Flute finger hole spacing question

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mz1
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Flute finger hole spacing question

Post by mz1 »

Hi everyone,

Some background.
Due to a childhood injury I can't lift the ring (4th) finger of my right hand when playing the flute.
The result is that it has to rest between the D & E holes while I play. I use my 5th (pinkie) finger
on the D.
This works fine in general. However, the spacing is just a bit to tight and the 4th & 5th finger end up
rubbing against each other and I need to sometimes reposition while playing.
There is 27mm between the low D and E on my flute.

So, to my question. Is there a style or make of flute that has more space between finger holes?

Marc
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Re: Flute finger hole spacing question

Post by fatmac »

Tony Dixon ABS one piece = 45mm centre to centre
Tony Dixon 3 piece delrin = 36mm c to c
Damian Thompson 2 piece = 38mm c to c
Davy Angus 3 piece aluminium = 37mm c to c
Keith.
Trying to do justice to my various musical instruments.
mz1
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Re: Flute finger hole spacing question

Post by mz1 »

Thanks Keith,

I realise I should have specified more clearly the 27 mm spacing on my current flute is between the edges of the holes.

I am assuming that measuring C to C wouldn't necessarily give me the critical in between distance that I'm exploring due to potential differences in the diameter of finger holes. However, that's an assumption on my part.

For the record the C to C on my flute is approximately 36mm

Marc
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Re: Flute finger hole spacing question

Post by Sedi »

You might need a custom made one. Or a cylindrical body like on the Hamilton practice flute or Geoffrey Ellis Essential flute. Because the cylindrical design has the disadvantage, which in your case would be an advantage, that the lowest hole is much further down because it would be too small otherwise and the E too weak or breathy. The flute (well one of them and the one I play most) I made for myself has 4.6 mm between center to center of the lowest two holes.
Image

Edit: looking at Geoffrey's flutes it seems he (like most makers would do) aims for a smaller stretch for the lower hand. But I'd ask him directly if he can make one with a bigger stretch.
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Re: Flute finger hole spacing question

Post by Sedi »

The Hamilton "practice" flute (it's basically a simple keyless design with a boehm taper in the head to even out the octaves):
http://www.hamiltonflutes.com/Practice_Flutes.html
Last edited by Sedi on Sat May 01, 2021 6:29 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Flute finger hole spacing question

Post by Loren »

Marc,

You were, of course, right to measure edge to edge on the tone holes, since center to center tone hole measurements would be of little help.

I measured a half dozen flutes just now for 5th to 6th hole, edge to edge spacing. For clarity, I considered any chamfer/finishing of the tone hole edges as part of the hole itself, and as such did not include this area in my “distance between tone holes” measurements. That said, of the 6 conical bore flutes measured, the widest spacing was 28mm between holes 5 and 6. The smallest spacing was 25mm. These were all modern flutes: R&R, Nicholson, and Hawkes derivatives, by the maker descriptions. Unfortunately I don’t have any Prattens type flutes currently, which might have yielded, depending on maker, a slightly wider spacing, although not by much I imagine.

Makers strive to keep the 5th to 6th hole stretch minimal for obvious reasons, so I doubt you’ll have much luck finding a good quality conical bore flute with the sort of spacing that will be best for you. The good news is that almost any reputable flute maker should be happy to work with you on tone hole spacing when ordering a flute if you explain your situation. They are generally a good humored and helpful lot, as long as you aren’t calling them at home at 3am :lol:
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Re: Flute finger hole spacing question

Post by mz1 »

Thanks for the response Loren,

Yes, I may have to go the custom route at he end of the day or go cylindrical, I have a low whistle that has enough room.

Marc
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Re: Flute finger hole spacing question

Post by gbyrne »

I've seen a similar challenge resolved with an adapted Siccama flute for a gentleman who'd lost the top of the ring finger on left hand in a workplace accident.

You might find this an interesting read: http://www.mcgee-flutes.com/Siccama.html. Siccama flutes come up for sale from time to time and are often priced "reasonably" - due to them being neither simple-system nor Boehm they're a more niche instrument.

In your case an actual Siccama flute might prove very comfortable to play (perhaps with the short F removed and plugged). Or if you preferred an agreeable maker might make a Siccama based flute with just keys for A-hole and E-hole. I don't know if the tone-hole placement might allow for just the bottom hole repositioned and keyed (suspect not).

Good luck with your search.
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Re: Flute finger hole spacing question

Post by mz1 »

Thanks for the info. gbyrne.
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Re: Flute finger hole spacing question

Post by Narzog »

Heres an image of my Angus flute next to my Dixon 1 Piece. The dixon definitely has a bigger gap. This is a very cheap option, may solve your issue. If you were looking for a high end solution to your problem this isnt it though haha.
https://imgur.com/a/SDzlwVa
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