I am also not trying to make a joke out of this, but when I read your post, I thought “humidor.” You know, like for cigars. I bet you could talk to a local tobacconist and get some ideas, or maybe even a case, which would fit and is designed to do exactly what you are talking about.
I second Cariad. Hammy’s Mooncoin case is great for keyed flutes. It also fits my McGee really well (sorry, Terry). It’s rugged and the flute fits snugly inside. Best of all, it’s got a little cutout that’s just the right size for a tube of cork grease and a little Humistat humidifier (about the size of a Chap-Stick). It also has locks on the latches.
The only drawback is it does look basically like a pistol case, but if you’re after function …
I tried to make a case liner for the BEAUTIFUL handmade walnut box my McGee came in using orthopaedic foam but failed miserably – cutting & fitting the foam was IMPOSSIBLE! – so it was back to the Mooncoin. Oh well, pubs are so hard on cases anyway …
And if Hammy will cut the foot section special for your 8-key, I don’t see how you can go wrong.
I have a case that has many drawbacks, but I have to say, it was in my suitcase when I flew to Japan and if it can bring an instrument happily through baggage check then it must be good. not that I would ever do that again, but anyway…
go to a hardware store and get a piece of PVC pipe with two caps and have it cut to the size of your flute. You can then superglue one of the caps on and stuff a little fabric or similar into the end, and also wrap your flute well in a piece of fabric (my sister actually sewed me a flute “sock”). So it’s kind of a flute tube. The problems would be that it would probably not do well with keyed flutes (but you never know), it looks a bit odd (even if you paste it with stickers), you can’t carry anything else like a whistle or two and it’s a bit more unwieldly than a square case. But for taking a flute to and fro without damage it’s great, and it’s cheap as well. just an idea.
[quote="Chang HeI am also not trying to make a joke out of this, but when I read your post, I thought “humidor.” You know, like for cigars. I bet you could talk to a local tobacconist and get some ideas, or maybe even a case, which would fit and is designed to do exactly what you are talking about.[/quote]
Actually, most of the oboists I know do go to a tobacco shop for humidifiers for their cases!
shannon
These cases have intrigued me for some time…
http://www.caseclosed-inc.com/flutes.php
It’s the most protective case I’ve ever seen, and while they’re mainly made for Boehm flutes, I don’t see why one couldn’t be made for a simple system flute–the maker will do custom work.
Wow, Tintin. Those are cooler than you-know-what.
And if all the flute parts are held in place with Velcro straps (at least that’s what it looks like from the photo), I don’t see why it wouldn’t work for a simple system flute?
Nice – but pricey.
I’ve seen fifers with getups like these for years. I dunno if they’re the same beastie. I do doubt it however. A case that costs more than the instrument that it contains is rather silly dontcha think?
Here’s what I did …
I bought an aluminum tool case from here:
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Displayitem.taf?itemnumber=35900
I bought a stack of foam on Ebay for cheap, then cut the foam to make two layers with inserts for my flute, low whistles and high whistles. The flute and low whistles are in the bottom layer and the high whistles are in the top layer. The only problem I’ve run into is that my little flute humidifier can’t handle all that foam, so I’m trying to think of a way to make a separate compartment for the flute that will retain moisture better.
Here are pictures:
That’s cool, Lisa. A double-decker case! And nice bunch of whistles … are those all Sindts?
My big problem seemed to be cutting the stuff, esp. around keys on my keyed flutes. Anyone have any thoughts on the best weapon for that? Scissors, Xacto blades and a utility knife were of no avail – everything just snagged or tore or the foam broke off.
As for the humidifier … maybe one of those Velcro-on Humistats in each layer would be a good option for you? You could just stick them to the inner wall of the case for each layer; that’s what I did for my Rubbermaid storage box and it works pretty well.
Hi Cathy,
The top 3 are a Sindt A/Bb/B set, the middle two are old Burkes (before the o-ring, way, way back), and the ones near the case handle are a Humphrey D/Eb/E set.
I had all kinds of trouble withxacto blades and utility knifes as well. As you said, the foam snagged and tore. I think the snagging was due to the fact that the blade is only on one edge, and the non-blade edge would catch on the foam. It worked much better when I started using a curved xacto blade, like this:
Thanks for the humistat suggestion … I’ll try it!
Lisa
And thanks for the blade idea – I bet that would help a LOT. I may just have to give this another try (look out, everybody! 
).
Thanx for the whistle update as well. I have two of the O-Ring Burkes (Alum Narrow Bore & Brass Session Pro) and like them a lot. How do you find the Humphreys?
Ooops, there she goes, OT again. I think I’d better change my screen name.
I love them. They are sweet, responsive, perfectly in tune, and I can get what seems to me to be a perfect complex, slightly-chiffy sound depending on how I play it. They have a satisfying amount of back-pressure and I love that I can “lean” into a note without going out of tune.
So far, the coolest case I have seen is one of the leather cases from Mark Hoza. They might not be airtight for humidity control, but I imagine a humidistat or the like in one would serve, as long as you kept it wet. And for more humid weather, it should be fine. Now, maybe the flute needs to be an Ironwood flute to have the coolest setup, I don’t know! Or maybe you need to be getting off of a horse, and an have your Cooktown Ironwood flute tucked away in your saddlebag! 
Here’s the link if you’re interested:
I love the look of leather.
Hey All -
I’m more of an observer here (a Powdermilk bicuit deficiency), but I can’t help chiming in on this one. I just finished building a case for my new (used) keyless Olwell. It came in a soft case, and I’m just not a soft case kind of person. For me, I wanted as case as slim-line as possible, to slip easily into bags and such, and the funky old oval clamshell cases that come with some of the antiques inspired the lack of corners. It’s rosewood, oiled.
It has a quilted fabric bag for a cover, also.
Thanks for letting me share.
Cool! …and when will you be going into business?!?
Pamela
I’ll take a couple of those!
Seriously.
M
What should one look for in a case for a keyed wooden flute? Should it be airtight? Could that egg-crate foam be harmful to the wood?
I have a doskosport pistol case that I bought with my Tipple that I am thinking about using for my new old wooden flute, since I keep the Tipple in one of Doug’s cloth pouches now. Is there any reason why this wouldn’t be a good idea?
Not that I’m aware of…my keyed flute has lived in a pistol case for a year (in fact, that’s what it came in) with no ill effects.
I just got my new Casey Burns mopane flute on Saturday, and it came with a padded fabric case. I’ve been keeping it in the case inside a Rubbermaid container with a guitar Damp-it humidifier.
That’s working fine, but I would prefer a more protective case such as a pistol case. For those of you who use a pistol case with a wooden flute, how do you handle humidification? I would think that most pistol cases are nearly airtight, so putting the case inside of a Rubbermaid container with a Damp-it or sponge would probably not be very effective. I also wonder if putting a humidifier inside the pistol case will work very well since there’s very little open air.
Bob