Life's great trials

[Doc Jones]

I have in my possession one of the most amazing flutes I've played in my life...very possibly the most amazing.

Sadly, the lovely thing is whittled of cocus. Cocus that most fiendish of timbers! Which beguiles me with it's most amazing tones then abruptly sends me to the brink of anaphylactic shock.

For those that wonder whether cocus actually makes a difference tonally, my opinion is that it does indeed. It has a rich complexity and wonderful edge...blackwood on steroids.

As I sit here with my lip itching, my head pounding and my lungs filling with fluid. I wonder if Benadryl is available in an IV drip. I wonder if Ibuprofin would work better if I took it before I started playing. I wonder how many more tunes I could get off before I started to seizure...hmmm.

Curse you cocus!

Doc

[Jennie]

Maybe it's that "living on the edge" sense of danger and the feeling of throwing caution to the winds that make you able to play like that. I bet if you play a cocus flute while riding on a crocodile, it could get even better!

Seriously, though, I'm sorry you are so tempted by the thing that hurts you.

Jennie

[crookedtune]

We should be saying, 'Curse you, Doc', for throwing out yet another flute temptation! Instead, we're asking for details and pix!

[jemtheflute]

Aw, come on Doc, what is it then? Details and pics required indeed.

As someone happily not allergic to cocuswood, merely impoverished, I can't think why I'm asking...........

[Aanvil]

oh no!

What about rubber gloves and a contact paper lip plate?


What kind of flute... I simply must know!

[Gabriel]

I assume it's a cocus Olwell. Come on Doc, do tell!

Regarding allergies - do you know this kind of foil they use to make protecting covers for all sorts of LC displays? It works perfectly as an anti-allergy-shield on your flute. I used it when I had a bloodwood flute, to which I was allergic a bit. Just reddish skin and such, but the foil helped a lot!

But I have no idea what to do with your fingers. Rubber gloves are a bit, well...thoroughgoing.

[Aanvil]

Rubber gloves are a bit, well...thoroughgoing.

What about these?



http://www.fingergloves.com/

[Denny]

I'd be willing to bet that Doc knows a lot about rubber gloves.

[Adrian W.]

Barrier creams maybe? Used in industry....coat your fingers with them, they form a temporary, dry barrier, then wash off. Don't know if they work on lips. Or lungs.

Anyway, I'm assuming that means the flute is for sale, at a deep, deep deep discount?

[Cork]

Really, Doc, it's a no-brainer. It's time for you to get rid of such a troublesome flute.

(Hey, fellow Chiffers who are not allergic to cocus, there's going to be a GREAT deal coming online, soon!)

;-)

[Casey Burns]

One can usually deal with a mild allergic reaction to Cocus with lip plates and stuff - but it sounds much worse in your case if your lungs are filling up full of fluid. Being highly sensitive to Uriosol (the irritant in Poison Oak, which is very similar to the irritant in Cocus) I avoid using any of Cocus in my workshop.

Doesn't sound like that amazing of a flute if it is doing this horrid stuff to you. But don't burn it to get rid of it! The smoke will be extremely hazardous!

Casey

[Jennie]

I know this topic has been around and around, but seriously, has anyone taken two IDENTICAL flutes by the same maker in different woods, same player, and truly noticed a difference? (Yes, I remember the thread with the sound clips and different flutes. But I'm sure they weren't the same model.)

Why is cocus such magic? Isn't it mostly in the ear of the player?

Jennie

[Gabriel]

I never played or heard a cocus flute long enough to notice any difference to blackwood. I do think that boxwood has a distinct sound, and a Rudall made from boxwood is something special. I wish I could play this kind of flute!

[ImNotIrish]

I play two old cocuswood flutes and they are amazing! No side effects as yet. Perhaps the older cocuswood flutes are less toxic?
Arbo

[Henke]

I know this topic has been around and around, but seriously, has anyone taken two IDENTICAL flutes by the same maker in different woods, same player, and truly noticed a difference? (Yes, I remember the thread with the sound clips and different flutes. But I'm sure they weren't the same model.)

Why is cocus such magic? Isn't it mostly in the ear of the player?

Jennie

It is, and always will be impossible to come to any real scientific conclusions on this subject for many reasons.
There are no two IDENTICAL flutes, even by the same maker for one thing.

I haven't tried as many flutes as some people around here, and as you know, everyones opinions are subjective and may not agree with others. But I am convinced that there are differences between different woods. I haven't tried two similar flutes by the same maker from different woods, but to me it feels like Boxwood flutes from different makers share some characteristics that Blackwood flutes don't have, Cocuswood flutes from different makers have some common nuances that cannot be found in Blackwood flutes, and so on and vice versa.

Now, I'd have a lot more to say if we could only start to talk about European Oak and American Oak casks for maturing
whisky