Any opinion on this maker?

Irish Flute
21

Strange. On the top of the page it had the updated price of Grenadille and Rosewood.

Further down, where it says: “The price should be right” it still had the 150 euro.

I noticed now it’s gone and he only talks about the beforementioned two woods.
Maybe he changed the website in between our viewings or something.

Edit: I just noticed an announcement on his website about the strategic pricing:
“Operation Strategic Pricing
Up to recently, I have been strategically pricing my flutes (150 EURO + shipping) in order to get the word out and get them into sessions. Word travels fast these days and there are now Tim Adams Flutes in New Mexico - US (Ebony), Haifa - Israel (Cookstown Ironwood), Stockholm - Sweden (Swedish Cherry), Nykoping - Sweden (Padouk), Dublin - Ireland (Purple Heart).

All three flutes in the making at the moment - June 2012 (see link to image gallery in left column) are pre-ordered. The Purple Heart goes to London, UK, the Padouk to Moscow, Russia and the Honduran Rosewood will be sent to Stockholm, Sweden when they are ready.

Operation Strategic Pricing is over. Mission accomplished.”

So thats the end of the 150 euro flute. If they are any good, 350 for a goor blackwood flute is pretty darn good, I would think.

Furthermore, like Keithsandra said, it would be nice of some experienced player could shed some light on them.

I think there are a few members from Seden on the C&F forum. Maybe they have any experience with his flutes.
IMHO that would be better than making guesses about the quality and pricing

Edit:
On the site he writes:
“I believe that a quality wooden folk flute can be priced at a third of a low monthly salary in the developed world. I think that is a fair deal. With proper care and lots of playing, it should last at least ten years.”

I am relatively new to this whole flute thing, but 10 years for an quality, handmade instrument doesn’t seem a whole lot.
I never heard of a McGee, or Hamilton that has worn down in just a few years.
Let alone the R&R en Boosey’s that have been around for quite a few decades.

Somehow this seems strange, but maybe somebody can explain if this a fair judgement.

22

Hi all

Heard there were rumblings on the forum about my flutes, pricing and more. Thought I should come by and explain myself.

Indeed my flutes are new on the market and so am I. And nothing to compare with the McGees, Healys, Sweets, Hamiltons, Gabriels, Doyles and others of this world. Mine do not have silver lining or silver rings and I do not have a reputation.

It is not my intention to join the premiere league of flute makers but I do intend to provide an affordable flute to those wanting to add a flute to their collection of whistles and those who play silver flute and would like to have a wooden one for that warm wood sound. And those who might be starting from scratch. If that makes me a beginners’ flute maker, so be it.

Established flute makers will no doubt remember their early days when they needed to know how others experienced their instruments in order to learn how they could develop their craft and their product. That goes for musicians too. Many of us play for free or a fraction of the price we think we are worth in order to test our stuff out on an audience or get word out. Myself, I have done over 700 Irish nights in my 30 years in Sweden. I play guitar, mandoline, flute, sing and tell stories about home which people here in Sweden think are jokes. But they are true.

I am receiving valuable feedback from people who have bought my flutes and am developing my product thereafter. And enjoying every minute.

True, I don’t live on making flutes. To do that I would have to move to somewhere where I could sell and wouldn’t have to pay 60% tax on profits made. I make flutes to buy new materials and pay my flights to Dublin now and then to visit my family.

But my new price 350 EURO gives me what I would get for two days employment where I am. It reflects how long it takes to make the instrument and the materials purchased. It is not a hobby.

Flute makers should not be offended or believe that I am a low price competitor. I am not. My philosophy in life is a simple one. Enough is enough (thanks Mam). I place no value in owning a particular brand of car, watch, bicycle or other item. If I can provide a good flute that reflects the players ability and musicianship, I am happy.

Sorry for going on a bit. I get a bit passionate about the subject.

Thank you for an interesting forum.
Tim Adams
www.adams.se/flute

23

Thanks for explaining yourself.
I don’t think there any need to defend yourself though .

There are quite a few very good players and builders on this forum, so there’s always going to be a lot of scrutiny about any new maker.
My personal question about the lifetime still holds. Why would a blackwood flute last only 10 years. Does that have anyting to do with the kind of blackwood, or treatment with oil, or anything? Or maybe that remark applied more to the softer woods you use(d)? Mayby you (or anyone) can shed some light on this matter.

Personally I like your philosophy and am still interested in your flutes. Hopefully we’ll meet up this summer and I can give them a try, and maybe have some kind of session if time allows.

Still, I hold the position that I would really like someone with better fluteplaying capabilities than me to give them a try.
Since I mostly visit the web on my laptop the sound samples just don’t do justice to the flute, I think.

For now, I wish you all the best with your work on making the best flutes you can. :thumbsup:

24

Well, another thought that it looks like hasn’t been considered is that maybe he’s only been making blackwood flutes for 10 years, so they might not have been around long enough to show a life that would satisfy you and most others.

25

That could be.

To be more precise, It isn’t as if I am not satisfied by the idea, but I was just wondering.
I hadn’t heard about a specific lifetime of a wooden flute. That’s all.
It seems to me that with proper care it should last a lifetime or more; but I might be wrong there.

26

A wooden flute can have a significantly long life - think of all the antiques about. It should well outlive its original buyer. But whether a maker, particular a new unestablished one, wants to guarantee a flute longer than 10 years, with no idea how it has been kept, fed or stored during the decade, is another issue altogether.

27

I was interpreting the figure of ten years as a way of putting another perspective on the price. Along the lines of “if you get 10 years use out of something costing 350 euros then it works out at less than 10 cents per day”.

28

Hi all

I have now changed the ‘ten years’ to ‘many years’ as it was taken up quite (too) literally. As david_h guessed, I wanted to put a perspective on the price and a price per year. Of course, I hope they last a lifetime and more but I can never make that claim. That’s probably why other makers don’t either.

When I/we buy (or borrow to buy) other products, digital/mechanical, we think about the price and how long it will be before we want/need to update. Time is an aspect of every purchase.

People will buy my flutes, hopefully learn to love the sound of woodwind and aspire to a flute by the established makers with keys and silver lining. As guitarists aspire to a Martin or other excellent guitar as they progress.

Just received some nice Honduran rosewood and Grenadilla. The thought of transforming square billets of wood into conical holed tubes for people to play their favorite music with/for people around them is a romantic idea I’ve had for many years.

The music is in the wood. We just bring it out.

Whatever the weather, I’ll be down my basement this summer with my friendly lathe. Next out is one flute of Pokenholts (Lignum Vitae) also know as Green Heart. Very heavy. Not for sale, I’m afraid.

Have been exploring the Chiff and Fipple forum. Lots of very interesting reading and flute samples.

Thank you all.

Tim Adams

29

Welcome, Tim. I’ve made a swift perusal of your website. The basic sonority of your flutes is encouraging, but I agree with others that the sound quality and playing proficiency in the clips does them/you no favours.

I think you could indeed benefit from offering out a tour flute, as others have already suggested. You can check over past tours here and on the Whistle Forum to see how such things work. Set up well, you will get useful feedback and publicity from the investment, at least as effective as your start-up cut-price offer - assuming your product gets positive reviews. You can be sure it would get fair reviews, and you’d likely get some well recorded and payed demos out of the exercise. If you do decide to do it, please sign me up!

BTW, I’m sure Markus Tullberg in Skane (also Malmo, I think), a very fine player and a respected occasional poster here on C&F, would give one a workout for you (assuming you don’t already know and interact with him and his circle?)!

I will add your website to The List when I get around to a much needed update!

30

Excellent flute great value I have a Tim Adams low d for years!!!