Selling a nice Hawkes 8key flute in ebonite on ebay

[RudallRose]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... CA:US:1123

Hint: reserve is less than the Buy It Now price.
I've received a ton of inquiries on it already.

Great flute.
Indestructible ebonite!

dm

[Jayhawk]

David - how can you let that flute go? Wish I had the money...also wish my salary wasn't frozen for two years but that's another topic.

Out of curiosity, how did you keep the ebonite so black? Is it simply less exposure to direct sunlight? My ebonite M&E is pure black, but sitting next to Turlach at session on Saturday reminded me how greenish ebonite can turn with age (his Chapelle is an interesting brownish/green). Sure, Turlach's flute has character, but I'd prefer to keep my flute black. So, feel free to share any tips.

Eric

[RudallRose]

How? I have another just like it and just don't need two, honestly.
This one actually looks better and plays as well. I like the other one for a weird little turn on the foot keys from a fall it took years ago. I got used to the "bend" and that's that. So the nicer one goes, as it were.

Yes, the black is simply less exposure.....but also keeping the spittle off it after playing. Simply keep a cotton rag with me and wipe it down when I'm done.
The acidity does it, as does the sunlight. So a case and wipe down. Works fine.

[Doug_Tipple]

Yes, the black is simply less exposure.....but also keeping the spittle off it after playing. Simply keep a cotton rag with me and wipe it down when I'm done.
The acidity does it, as does the sunlight. So a case and wipe down. Works fine.

May a little shoe polish, now and then, mind you, would do the trick.

[Jayhawk]

Thanks David...mine is always cased when not being played. Hopefully, it'll stay nice and black for a good long time.

Doug - I'm not sure I'm down the with the shoe polish idea...

Eric

[RudallRose]

nor I!

Terry McGee once espoused the brass polish "Brasso" as a solution, but I've never had any luck with it.

[Doug_Tipple]

nor I!

Terry McGee once espoused the brass polish "Brasso" as a solution, but I've never had any luck with it.

The only time that I have had any experience with Brasso is when I was forced to take ROTC (reserve officers training corps) in college. Our brass buttons were supposed to be shiny. I was a failure at ROTC, though. My shoes and brass buttons were not shiny enough, since I had other things to think about. Marching around on a dusty field in a heavy wool uniform was not my idea of fun.

[tucson_whistler]

i've used brasso to shine brass whistles; it's amazing--like patina be gone. but i'd be afraid to try it on rubber, who knows what could happen.

so i'm confused; i thought ebonite was a brand name for a rubber product, and Hawkes and son was an antique maker. so how could a hawkes and son flute be made of ebonite?

when you say "ebonite," do you mean the rubber product used by makers like M&E to make flutes, or do you mean a type of black wood? Or when you say "Hawkes and Son," do you mean made by Hawkes and Son, or a copy of a Hawkes and Son, made by someone else?

help!

thanks...

cheers,
eric

[Denny]

ebonite has been around since the 1830s.

[tucson_whistler]

Charles Goodyear (December 29, 1800 – July 1, 1860) was the first to vulcanize rubber, a process which he discovered in 1839 and patented on June 15, 1844.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Goodyear

It is used in hair combs made by Ace, part of Newell Rubbermaid, which survive, essentially unchanged, from the days of the US Civil War.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ebonite

ok, you got me. wow, i didn't know this stuff was around that long. i really wonder why more makers aren't using it then... i heard it's hard to get now (it's usage for car batteries has been replaced by carbon black-filled polypropylene... i wonder how a flute made of that would sound? , at least in sizes suitable for flutes, but i think it sounds so much better than delrin.

argh.

cheers,
eric

[Denny]

delrin bounces, ebonite is brittle

[Jayhawk]

Brittle is such a relative term, though. While delrin truly will bounce (Seery falling onto a concrete step from 4 feet up and taking no damage), ebonite is no more brittle than a wooden flute. I'd be willing to bet if my ebonite flute or a wooden one fell like my old Seery did onto a concrete step from 4 feet up...both would be broken.

Eric

[Steampacket]

With sterling silver keys and case just 27 pounds & one shilling back in the day
http://www.pictures-clipart-graphics.co ... l-1-bg.jpg
Cocus wood was one guinea cheaper: 26 pounds & one shilling

[Denny]

Brittle is such a relative term, though. While delrin truly will bounce (Seery falling onto a concrete step from 4 feet up and taking no damage), ebonite is no more brittle than a wooden flute. I'd be willing to bet if my ebonite flute or a wooden one fell like my old Seery did onto a concrete step from 4 feet up...both would be broken.

Eric

bamboo isn't so good either....

[RudallRose]

ebonite was espoused as the next great material for woodwinds back in the day. Rockstro has a whole section on it in his book.
the biggest reason is it does not react to surrounding environmental stimuli (except the fading that occurs in sunlight), such as hot air or humidity changes.
It's practically indestructable. Brittle? I can't imagine what force you'd need to give it to make it break, though I suspect a pretty good whack on the tenon would snap it.....but one much harder than would be needed for a wood flute.

I like the Hawkes flutes in ebonite more than others. Not sure whether their "formula" or supplier used a different mix, but other instruments (clarinets, etc) of ebonite can feel very greasy if you are prone to sweaty hands. Otherwise, it's just as firm as wood and Hawkes instruments -- before they were purchased by Boosey -- were darn solid.

The difference between delrin and ebonite, formulaicly speaking, is sulphur, which is used in ebonite -- aka vulcanized rubber.