Hi fluters,
I wonder how many of us are playing old flutes, i.e. antique ones made long before we all were alive, as their main instruments (if such a thing exists among us polyfluticious lunatics). What do they have to offer what others don’t have?
Come on, do tell!
I play a William Hall & Son six key in cocus. Originally it had ivory rings, although I believe that they’ve all been replaced. It’s essentially identical to the Firth, Hall, & Pond six key that Grey Larsen plays and that was the pattern for McGee’s GLP. It’s a great flute. One of Jon C’s refurb jobs. I’ve had it for about three years, I think.
My main and at the moment, only axe is a potentially english, probably 19th centuray wooden keyed flute restored by Jem, its an absolute star, and my only complaint about it is that i cant blaim it for my own faults as a player.
What does it offer that other flutes dont?
History,
Challenge,
A full rack of keys for cheep
that’s why i bought my first antique flute… i got a 6-key boxwood for $350. you have to be kidding me! 
then i got a german flute on ebay and had Jon C restore it… i got lucky and it’s pretty in tune, so i got a blackwood 8-key flute for less than $300. that’s about 10% of the cost of a new one. imagine getting a 90% discount on a new flute.
i just won a william & son 4-key in cocus on ebay, but it hasn’t got here yet… hopefully my lucky streak will continue. but Pat plays a similar one, i believe, as his main flute, so you can ask him.
cheers,
eric
Hi Gabriel,
I play a few antiques. My main go to flute now is a Blackman, London I got from Jon C. I haven’t had it that long but love it.
It just responds nicely to everthing I give it. The rings are beautiful and the low keys respond well. It’s low pitched but I play sharp so plays okay with the head all the way in.
I also have an anonymous Metzlerish flute also from Jon C. that I like but I would like a new head as it is a little quiet even after a year or so adjusting and trying to get more volume. The intonation is really good for an antique even with the slide out a bit. I have trouble with the low C but C sharp is no problem. AL under keys.
Here is an old clip made not long after I got the flute and before I had control of top hand rolls (which only came recently after 14 or so years of playing):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3t-aG1JbC4o&feature=related
My other D is an unlined boxwood Olwell. I prefer the antiques these days but the tuning on the Olwell can’t be beat and take less overall effort. Can relax a bit more on modern flutes if that makes sense but the effort is well worth it with the others. More honk on the Blackman for me a the moment will have to get some up to date clips.
And of course we all know Jon C is the man for you’re antique flute needs, Thank You Jon
Do I really need to say… ? 
No Jem, but I entirely understand you. Mine is great as well. 
Ah, and that Blackman looks nice…
I’ve very recently moved to an antique flute, a six key HY Potter in cocuswood, large hole rudall style. It’s taking a while to get used to the embouchure, very different from the easy one on the average modern flute. I’ll give more details in a few weeks of months, but anyway it’s really lovely.
I regularly play an eight-key William Hall & Son too. A very nice flute that keeps up with three fiddles, a concertina, drum, bouzuki and a whistle player every Thursday night. Here is its twin at the Dayton-Miller collection. Jon called it a train wreck when he first saw it, but he returned it a beauty. Doug.
My main flute is a 4-key Wm Hall with a John Gallagher headjoint. In response to an earlier post - I physically laid mine next to Grey Larsen’s during one of our workshops and the body is identical to his Firth and Pond. His has 6 keys and mine has 4, but the hole sizes and placements and the tube size are all virtually identical. I love this flute (a lot). Not sure if I’ll ever find one I like better, but I AM a “fickle fluter”, so no guarantees! Now if I just had a spare $3000+ for one of John Gallagher’s 6-key R & R models, well…
Pat
hmmm let’s see..they offer… cracks, broken keys, warped bores, strangled tenons, off pitched, unmodern tuning, false pride, denial; i guess they call all that ‘character’.
headaches, heartaches and broken dreams - there should be a country western song about them.
heck apart from that i think they’re great, …almost as good as a modern made one.
SWEETNESS!
When I want something sweet (sounding) I reach for these!
Most contemporary “Irish flutes” are: powerful and rather brash in nature. 
there are plenty sweet sounding modern flutes…but let’s pretend there isn’t (denial)
Hey Rama,
I’ll beg to differ. 
The closest I had found was a Gonzalo Caride and second was a Phil Bleazey. But I never did get to try a Rod Cameron or John Gallagher.
Hi Rama
Can I have your F Prattens then?
All the best
H
http://www.box.net/shared/xsh39ddn71 D H&Mc
http://www.box.net/shared/av4ot966ah F Pratten (buried in song)
sure, can i have your cocobolo flute?
Jon, is that the one of the two I kept for a while?
If it is, I didn’t have any problem playing it in tune with a reasonable pull.
Great flute.
Oh and yes… I play an old flute as my go to.
Like dow I have a 6-key Wm Hall and Sons flute in grenadilla that I play by preference (and have noticed the distinct similarities to a McGee GLP as well). Lovely tone, particularly in the second octave, and better control of dynamic range for me than modern embochure cuts. Restored this one, a Metzler and a couple of others myself, though the Hall could use a new pad job (still has what I believe are the original leather pads which still work, but are probably not optimal). I guess if I had the dosh I might go for a modern version of the antique, though there is something to be said for bringing back a piece of history and making music on it. Also have a Pratten Delrin Seery that I take traveling and to sessions, but find that I prefer the smaller bore and toneholes of the antique when I play at home. Or maybe I’m just more used to the efficiency of that design. Certainly after playing my antique the embochure on the Seery feels huge. The closest modern flute I own is a Ward Hawks model (and that is really more like a large hole Rudall model than the small hole Hall), but the cork joints on that are feeling a bit tight with the drop in humidity, so I’m reluctant to play it right now risking the socket for a comparison.
What a cool thread… thanks for posting it. I’ve got an anon. one-key american flute in boxwood that looks very firth/hall/pond in style, that Jon C. is fixing up me. I’m guessing mid 19th cen. Believe it or don’t it was a goodwill find… looked like it had been used as a garden tool when I got it. I’ll have to get back to you on the details but I’m very peaked to give it a go.
Best,
Deisman
These days I am mostly playing my Firth, Pond and Co. flute w/ Jon C. hj and barrel, though I switch between the Jon C. and Abell hj’s frequently. My other weapon is a Hudson Pratten which just honks!
Arbo
Oh, why do I like the old flutes? I think there is something about the uniqueness of the timbre. They require a lot more effort than some of the newer models I have tried. But, most importantly, I think they can take as much as you can put into them, and then some. The only limitations being that of the player. I also find them to be tonally distinct from some of the modern flutes, which is what I was alluding to earlier.