolin sounds better after "breaking in" for a few minutes each practice session. Instrument or player? Impossible to tell, without some objective test, like a before and after recording under controlled conditions.

Maybe a careful recording of a flute before and after oiling would show a brief improvement, but I'm somewhat skeptical until that's demonstrated over a wide enough range of different flutes. If there was an acoustic benefit to a more "sealed" surface, then I think flute players would be using more Delrin, glass, or resin-impregnated wood flutes, and any bare wood bore would be unpopular. That doesn't seem to be the case.
jim stone
Posts: 17185
Joined: Sat Jun 30, 2001 6:00 pm

Re: why does oiling a flute improve its responsiveness?

Post by jim stone »

Possibly a recently oiled flute sheds moisture, which runs off the oily surface,
which improves sound.
hpinson
Posts: 383
Joined: Sat Aug 30, 2003 4:30 pm
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8

Re: why does oiling a flute improve its responsiveness?

Post by hpinson »

If you oil the outside as well as inside, you get a better seal between fingers and tone-holes which seems to give a stronger tone. But it does not last more that a session or so.
cac
Posts: 121
Joined: Sat Jun 18, 2016 6:47 pm
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Tell us something.: Simple system wooden flutes, keyed and keyless. xxxxxx xxxxxx xxxxxx xxxxxx xxxxxx xxxxxx xxxxxx xxxxxx
Location: Ontario, Canada

Re: why does oiling a flute improve its responsiveness?

Post by cac »

Thank you all for sharing your experiences and ideas. I don't have a boxwood flute, but do have a cocobolo one which is relatively porus compared to blackwood. The others are/were blackwood, bloodwood and cocus (which is the only keyed one). All had the effect, which I was careful not to describe as an improvement in the sound. Rather an improvement in the responsiveness and ease of playing (e.g. crossing the break, playing large leaps, speaking, etc.). There is indeed some improvement in sound, but not a huge amount. I always oil the outside of the flute as well and will be try an experiment of oiling just the outside to see if the improved seal is a factor. I do notice that the moisture seems to sit in little 'balls' on top of the oiled surface rather than running along the bore, so there may be something to Jim's suggestion. I have a delrin flute as well and will try oiling the bore sometime. Thanks again for the replies. Chet

r
SteveB
Posts: 132
Joined: Thu Jan 02, 2003 6:00 pm
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Tell us something.: I am a flute player. I play ITM pretty much exclusively. Like to browse and occasionally post on flute related discussions
Location: Toronto

Re: why does oiling a flute improve its responsiveness?

Post by SteveB »

I suspect that a freshly oiled flute plays better for the same reason that a newly washed car runs better.
User avatar
Blayne Chastain
Posts: 614
Joined: Fri Dec 21, 2001 6:00 pm
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 10
Location: Colorado
Contact:

Re: why does oiling a flute improve its responsiveness?

Post by Blayne Chastain »

SteveB wrote:I suspect that a freshly oiled flute plays better for the same reason that a newly washed car runs better.
Steve - You beat me to it! :)

That said, Desi Seery used to oil his Delrin flutes for the same reason.
User avatar
ancientfifer
Posts: 277
Joined: Thu Dec 18, 2008 4:27 pm
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 10
Location: Fort Collins, CO

Re: why does oiling a flute improve its responsiveness?

Post by ancientfifer »

I do an oil “bath” and thorough cleaning a couple times a year. But I keep a slightly “oily” cloth in my flute case and occasionally give the flute a quick wipe down, inside and out, for all the same reasons above, before a particularly loud or high energy session when I want to hear myself, be heard and to play efficiently with a little extra flair.
ancientfifer is the chiffer formerly known as fifenwhistle (Dec. 2008-January 2014)
Avatar Photo: Colonial Williamsburg Fifes and Drums, July 4th Parade 1976, broadcasted live nationally on CBS.
User avatar
Kirk B
Posts: 731
Joined: Fri May 08, 2009 6:33 am
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 12
Location: Pittsburgh, PA US

Re: why does oiling a flute improve its responsiveness?

Post by Kirk B »

I’m siding with Will, Steve, and Blayne on this one. I’ve also noticed that my flute sounds better when I play it while sitting on the loo, but I think that has more to do with acoustics than psychology.
User avatar
oleorezinator
Posts: 1625
Joined: Mon Dec 29, 2003 1:21 am
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Tell us something.: I love uilleann pipes I love tin whistles I love flutes I love irish music I love concertinas I love bodhrans
Location: Behind the anthracite and shale curtain.

Re: why does oiling a flute improve its responsiveness?

Post by oleorezinator »

Oiling delrin? What do the almond futures look like?
Also I have a gorgeous bridge fer sale..........
Information is not knowledge.
Knowledge is not wisdom.
Wisdom is not truth.
Truth is not beauty. Beauty is not love.
Love is not music. Music is the best.
- Frank Zappa
Post Reply