So, for the past few days, I’d noticed my flute was sounding out of tune with itself. At first I assumed it was me, and my embouchure was slipping or something, but after checking it out in the mirror, and sounding fine on my other flutes, I decided it was probably the flute’s fault. I looked it over a couple days ago, and this is what I found: http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/kellydebutts/album?.dir=9fba I have no idea how it happened.
I filled it in with beeswax as a temporary fix and the tuning instantly went back to normal. So, my question is: what should I do? Can I fix it myself(I’m handy), or must I send it back to the maker, or what?
Sorry to hear about your tenon, it doesn’t look too bad, but I think you know what you should do-contact Casey Burns-that is your Bb, isn’t it?!
I know it’s not fun to be without your flute for long, but it’s the best thing to do. I’m sure he’s done this repair before-and you want it done right, right?!!!
No, it’s not my Bb, it’s my (only decent) D. It is however also a Burns. I’m sure you’re right about sending it to Casey for repair though. It’s just that it’s my main flute, the one I play all the time, and I don’t have much in the way of a back up, so I was hoping there was an easy way to fix it myself. And I think playing the uilleann pipes has made me even more willing to tinker and do little repairs to my instruments myself. But I guess I’ll have to send this one back to Casey. Ah well. Thanks for making me do the right thing!
Why not strip off the thread, fill the chips with plastic wood ™ or something like that and sand it down to match the original profile? It should be simple to sand it down sufficiently accurately by gluing the sandpaper to a flat piece of wood, something like a popsicle stick, and stroking it gently. The chips do not appear to extend into the bore so only the OD would need to be sanded.
That’s just the kind of thing I was considering doing. I don’t know why not. Except that everybody(including the maker) says it’s usually best to just let the maker deal with it, whatever it is.
The question I would have with plastic wood is how would it hold up under constant barrage from water vapor? My Sweet has several cracks in the tennon filled with what looks like some form of resin or such (it’s not superglue - maybe some other thick glue though). I’ve only had the flute since around Christmas time, but I think it’s several years old and they’re completely stable.
I agree the maker is in the best position to fix it, but a call to Casey might be worthwhile, too, since it is only the outside of the tennon and he might advise how to repair it yourself…but the big fear would be that if filled incorrectly it could cause a split on the section the tennon fits into.
Kelly, you can probably get by with the beeswax as a temporary fix for quite a while. The thing to watch would be that more of the tenon wood doesn’t start to chip off. If it does, then obviously you’ve got a more drastic problem that might warrant sending it back to Casey Burns for repair. But if you do send it back to him, what are his options (short of making you a whole new joint, which is unlikely unless he happens to think that there was some inherent defect in the wood that he should have found before selling it)? Obviously, he’s going to plug the hole with something, either plastic wood or some other such hardening compound, or perhaps by gluing in a small plug of wood cut to fit. If he does that, he’ll probably sand the jagged edges on the tenon smooth to make it easier to fit the wood plug. If you’re comfortable doing this kind of thing yourself, there’s no reason not to try it, if it helps you avoid being without a flute for an extended time while it ships back and forth to the west coast.
The concern about swelling and shrinking of the wood around an inert plug (like with plastic wood) could be valid, especially depending on the type of wood your flute is made of. I can’t tell from your photos what kind of wood it is, but if it’s a porous wood like boxwood or rosewood it would be more of a concern with an inert plug than if it’s a more dense wood like blackwood or cocus. That’s why making a plug out of the same or similar wood might be the best bet.
Another option for you since you’re in Virginia would be to contact Patrick Olwell at his shop in Nelson County (434-277-9215 ). Either he, his son Aran or his apprentice Kara I’m sure would gladly fix your flute for a nominal charge. Whatever work they do on your flute would be every bit as good as what Casey Burns would do, and since it probably wouldn’t take long for them to do it you should be able to take care of it with a nice day trip down into the Virginia countryside. They’re all nice folks and very amenable to working on flutes even if they’re made by others. Before you ship cross-country, give them a call.
I think you should email your photos to Casey and let him decide if you can fix this yourself. Trying to go ahead and fix it on your own may make what would be an easy repair for him into something far worse. In so doing, you may void any warranty he may offer you.
He provides excellent customer service, as many C&F’ers can attest. It is not a big deal to send the flute to him by priority mail. I’m sure he’ll tell you how long he anticipates it taking. Perhaps you can borrow a flute in the meantime.
And, you know, just in case it’s a wood defect sort of problem, he deserves to have the opportunity to see it. In the interest of product improvement, etc.
Now this sounds good to me. Perhaps it will even last until I can get myself another D flute(which I’ve been planning to do for a while now anyway, and at East Durham I discovered that I NEED a McGee , so I’ve been thinking about it even more lately)! Everybody has given valid advice, and I’m sure I’ll end up at least asking Casey Burns what he thinks, but maybe I’ll put it off for a while, and see how the chip holds up with the beeswax…
Out of curiousity, what model McGee did you try out? I had a similar experience in Asheville with (what else) an Olwell, but would like to consider some options before upgrading at some point in the moderate future.
Well, I’m not actually sure! It was LOUD, so I was thinking it might have been a Pratten type one, but I don’t remember if it had the one peice body or not, and the guy didn’t say what it was and I didn’t think to ask .It had the rounded rectangle embouchure, which could also account for the loudness. shrugs
, so I’ve been thinking about it even more lately)! Everybody has given valid advice, and I’m sure I’ll end up at least asking Casey Burns what he thinks, but maybe I’ll put it off for a while, and see how the chip holds up with the beeswax…
.It had the rounded rectangle embouchure, which could also account for the loudness. shrugs