So here they are:
The whole shebang:
The headjoint (the head, you'll note, is not fully lined):
The tuning slide (I don't know if it will show, but the slide is sheathed in a thin sleeve of blackwood, and there are grooves cut in the sheathe every 1/8" or so for tuning reference, which is a nice touch):
The endcap (the cork is screw adjustable, and as with the tuning slide, there are marks on the silver pin in the center of the cap to indicate the cork placement as you twist the cap to adjust):
And the footjoint, just because:
This flute survived a long soak in floodwaters (my house was essentially destroyed in flooding on New Year's Eve); a thorough cleaning and some time to let the wood reach equilibrium again, and all's well. Well, except the long F key is a bit sluggish, despite the cleaning; I'll be sending the flute back to John for him to check it out and get the key working to its previous fine speed, and to give the whole flute a once-over after its ordeal. That reminds me to get an e-mail out to him to arrange for that.
The flute is wonderfully finished and lovely to see; John is clearly a craftsman who cares about detail. He's also a super-nice guy, and will talk on the phone into the wee hours about Irish and American folk music, or about the world generally.
And yes, it plays great, too, for all its beauty. Loud or quiet, it's flexible and responsive. Better players than I am -- John had Ivan Goff and Louise Mulcahy each play it while they were teaching in Elkins -- thought it a fine flute, too.
I'm having a good time with it, though I'm still a clumsy key-user when playing tricky tunes at speed. Fumble fumble.
