hey
i have a terry mcgee 4-key rudall refined blackwood flute, which i like very much. i work at home, and it’s been my casual practice to open the flute at some point during the day, and leave it out, playing it when i have time.
am wondering if this is in some way damaging to the flute or it’s playability. i swab out after playing it for more than 10 minutes.
wondering if anyone else does the same.
jeff
When at home, I sometimes leave my flute assembled for days. Regarding swabbing, I follow the directive “if it smells, it’s too late”. 
Seriously, after longer playing I blow the water out and swab the flute out if I feel I should, but that’s enough for me. I regularly swab the flute out after gigs and sessions, though.
Doesn’t sound like a great idea but I suppose its more about where you live and what the climate is like than anything else.
Its way too dry in California for me to do that with any of my wooden flutes.
If I left them overnight the rings would fall off!
I have a delrin for just such reasons.
That’s how my flute cracked! Granted, it’s 160 years old, but still…
arbo
The rings fall off if you don’t swab the flute out? Sounds odd to me…
Of course where one lives has a huge impact on how to store flutes. Here in Germany it’s always humid and even in hottest summer it seldom goes below 40% humidity…50-70 is average. I never had any bad experience with storing the flute assembled for a few days, even though I admit that I wouldn’t leave it assembled for a week or more, though. The single crack in my flute’s barrel is a result of my own stupidity.
Regarding swabbing, I just wanted to add that what we call the “spit” actually isn’t spit, but condensed water, so not too many bugs in there…unless the flute isn’t swabbed/cleaned for a really long time, there’s nothing wrong with just blowing the water out.
Right now its hovering around 40c outside.
103/104F for those of us celsius impaired. 20% humidity.
Not a good for flutes.
Same thing as Aanvil here in New Mexico, but with 11% humidity currently. Ach, poor wooden things.
If I leave my blackwood flute out for very long the tenons start to shrink and then the flute won’t stay together anymore.
I also have a delrin (or two) for just such reasons.
I keep wooden flutes in a sealed plastic box most of the time when not playing. Today the humidity is at 15 percent so wouldn’t want to leave the wood sitting out unless actually playing. Last night, at an outdoor gig, the wooden flute was out for three hours in the dry with no bad effects. I popped it back in it’s plastic bin when I got home, though, where the humidity stays around 60 percent.
blow the water out could be a first step,
use a vertical stand could also help… so that the residue water cannot deposit always in the same points…
and remember to clean the mouth-embochure part in order to avoid signs on the wood.
ps
I cannot feel completly relaxed if my flute is not in his box… an unexpensive derlin flute could be a nice idea 
St. louis is humid and I often leave flutes assembled all day.
In the winter I humidify and do the same.
No problems so far. Been a long time.
Do try to stand them up in a wicker basket
so they drain.
I generally leave 'em together
but only if the humidity is 50-75
Pegs…
I keep the together ones on pegs…
Baskets are for cats
eeeeeekkkkk! 20%!!! 
It’s easier on an all-wood flute than a lined & keyed model.
It happens the same in all zones with mediterranean climate here in Europe, and there’s even less humidity if it’s windy (I suppose we still enjoy better weather than in desertic zones, so I shouldn’t complain);If I play for, let’s say, half and hour, sometimes there is hardly water in the flute. I’m thinking about getting a delrin in order to let my Hammy rest during next summer
Hehe… 
Indeed.
Jon is basically down the street give a few miles but I was in Encino and he up on top of some small mountain off the Arroyo in South Pasadena area and he clearly isn’t checking his hydrometers.
I think we all forget why the Arroyo Seco got its name.
We are having a real dry spell too.
Some real nice fires going on right now in the Angeles Crest.
My lungs hurt from the smoke actually.
Ah… Spain… Lovely palace!
I remember being on a train from Madrid out to visit Toledo and taking in the countryside.
All the while wondering why the hell I traveled all that way just look at the Spanish version of Palmdale and Antelope Valley.
Oh, ya now I remember why… Really great cheap Rioja, Jamón ibérico and Spanish girls… not necessarily in that order… the Jamon might rank first. LOL That’s a story for another time.
You know, Castile-La Mancha is basically a much way cooler version of the Mojave Desert.
I’m kidding of course. I really do love Spain.
Its no wonder early Spanish explorers set up shop out here.
It really does look like home in many ways.
Terrible, I just read about that in the newspaper; let’s hope it ends soon (and you have some fresh air to breath). The high temperatures and the wind (and arsonists 
) are destroying thousandss of hectares here, in Portugal and in Greece
I wish I could return the compliments but I’m not much of a traveller (just Ireland); those three motives should be included in any travelling guide about Spain, along with tortilla española, cañas (beer) and tapas (food usually served with cañas) 
You’d like the north of Spain (Galicia (where I come from), Asturias, Cantabria, País Vasco): far better food, good wine & music and great weather.
You know, Castile-La Mancha is basically a much way cooler version of the Mojave Desert
While walking the dog this morning I was thinking, that, without the olive trees, that’s exactly what it looks like 
So when you’re hungry, do you go get some “Grindage”? 
Where on earth did the idea come from that flute drool has a low bug count?
Jim
Basically it is condensed water, not spit. A fluter with swine flu will probably bugify his flute anyway.
Depends on how one plays though. I know some pretty wet players whose flutes I wouldn’ want to try after they played it.