Here is two German flutes in my collection. The flute on the left looks like a original Meyers, a real nice playing flute, looks a lot like a original Meyers, it has the screw on key plates, the ring on the first section. It had me fooled, until I got a original Meyers.
The one on the right is a original Meyers that I just won on ebay. You can see the plate mounted keys, the ring on the first joint, but it also has the crown stamp above the Meyers stamp, making it a original. In addition it has the cork dampers under the keys, and the keys are a little more detailed. The first thing that gave away the copy was the crown cork adjuster was fake.
Can’t wait to see how the original Meyers sounds. This flute has been copied by the thousands! When a original came on ebay, there wasn’t much interest, as they figured it was another nach… At $250, who can complaine?
Green. Green with envy.
I have four nicht meyers, and I agree that it must be a great model they copied. One is a good player (with some crumby workmanship, but fun). One has hope - I will attack it (gently) with high-speed rotary tools sometime soon. The other two are good for spare keys, rings, posts, and lamp-building; they have the fine acoustic qualities of a leaf-blower.
How’s the low B sound on the true Meyer?
nicht meyers
You mean nach Meyer (after Meyer)? (Of course, if you meant nicht Meyer, it’s a cute pun–not Meyer.)
I’ve also seen Meyer copies referred to as Nacht Meyer–night Meyer, which makes little sense.
Now, if you’ll indulge me in one more bit of seasonally appropriate German pedantry (as Oktoberfest is underway), Lederhosen is
pronounced Lay-der-hoe-zen, not Lee-der-hoe-zen, which translates as Songpants. (Leder=leather, Lieder=songs.)
Pun was fully intended - you’d understand if you tried to play my NM #4. Nacht Meyers, on the other hand, are the ones sold only in the wee hours of the night to unsuspecting folks in leederhosen. Earlier that day, they thought they were buying Lederhosen, but they were mistaken. Leederhosen are known for chaffing quite badly opposite the windward side of the groin area.
The real Meyers will need a little work, before the Low B will sound. Even then it is very difficult to get a strong note!
Jon, remember the Meyer I sent out for you to look at, along with my Johnny Gallagher. You discovered that it is tuned for Eb instead of D. remember. If I leave it in Eb and play by myself, it is the easiest playing flute I have ever tried. Of course, easy playing has to do with what one plays a lot. Remember it plays in D and in tune with itself also if you pull the slide way out, surprisingly, but it does not play as easy as it does in Eb.
By the way, last week I won the flute on ebay form the Austria-Hungry Empire. I haven’t told anyone about it yet. I took all the pads off. It has a Bohem headjoint with a very strange embouchure. The embochure has a mustash. The bottom end looks like a Meyer. The keys are the best workmanship that I have ever seen. Another strange thing is that it has 2 each Bb keys! and 2 G# keys ! And, of course 2 F keys. The main reason I bought the thing is that it has the Bohem bottom C and C# keys that work very easy. Plus it has the standard bottom B and the way up top trill key. I am sure the head joint is for a straight wooden (Bohem) flute. I put on new pads because the bottom D does not play at all. The top keys down to G play very well. I took an old Bohem headjoint and it happened to fit my M&E and tried it, just to see what a flute tapered on both ends sounds like. It seems a bit muffled, but it plays. I thought maybe the bottom D would not sound because it was tapered on both ends. But that is not the case. Maybe there is a wee leak that I have not found yet.
One possibility is that it is not a flute at all, but a tube that a salesman carried around to show customers what keys, tennons, embouchure, et cetera, that they could chose from. Sort of like a window salesman might have a wall full of little windows for customers to pick from.
I’m going to put the keys back on and send it out for you to look at and put pictures on the net, I might get some info from someone.
Nelson
PS nach in German is a preposition that means all kind of things. It is used for toward or to as well as like. You can say I am going “nach” home.
Yep, it wa a very nice playing flute. Eb is always easier to play in, then D.
