So, I bought some of that black PVC pipe that Doug Tipple told us about and set about making myself a flute using only simple hand tools: a hacksaw, hand drill, a needle file, and some sand paper on a stick … oh, and an old cork from a wine bottle. Amazingly, it turned out to be quite a decent flute thats fun to play. I thought I’d share a picture and a link to a sound clip to encourage anyone who has never tried this to give it a go. Its a lot of fun! Doug has measurements on his site. I also made a Fajardo wedge which helped the second octave tuning, and I spent a lot of time fine tuning it. The art seems to be mostly in the tuning and the finer finishing touches to the embouchure hole and tone holes.
Anyway, here’s what it sounds like. Unfortunately, I stood a bit far back from the mic, so the recording leaves a bit to be desired, and well, I could certainly improve my playing, etc. I learned this Scottish tune (My Lady Binnis Lilt) from Malcolm Reavell.
Looks great, Jon!
Have not heard your clip yet, the download seems to take forever,
in fact it is stuck now at 14% downloaded
Is the embouchure hole circular or elliptical?
How thick is the wall of the tubing?
Wish I could get some black PVC pipe over here, to try out.
Well done!
Good work, Jon, and also the red velvet looks nice as a background for the black flute. Hans, the wall thickness of the pipe is ~.113" with an ID of .824" according to my measurements.
Its elliptical. I tried to copy the embouchure shape (size, profile and undercut) of an Olwell as closely as possible, but of course the chimney height is considerably less, so you really notice that when you play it.
Cubitt wrote:
My only quibble is the cost. In this depressed economy, don’t you think $5 is a little steep?
Well, look it at this way, when I have a 20 year waiting list you’ll be able to turn around and sell this for $5000 on eBay!
Othannen wrote:
It sounds a bit breathy on the second octave
I blame the player! Oh wait, that was me too. Probably something wrong with the PVC batch this pipe came from. Yes, thats it!
Can you refresh my memory? Where did you get this piping? Is it now available at places like Lowe’s, etc? I’ve made a few PVC flutes and the black looks tres cool!
The source for the pipe is Savko Plastic Pipe in Columbus, OH. I have the pipe cut in 5 foot sections and shipped by UPS. I have never seen this pipe in any of the retail home improvement stores.
Yes, Pat, that is the pipe that we are talking about. I talked to the salesperson at Savko and got the pipe dimensions before I purchased it. There are color codes for pipe in the USA, and for that reason this black pipe is not rated as schedule 40, although I’m pretty sure it was produced on the same extrusion machines that produce schedule 40 plumbing pipe.
Doug - is this the stuff? The walls don’t look as thick as Jon’s pictures and they don’t give a wall thickness.
Yes, thats it. The flute is made from the 3/4" pipe, and the Fajardo wedge is a diagonal slice from a 1/2" pipe. They both seem to have dimensions identical to the schedule 40 white PVC pipe thats available pretty much everywhere.
OK, so I’ll admit that nobody actually wants one of my flutes, so I don’t have a waiting list.
But if someone did sign up for one it would probably only take me about a month to make. As I said, the fine tuning is the key, but it takes ages! Hey, if someone ordered a flute with keys, then the wait might actually be up to 20 years right away! Goodness knows how professional flute makers actually make a living!?! I’m in awe.
