An experiment with padding

Irish Flute
1

I wanted to share an experiment that, at least so far, is working quite well.

One common way to install small pads such as on the keyed flute, or the small trill key pads on the Boehm-system flute, is to “float them in” on melted shellac which then hardens and serves both to level the pad against the tone hold and as an adhesive to hold the pad in its cup.

As an experiment, I am trying dental wax instead as a no-heat solution, particularly handy if you have to change a pad “on the road” where there is no safe way to work with a burner.

Dental wax is a product sold for folks who lose a filling from their teeth, or who break a tooth, as an emergency treatment until they can get to a dentist.

It’s basically a clean, white wax that is just a bit sticky and very slightly soft at room temperature.

Here’s the way I’ve used it to install a pad:

Remove the old pad and clean the old adhesive out of the pad cup.

Pinch off a small ball of dental wax and work it between your fingers to get it soft and warm.

Prick the side of the pad with a needle. (This is important, it stops your pad from swelling like a balloon and unseating itself if it gets damp.)

Put the ball of wax on the back of the pad and press firmly into the pad cup.

Replace the key onto the flute and press firmly for several seconds. The goal is to get the pad to move in the cup so that it hits the tone hole with even pressure on all sides. You don’t want to press so hard that the wax squirts out around the pad, though.

After you have it hitting evenly (I check it with a feeler guage, which is a thin piece of plastic wrap mounted on a stick), dampen the pad and hold it or block it down for at least 30 seconds. (If you have clamps or use cork blocks under the striker, just leave it overnight). This “seats” the pad.

That’s it.

I’ve used this technique with three pads on my silver flute, and so far there have been no difficulties.

Should anything untoward occur, I’ll post it here, but at this point I’m thinking it’s looking pretty good.

–James

2

First, I congradulate you on your innovation.

However, I see potential trouble. For instance, at room temperature the wax apparently is a bit sticky and very slightly soft, yet apparently body heat causes the wax to become softer. Well, body heat, in the form of breath, also warms up the flute, perhaps to then cause the wax to become softer, and if softer wax could allow the pad to be put into place, then could the heat of breath cause the wax to become warm enough to effectively reduce the adhesion of the wax, possibly allowing the pad to become displaced? Then again, the pad itself could serve as a thermal insulator, but, and no pun intended, to what degree?

3

Cork, good questions.

The advantage of the dental wax is that it retains its shape and consistency at body temperature or even a little above.

It’s designed to adhere to a tooth and remain there until removed; if it were too soft and pliable it wouldn’t achieve its purpose.

But at just a bit above that, it does become soft and workable…which is why the friction produced when you work it in your fingers softens it nicely.

For the wax to get soft enough that the pad might shift, the flute would have to get quite a bit warmer than body temperature.

Now if you were to leave your flute locked in your car on a summer day while you ran an errand, you could have trouble.

But my experience is if you actually do get your flute that hot especially a Boehm-system flute, you’re looking at a trip to the repair shop anyway.

A good general rule with flutes is if the environment is such that you are comfortable, so is your flute.

So far, the wax seems to be working well…if it turns out to not, it’s simple enough to remove it and float the pads in on shellac like I used to.

I’ll let you know how it goes over time.

–James

4

Actually, earlier that day I had gone to a local hardware store with my seldom used pick up truck. On leaving the store, a cloud of blue smoke emerged from under the engine hood. Whoa! It turned out that some crafty little rodents, likely the local chipmunks, had found nice place to eat some nuts and seeds, right on my engine, and while they were at it they chewed off some of the electrical insulation on a wire, which then shorted out when I started the truck.

So, on that day, I suppose I was in something of a cause and effect frame of mind.

Thanks for your patience.

5

So far two flutes, one trip in a hot car, and still no troubles noted.

Fingers still crossed.

–James

6

what a neat idea. i keep thinking of repadding my flute, but i never can seem to rationalize spending the money.

7

???

