I am a mandolin player looking for an Irish flute. I have had no experience playing a wind instrument!
I am retired and now have the available time.
Should I begin with a Delrin or wood flute? And if so should I purchase a new or used flute!
Any thoughts are welcome.
As long as it’s a solid flute from a good maker and in good condition, it doesn’t matter if it’s new or used. Some people prefer wood to delrin, but both are fine options. Have you considered playing a tin whistle first? That is a cheaper and easier way to see if you like the whole six-holed instrument thing. While some cheap whistles are rough, you could pick up a cheap whistle for $10, learn a couple tunes using YouTube videos, and go from there. If you want to jump straight into the flute, Tipples are the cheapest option, but if you have the money, something like a Burns folk flute, Forbes delrin, Somers delrin, Shannon delrin, would all be great options. There are plenty other good options in the $300-500 range. For example:
https://www.irishflutestore.com/collections/irish-flutes-all/products/shannon-low-d-polymer-irish-flute-by-walt-sweet
https://www.irishflutestore.com/collections/irish-flutes-all/products/burns-blackwood-folk-flute
I’d go with a delrin keyless flute, they’re easy to look after.
I have 3, a Tony Dixon 3piece key of D, an M&E 3piece key of F, & a Damian Thompson 2piece key of D (with offset holes).
I also have a Tony Dixon one piece ABS key of D flute which plays really well, is lightweight, & a cheaper entry to flute playing.
Any idea how much money you have to spend?
I am not sure what my budget should be to acquire something that will work best for me.
I repeated suggestions to stay away from the cheap flutes advertised on EBay!
What is a reasonable budget for a reputable flute?
Definitely avoid the cheap Ebay flutes. My bandmate was given one, and they are terrible.
For a “non-traditional” flute, Dixon/Tipple are sub-$100. A step up would be around $250 (Shannon delrin, Thompson student model, aluminum Sommers, etc.). Then around $400 for the Folk flute or other delrin options.
I personally have never played a Dixon, so no tips there from me. The Tipple is a good flute but requires a “refined” embouchure (at least that’s how mine is, though keep in mind my embouchure is not super). If I were to be picking a flute for a beginner, I would look at the Thompson student model or Shannon delrin. Or the Folk flute if the person had the money. Honestly all great options.
Two more suggestions:
http://www.hamiltonflutes.com/Practice_Flutes.html
https://www.flutesbyatube.com/home
Thanks for all the responses.
Much appreciated!
http://www.copleyflutes.com/catalog.html
These are widely thought to be good flutes. I’ve played them nearly a couple of decades. This is an example of what’s out there, anyhow. A good place to begin. A good idea is to buy the best flute you can afford. I prefer wood to delrin, but delrin is good enough.
Let me add that there is something to be said for purchasing a new flute as one’s first flute, since if anything needs adjusting etc, the maker will do it for you.
Thanks Jim!
There is a used wood flute which is being verified by the flute maker presently which is expensive though!
They want 1000 for it but apparently it is pristine and hasn’t been played much.
I am a musician able to read music well and improvise in Jazz. I am just hesitant to jump into an expensive instrument. I guess I could resell it. But some suggest wood if it just doesn’t do it for me! I feel that seems to be an unscientific bias searching through this forum!
I am used to high quality string instruments with no polymers as yet!!
All further thoughts are welcome.
Thanks for your posts.
Getting a working embouchure will take you months and a good deal of patience, odds are. If it were me and I had your musical background and ability I would go for the best new wooden flute I could afford. The thing is that flute can become a consuming passion, and you may want something good before too long. The mistake a lot of newbies make is to go for something cheap, relatively unplayable, and hard to sell. Some of us have played just about everything out there and can give you particular advice about specific flutes, FWIW. You can contact us by private message. You might also consider whether you want keys. What music do you wish to play?
Don’t confuse wood with quality here. There are lousy wood flutes and great polymer* flutes, and lousy polymer* flutes and great wood flutes. And probably more lousy wood flutes at the bottom end of the market…
*Or other non-wood materials, e.g. ebonite.
I want to add that wooden flutes, while not as carefree as delrin, are still easy to care for. The chief thing is to humidify them when it gets dry (e.g. central heating) which, in a pinch, can be done by putting the flute and a damp cloth in a plastic bag. You would want a hygrometer. These are cheap and accurate enough. Flute goes beautifully with mandolin, IMO.
The forum doesn’t authorize me to send a PM!
I guess I’m not a good enough flute player yet!
I promise to improve if I warrant having a flute! 
Also, I know there are flute and there are flutes!
