Now that I’ve been playing a Boxwood flute for 10 or so days - having only played Blackwood previously - I notice very few if any saliva drops forming in the chamber. The flute was oiled when I bought it and I oiled again a days ago - Almond oil.
Is Boxwood that absorbant? Or have I become Mr. Dry Mouth? I never was THAT wet a player but would see droplets rolling down the blackwood when I checked out the bore. I’m talking equal playing times, here, even though the Boxwood is in the breakin stage.
I´ve waited for more than a year (close to 1.5 I believe) to get a woodenflute and now I found out that Mr McGee is using his sharp tools on my piece of… YES! boxwood He will turn this piece of boxewood into a keyless R&R refined for me… what a nice guy huh?
Guess I´ll have the flute here in a couple of weeks or so…
As Terry put it so funny in one of his mails, the “darling are you coming to bed soon?” syndrome or as I use to say, like a kid the days before x-mas.
I definitely notice drops of condensation in my boxwood flute. Even the day before I oil it. I dunno if I’ve ever noticed it in cocobolo or blackwood – probably because those are so dark, not as much light gets in.
In the first few days (or weeks), a new boxwood flute IS that absorbant, particularly if you’re not oiling it frequently. The maker of my boxwood flute recommends oiling his new flutes every 3 days during the break-in period, and frequently after that if the flute is played regularly (almond oil drips out during use and needs to be constantly replenished). I did this, as recommended, during a very wet, humid summer, and had very little condensation until I’d really broken the flute in and started getting toward the hour-long or more practice time period. Even then, it took awhile before the condensation began to really accumulate quickly (more the 20min to 30 min range). I still oil this flute frequently (once a week or so), and the condensation is now pretty much as you’d expect for a flute.
In my experience, a flute that readily absorbs oil will soak up humidity/condensation like a sponge. A new boxwood will do this (absorb oil and humidity) more than a new blackwood. So, if your flute absorbs oil, as most boxwoods do, you will get less condensation, particularly if you have not oiled it recently.
Gordon
My first boxwood flute was a McGee, from back in the day (anyone else remember?) when Terry usually had 6-8 flutes lying around for folks to buy off-the-rack. I don’t recall its having been particularly spongy. However, my next boxwood, a Cotter, REALLY seemed to soak up anything. Particularly oil, but I did notice a seeming lack of condensation in the body. After I had it a year or so, with relatively frequent oilings, it seemed to stop being so darned thirsty.
And, likewise, it also seemed to shift less. I think well-cared-for boxwood will tend to become more stable with time, even with humidity swings.
He will turn this piece of boxewood into a keyless R&R refined for me… what a nice guy huh?
