Not my flute, and I don’t have any connection to the seller (that I am aware of), but it is a nice Grenser if that is your sort of thing, and looks to be in exceptional condition. Serial numbers aren’t visible in the photos (they should be stanped on the back of the instrument), so I don’t know if it is one of the flutes I made, but Von Huene’s flute are consistently good in general, assuming you like traditional tuning.
Bonus points for anyone who can say how we achieved the stained finish on the boxwood. Keep yer yap shut if you are one of those people I’ve already told - don’t spoil the sport for everyone else
Looks lovely. The stained colour is delicious and I’d be very interested to know how it is done. Now I know carvers blacken oak by fuming it with ammonia vapour, and that in the old days this was done by hanging the wood up in a stable full of horses and letting the ammonia vapour from the “horse products” seep in and change the colour over a few months. I’m guessing the boxwood was aged another way. I’ve aged paper and vellum with tea or coffee, but the Grenser looks too regular for that…I have a boxwood carving that would look much better that colour than the bright yellow it is now when new, so I’ll be watching this thread for the answer…
Loren, do you happen to know if hair dye will also dye pvc? I suppose the brand and color number is a trade secret with von Huene. My wife has a supply of partially used tubes of hair dye, so I ought to give it a try.
Pat (Patrick von Huene, currently the head of the shop) is quite open about telling customers that Miss Clairol hair color is how the instruments get dyed, so it is not problematic for me to say that much. Going further and revealing the exact process is not something I’d be comfortable with however, sorry.
I can tell you though that the process is not as straight forward as one might imagine, even if you have the right brand and type of dye: To get good looking colors, and little or no streaking, is rather time consuming and a bit of a PITA. I have no idea how attempting to dye PVC with hair dye would work, as I’ve never tried it, but using a similar process to how we dyed boxwood instruments, you’d probably have to double the cost of your instruments to make it worthwhile. Could be though that PVC would be easier, I haven’t a clue. Worth a try though.
RIT dyes work, the powdered variety. It’s pretty much like dying fabric. There are also some dyes used to treat automotive fabrics (vinyl?) that work but I haven’t seen those around in ages.
I use aniline dyes, that dissolve in water. They are nice, as you can custom mix them to match the existing color of the antique. I use 4 colors for antique Cocuswood. Walk around all day with different colored fingers, I should probably get some surgical gloves…
I put a few drops of oil on the jaws of the 3-jaw chuck on my lathe. I tried to wipe all of the excess oil off the chuck. The next day I sat down at the lathe not thinking at all about what I had done the day before. To make matters worse, I was wearing a new shirt. The old expression is: “Live and learn”. I’m not so sure that that applies to me. If anything, I seem to be unlearning (forgetting) the older I get.
Hair dye…I am delighted with that bit of information Thanks! I shall try it on my carvings!
When you think about it, who works harder on developing luscious, lasting, rich and ravishing colour, than the designers of cosmetics? Next time I listen to Skip Healy playing “Dark is the colour of my true love’s hair” I shall wonder…true love perhaps, but true colour?
FF
Thanks! I shall try it on my carvings!