Sets of pads cost about £10, maybe more if you want fancy new synthetics. Even if your flute can’t be provided with a dedicated factory set of pads for the particular model, getting separates shouldn’t be that expensive or difficult. And yes, one can (and I’d advocate should, unless one is a completely hamfisted practical disaster area) do it oneself. I did my own beginners level Boehm within a couple of years of taking it up in my late teens. Takes some care and patience and one needs to be systematic about it and study the mechanism carefully. The R hand section is worst because you have to keep taking it on and off to shim the pads as you adjust them, and it’s the most awkward part to get on and off. I subsequently re-did it some years later, and I’ve done a couple since. I also once disassembled and cleaned a modern oboe! makes flutes look easy. Got it back together and working properly OK, though.

I’m a firm advocate of the benefits (e.g. in terms of appreciating how to use things to best advantage and to monitor maintenance needs) of understanding how things one uses work, and whilst going much beyond basic theory and some superficial, every-day practical work may be stretching the point with highly complex things like, say motor veheicles, even the most complicated flute is really mechanically simple enough for most people to work out what does what and how, how to dis- and re-assemble it and adjust it. Have a go!

8

Just a couple of cautions for anyone trying their own repad:

  1. If it’s your first time taking the keys off your flute, first grab your digital camera or your pen and paper and either take lots of pictures from every angle or makes lots of drawings.

  2. On almost all flutes, you should remove the left hand keys first. Then the offset G mechanism if there is one.

  3. What’s next off depends on the flute. On some flutes, you can now remove the right hand keywork. On other flutes, the trill keys have to be taken loose from their posts (but not removed yet) to release the right hand keywork first.

  4. Then the trill keys come off. Be careful as you slide them under the needle springs to not break a spring and to not poke yourself with a spring, because that really hurts. Finally, the G-sharp mechanism comes off. You may need to carefully and gently grab the end of the steel with needle-nose pliars and work it slowly out because there is a spring right over it that you don’t want to bend or break.

  5. If your flute already plays, even though it will take longer, consider repadding one key at a time. Getting one key shimmed in and seated is much easier than doing an entire mechanism.

  6. Don’t ever give into tempation and bend a key!!! The keys can and will break. Also bending them weakens them and over time a weakened key may go frequently out of adjustment or have trouble holding a good seat on its pad.

  7. To save your sanity, place a small ink dot on the new pad to mark its “12 o’clock” position (where the key arm is). I usually put these under the washer because you only need the dot when adjusting the shims.

  8. When replacing the washer and screw over the new pad, go easy and hold the washer to stop it from turning. If you do this right, the pad won’t wrinkle.

  9. If the pad wrinkles, lightly dampen it, and heat something made of smooth, clean metal for a few seconds over a clean, cool flame. Lightly go over the damp pad surface with the heated metal to iron the wrinkles out.

  10. Try to avoid using partial washers, especially at first. If a pad hits hard in the front, use one or more whole washers to raise it in the cup. If it hits hard in back, remove one or more washers to lower it.

  11. If you’ve taken out all the washers and it still hits hard in back, you’ve no choice but use half-washers to raise the front. Some people find using partial washers easier if you glue them to the back of the pad so they don’t shift.

  12. A couple of weaks after a new pad is shimmed and seated it, you’ll usually have to reshim it one more time. After that the pad should be stable and not move anymore.

  13. You can make a good feeler gauge with a strip of thin cellophane such as candy or cigarettes are wrapped in.

  14. To seat a pad once it’s shimmed so it hits evenly all around with only gentle pressure, dampen the pad surface and hold the key firmly closed while you could to 90. Your goal is not so much a deep seat as an even seat all the way around the pad.

  15. Before putting the new pad to the flute the first time, take alcohol and carefully clean the tone hole, inside, outside, and top. This will go a long way toward keeping your keys silent!!!

There’s more to it than this; this is just a few tips from experience.

It’s not hard but it does take patience. Expect to have each key off the flute ten times or more. Don’t forget to oil the steels on the last assembly of each key mechanism, and be careful the oil doesn’t get on the pads! If it does, quickly wipe it away with an alcohol-dampened tissue.

Be very careful not to break a needle spring. They are replaceable but it’s not particularly easy, and I’ve not found that bleeding on a flute helps it play better.

Don’t pull the pins out of the key mechanisms!!! It takes a special tool to get them back in.