Sort like the string instruments!
Jim, It will be difficult to play mandolin flute duets with myself!
Thanks once again for coming forth with your support.
Greetings from a fellow mandolin player, who has been transitioning to flute in the past few years (while not giving up mandolin)!
There is nothing scientific about the wood vs. synthetic question, other than the slight additional care requirements of a wooden flute, namely humidity control and swabbing out after playing. For some folks it’s a question of whether they want to deal with that additional care, or treat a flute as basically indestructible. For many of us, like me, it’s purely aesthetics.
I’ve worked my way up into very fine musical instruments over the years, all made of wood: mostly guitars and more recently mandolin and octave mandolin. High-end stuff. When I decided to attempt learning “Irish” flute, I just couldn’t bring myself to start on a synthetic one. I like the look of wood and the way it feels under my fingers.
So my first flute purchase was an expensive one – a blackwood keyless Windward flute, purchased new (around $1,600 at the time, they’re a lot more expensive now). When I decided I wanted keys, I bought a secondhand Aebi 8-keyed flute in Cocus wood, a nearly “unobtainium” material these days, that I absolutely love. A big part of it is how well it plays, but I also enjoy the color of the wood, the feel under my fingers, and the historical association with wooden 19th Century instruments.
So wood vs. synthetic, used vs. new, it’s all your decision. You can get a good starting flute under $500 in Delrin. If you don’t want to spend much for an entry level wooden flute I can recommend the Casey Burns folk flute. A friend has one and she likes it. If you have more money to spend, don’t hesitate to get one of the better-known “name” brands in a wooden flute. That’s what I did, and even though I eventually sold the Windward because the Aebi was a better fit for my embouchure, I’m not sorry I took that path. Good luck on the journey!
Love the help offered to a newbie ! Great site for information.
Now I notice folks spend a bit of time on embouchure, and that’s commendable. But, and here I defer to super expert exhibition of style, posture really does matter.
Because it does!
Not only for TW, but even more so for the transverse flute. You can get really sore shoulder/arm problems from bad posture. If a right handed person, by all means push your left arm out a wee bit more than you find yourself doing at the start. There are two main left hand holds on the flute, you can chose which best suits your reach, but in either case giving your chest room to expand when you inhale is essential.
Now the wise choice of a first instrument is always going to be a basic student model, I chose Hammy Hanilton’s student model having made several PVC flutes and mastered them on simple folk tunes. IOW I did more than due research before choosing.
Why is the Hammy better to start? 1. it has a super embouchure cut into the head, 2. it is LOUD all the way around, and last, 3. because it is a cylinder design requiring more finger stretch, it makes later progress miles easier. IOW you have gotten the Hammy reach to master almost anything else that may come along.
Don’t take my word for it, ask around before committing to buy your first flute.
I’ll get me hat!
I finally chose and purchased an Irish Flute!
An earlier Windward used keyless D flute which has been recently overhauled by the original flute maker. It was pretty much un played by the owner but well taken care of. All your help was instrumental! in helping me move forward and finally jump into the wind driven musical world. I am sure I will find it difficult but engaging. Any thoughts which could facilitate my learning process would we most welcome?
Teachers in the Ottawa, Ontario region? Online stuff? Books Etc.
I spoke to the Windward builders Forbes and Yola directly during the buying process and they were so kind, wonderful and truly supportive and amazing.
Once again thanks for all your support.
I wish you all a healthy and Happy 2020.
A lesson or two at the beginning to learn how to hold the flute properly can save you a lot of time and trouble. Patience will be your friend. When, after a month or two, you realize that flute is not for you and you will never get a reliable sound, know that we have been there, too. Embouchure, for me, really came online at about nine months. It improves for the rest of your life. The way out of many problems that arise is improving your embouchure. Search on ‘long tones.’ I don’t know what music you are playing on the mando, but if it’s old time, bluegrass, or ITM, playing the same tunes on the flute can be a joy. And yes ask us your questions.
I think you have to post at least three different threads to pm someone. If I were you I’d post a new thread or two in the next couple of days and you will be good to go. The subject you are on could have many separate questions.
As for your comment asking if $1000 is too much for a used flute it, really depends on the maker. $1000 for a used Olwell in good condition is a $1000 you will see again if you choose to give up the flute and take up the fugelhorn. While with some other makers it may not make as much sense.
Flutes from a maker with a long waiting list will sometimes retail used at a higher price than if you purchased from the maker himself.
As a newbie you can ask the forum and get a decent answer. I know it feels awkward to name names, but many of us have had experience with many different maker’s flutes and can give you opinions.