Flute swabbing?

[keithsandra]

I find the swabs made from Doug Tipple's 'jammies' very efficacious. At least, I'm presuming that's where he gets the light flannel for the swabs he supplies with his flutes. The last sample I got shows yellow and blue flowers on a red background. Very pretty too ...



K.

[MTGuru]

If Doug is walking around with big holes in his jammies, we don't want to know about it.

[I.D.10-t]

So when is a swab used up or need cleaning?

For some reason now I want to go to the fabric store and buy
a foot of "Hello kitty" print fabric and make a few new patches.

[maki]

I swab my whistles with gun cleaning supplies.
http://www.deweyrods.com/cgi-bin/ccp5/c ... t&ref=KITS
A 17 inch cleaning rod, a patch loop, and cut flannel patches work great. Skip the bore solvent.

[Nanohedron]

So when is a swab used up or need cleaning?

Cleaning, I don't rightly know, because there's little that's truly dirty in a well-cared-for flute, and it's just a scrap and I can get others any time. Wasteful? Perhaps I need to get greener in my thinking. My present cloth - silk, as it happens - is looking pretty clean still after about a year. As for used up, I go by when the fabric's so worn that the stick starts punching holes thru it, and tearing or cutting away the weakened areas finally leaves me with not enough cloth left for the remainder to be reasonably serviceable.

[Doug_Tipple]

I think that flutes with non-permeable bores that quickly collect beads of moisture when playing, such as silver and polymer flutes (pvc, delrin, etc.), play a lot better if the bores are swabbed out rather frequently. As I have mentioned before, I attended a classical concert in which the flautist swabbed out her silver flute with a silk cloth after every piece that she performed, ostensibly because she felt it improved her performance.

The Tipple swab that has been mentioned in an earlier comment on this thread is made from 14 gauge soft galvanized steel wire and whatever type of cloth you prefer. The red cotton flannel previously alluded to was not my worn out pajamas, as suggested, but it was an old flannel bed sheet that my wife gave me. I have it on the best of knowledge that at least one player in the C & F flute family uses my swab to swab out his rather expensive Boehm flute. For my silver flute I use a long dowel with a sewing-needle-like eye for the cotton swab. I have the multiple strips of cotton tied so that I can touch the surface of the tuning cork with the cotton swab. I don't think my silver flute has been apart in months.

[keithsandra]

MT : Doug's assertion that his aforesaid red flannel swab with ickle yellow flowers is not in fact made from his pajamas, used or otherwise, hopefully meets the cause of your alarm. The danger of Doug appearing in such jammies, with or without holes where material for his swabs has been removed, does not now appear to be imminent. I am sure you must be much relieved, as are we all ...

K.

[Akiba]

I swab frequently, after every 10-15 minutes of playing. I feel the moisture/water obstructs airflow and adversely affects the performance and tone of the flute. I use a dowel and a bandana, covering the top of the dowel to be sure to swab out ALL the moisture that collects at and around the plug. Maybe I'm over doing it, but I think it's necessary. When I'm done I may just shake it out, especially during summer here because it's so dry. Otherwise, I mop it up good.

[Berti66]

I use a piece of chamoix/ ultrasuede and no stick.
Swab the bore every time after playing.........don't do the head (shake it out)

[ImNotIrish]

I make my own swabs out of a coat hanger. I make a needle like opening at one end of the wire. I wrap the entire wire below the needle opening in tape (electrical, whatever). The cloth goes through the opening and is wrapped around the exposed metal parts a couple of times. I have used silk and cotton as material. Currently, I am using a cotton t shirt lightly oiled.
Arbo