My recent purchase of the 5 keyed african blackwood flute that is made in the french style has a flat F#. The good thing (maybe bad thing) is that at least it is consistent in both octaves. I have considered getting out the drill and making the 'e' hole a little larger so that it brings up the f#. As far as I can tell this shouldn't affect everything (the tuning of the other notes) too dramatically, right? I am pretty scared, because I don't want to screw up a halfway decent flute. I have considered sending it to a flute maker so they can try and fix the problem, but I don't know if I am willing to put money into the flute when I may be selling it.
What shall I do?
to drill or not to drill
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michael_coleman
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If you have a drill press and a secure way of clamping the flute section, I would say go ahead and give it a try. I would not try to do it with a hand-held drill. The biggest risk is that the section is not clamped well enough - then the drill bit will grab, and you will be in for a major repair job (guess how I learned about that!!).
When you have finished, you will need to remove the sharp edges inside and outside the flute body. A Dremel tool is good for that, with sandpaper mounted on a small arbor (also sold by Dremel).
Dave Copley
Loveland, Ohio
When you have finished, you will need to remove the sharp edges inside and outside the flute body. A Dremel tool is good for that, with sandpaper mounted on a small arbor (also sold by Dremel).
Dave Copley
Loveland, Ohio
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glauber
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The Dremel with sandpaper may be a good choice too, instead of the drill, for enlarging the hole.
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peeplj
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If you try this I would recommend to go very cautiously, removing VERY small amounts of material at a time, and testing frequently.
Part of the characteristic sound of wooden flutes is an F-sharp which is a bit flat...it would be better, I think, to leave it a bit flat than to have it perfectly in tune on a digital tuner. You definitely do not want it sharp, as it will sound very wrong in any key except G.
It's very easy to remove wood. Putting it back is an entirely different prospect.
--James
Part of the characteristic sound of wooden flutes is an F-sharp which is a bit flat...it would be better, I think, to leave it a bit flat than to have it perfectly in tune on a digital tuner. You definitely do not want it sharp, as it will sound very wrong in any key except G.
It's very easy to remove wood. Putting it back is an entirely different prospect.
--James
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Thomas-Hastay
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Michael
Before you commit to surgery, check to see if the lower "keyplates" are not set too low(while in the "open" position), if you have these installed on your flute(?) If the key plates are too close to the toneholes or obstruct airflow on the toneholes below F#, it will cause the F# to be flat. This is a similar effect to "half-holeing" on a keyless flute.
Before you commit to surgery, check to see if the lower "keyplates" are not set too low(while in the "open" position), if you have these installed on your flute(?) If the key plates are too close to the toneholes or obstruct airflow on the toneholes below F#, it will cause the F# to be flat. This is a similar effect to "half-holeing" on a keyless flute.
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illuminatus99
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Casey Burns
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to drill or not to drill
Enlarging a tone hole is the correct approach for sharpening a note. Doing it with any kind of twist drill either hand held or mounted in a drill press is inviting disaster! Don't do it this way!!!!!
In my flute making I do use a milling machine as a drill press to drill out initial undersized holes on my flute bodies with rake modified drill bits (0 rake). The wood is supported on centers both ends and from underneath with a rubber supports. When it comes time to enlarge the holes to bring these to pitch, I use a set of tapered machinist reamers modified to give me a range of hole diameters. These are the cheap tapered reamers that are available at hardware stores anywhere.
I simply cut these to different lengths so that these present different diameters on the end, as the flute bore will only allow at most 5/8" of travel. These are a soft enough steel that these can be notched with a small grinding wheel, clamped in a vice and the waste end broken by tapping with a hammer.
Once sized to pitch in the 1st octave, the note is usually a little flat in the 2nd octave. This can be brought up to pitch by undercutting. This can be done slowly with some 120 sandpaper rolled around a small rod, or by using a rotary cutter on the end of a Dremel or flexible shaft tool. Similarly some care needs to be exercised to smooth the edge of the tonehole. I round these over a bit with a bevel cutter and then use sandpapers of finer grit, then finally some 600 grit steel wool. This process can also be used with some of the cheap Asian made futes out there with some improvement.
Good luck!
Casey Burns
Wind Instrument Maker
http://www.caseyburnsflutes.com
In my flute making I do use a milling machine as a drill press to drill out initial undersized holes on my flute bodies with rake modified drill bits (0 rake). The wood is supported on centers both ends and from underneath with a rubber supports. When it comes time to enlarge the holes to bring these to pitch, I use a set of tapered machinist reamers modified to give me a range of hole diameters. These are the cheap tapered reamers that are available at hardware stores anywhere.
I simply cut these to different lengths so that these present different diameters on the end, as the flute bore will only allow at most 5/8" of travel. These are a soft enough steel that these can be notched with a small grinding wheel, clamped in a vice and the waste end broken by tapping with a hammer.
Once sized to pitch in the 1st octave, the note is usually a little flat in the 2nd octave. This can be brought up to pitch by undercutting. This can be done slowly with some 120 sandpaper rolled around a small rod, or by using a rotary cutter on the end of a Dremel or flexible shaft tool. Similarly some care needs to be exercised to smooth the edge of the tonehole. I round these over a bit with a bevel cutter and then use sandpapers of finer grit, then finally some 600 grit steel wool. This process can also be used with some of the cheap Asian made futes out there with some improvement.
Good luck!
Casey Burns
Wind Instrument Maker
http://www.caseyburnsflutes.com