Good luck, and best wishes. Remember if you get painted into a corner, your local instrument repair person can help you out.

–James

9

sounds like a good summer project. how does one adjust the action on the keys? that’s what i really want to learn how to fix.

10

Can you tell me a little more specifically what the problem is?

Are the keys slow to return to their resting position, or do some keys “stick”? This can be a weak spring, sticky pad, dirty or dry steels in need of cleaning and oiling, over-tightening of the retention screws, or a bend in the mechanism.

Do some of the keys have lost motion, where the keys don’t all move as a unit? This requires replacement and adjustment of the corks on the bumpers.

Do the keys require a lot of finger pressure to seal? This can be old pads, improper pad shimming or seating, or improper adjustment.

If the keys just generally feel slow and unresponsive, probably disassembly, cleaning the steels, and oiling is a good first step.

–James

11

Everything James said and
changing the spring (you can try bending it a bit, but it’s fraught with terror and only kind of works if the spring is too weak)

12

Only one addition to the above - clutches on all but the cheapest flutes have adjusting screws to govern the interaction of the elements of a key-cluster, especially the R hand part. These sometimes work loose or may require adjustment for other reasons. You need quite a fine jeweller’s screwdriver. It can be fiddly getting the whole mechanism working just right so that all of the keys close cleanly, including those operated upon by another via a clutch, and none of them have any slack to take up - i.e. the screw end is on the clutch at rest - with all the keys level at rest and none of them held up by over-tightened clutch screws… I believe there are approved workshop routines for sequencing the adjustments, particular to different flute models: however, you can do it from first principles with patience and good observation of the mechanism. A persistently loose clutch screw can be fixed by putting a very small drop of superglue on its thread (don’t get it on the flute!) - it won’t prevent turning it with a screwdriver to adjust it, but should stop it moving otherwise.

13

Some thoughts and clarifications here:

I’ve known some flutists who were confused about the adjustment screws, thinking that their purpose was to remove lost motion. It’s not: those adjustment screws are there only for one reason, so that the pads of keys which move together come down with equal pressure on their tone holes. If the pads hit unequally, you will have to press the key with force to make the pads seal.

When I adjust them I start at the top of the flute (closest to the headjoint) and work my way down.

Use a feeler guage to check how hard pads are hitting. You want to adjust the flute so that all pads hit with even pressure. Make small adjustments and play-test frequently.

Some of the linkages have screws, others you have to adjust with the thickness of the cork or felt pad in the linkage. Never bend a key or a linkage!!!

When done, I have been known to use a drop of clear fingernail polish over the end of the screw to lock it down.

One thing to be aware of: these may have to be adjusted more than once before everything settles in and quits moving, particularly if the flute either has very new pads, or has been out of adjustment for quite a while, so don’t seal it down too soon.

This process of adjusting the screws and cork or felt pads is called “regulating” a flute.

If you do have lost motion in the keys, that is addressed by adjusting the thickness of the cork bumpers on the kickers, which are the parts of the key mechanism that extend out behind the key to rest on the tube.

Be aware these corks also control the venting, or the height of the pad above its tone hole. If the venting is wrong, the flute will be out of tune with itself. One of the first symptoms you’ll notice of that is when open C-sharp is grossly sharp compared to the notes around it. Counter-intuitively, if the keys are vented too high, the flute will tend to play flat, and one way to bring an older flute up to play at a higher pitch is to lower the venting a bit.

–James

P.S. Thought I’d better add:

The very finest handmade flutes don’t use adjustment screws…you regulate their linkages by glueing small pieces of different thicknesses of paper in place. This is a lot more work than just adjusting a screw, so I hope you won’t think me out of place if I say that unless you’ve already worked on flutes of that calibre, you shouldn’t start, and certainly not on your own.

Allow me also to add one more time: no matter how great the temptation, no matter how frustrating the problem, never never (and did I mention never) try to bend a key or a linkage to fix it. Stressed metal can and will break on you; you haven’t known the depth of instrumental dispair until you have one of those “I just killed my flute!!!” moments. Even if it doesn’t break, every time it’s bent, the metal weakens, and it will be harder and harder to keep the flute well adjusted because of the normal stresses of playing it.