By the way, last week I won the flute on ebay form the Austria-Hungry Empire. I haven’t told anyone about it yet. I took all the pads off. It has a Bohem headjoint with a very strange embouchure. The embochure has a mustash. The bottom end looks like a Meyer. The keys are the best workmanship that I have ever seen. Another strange thing is that it has 2 each Bb keys! and 2 G# keys ! And, of course 2 F keys. The main reason I bought the thing is that it has the Bohem bottom C and C# keys that work very easy. Plus it has the standard bottom B and the way up top trill key. I am sure the head joint is for a straight wooden (Bohem) flute. I put on new pads because the bottom D does not play at all. The top keys down to G play very well. I took an old Bohem headjoint and it happened to fit my M&E and tried it, just to see what a flute tapered on both ends sounds like. It seems a bit muffled, but it plays. I thought maybe the bottom D would not sound because it was tapered on both ends. But that is not the case. Maybe there is a wee leak that I have not found yet.
You could try stopping up all the holes with that poster puddy, Blue Tack and see if there is any cracks in the sockets. After they are all sealed, try doing a suck test and see if there are any leaks.
One possibility is that it is not a flute at all, but a tube that a salesman carried around to show customers what keys, tennons, embouchure, et cetera, that they could chose from. Sort of like a window salesman might have a wall full of little windows for customers to pick from.
That is probably it! I it doesn’t play we can make it into a table lamp…
I’m going to put the keys back on and send it out for you to look at and put pictures on the net, I might get some info from someone.
Okay.
PS nach in German is a preposition that means all kind of things. It is used for toward or to as well as like. You can say I am going “nach” home.
Nach, nach! 
I tried some play dough from the Dollor Store and it does not work. Where do I get blue poster putty? That is, what type of store has it, what evcr it is.
Nelson
Elemers sells some, you can get it at the stationary store.
Got the original Meyers playing, it has very good intonation, no flat foot! Plays loud but mellow.
What happened when they tryed to copy it? I guess they didn’t measure it very well.
Nelson, I got mine at WalMart. In the section where they sell school supplies, or office supplies. Just ask the WalMart person for the blue poster putty.
M 
In the UK it’s called Blu-Tac (sp??)
and you can also get the stuff in a variety of flourescent shades - scary!
Chris
The Elmers stuff is better, as it is not a bubble-gummy, as the blu tac.
I concur with the recommendation of the Elmer’s putty.
I got the blue tek, it works great. Now, what are some of you tinkeraphiles reccomendation for keys. Should I get store-bought pads, should I use rubber cement, should I use sheet-foam cut with my cookie cutters. I have cookie cutters every size from 7 to 15 mm dia? I’m talkng about all keys. Please help me decide. The nice thing about these keys (the best made that I have ever seen) is that they have a 1 mm side wall around the edge of all keys. So the 2 mm foam sheet cut out with a cookie cutter only sticks out 1 mm from the key. Maybe now that I have the blue-tek putty, what ever I do with keys, I can put on one key at a time and see if it leaks.
Nelson
PS the word is going around Washington DC by those who talked to Congressman Foley that he says that after he gets out of rehabilitation, he is going to turn over a new page.
Really is worth it learning to float pads with melted shellac. It’s been the method of choice for about a bazzillion years.
Here is the original Meyers buffed out.
This flute is as much of a honking flute as a Pratten and such small tone holes… The tuning and intonation is very good, a lot better then the copies! I wonder what went wrong when the tryed to copy it? I was only able to hit the bottom B note by plugging up the bottom tone holes. I don’t know how you manage to close all those keys and stil keep your fingers on the tone holes? 
The Lyon & Healy is either a very close copy or made by Meyers as the flute sounds almost the same. Next I will measure both bores to see if they are the same contour. (I hope I am not boring you…)
The flute is made of Madagaskar Rosewood. When I was repairing it I noticed this unusual scent, if you have ever smelt Mad Rosewood you never forget that unique scent. Eilam will agree, as he turned me on the Madagaskar Rosewood. The wood is bright purple when first turned.
Jon, if you are boring someone use a spade bit. Also, if you are boring someone, it is someone who never played a Meyer. When I pick up my Meyer, it starts playing before I get it to my mouth. I have 2 other Meyer or nach Meyer ones that look like the one pictured in this thread. I have not done anything with them. In addition, I won another one on e-bay that I sent directly to you, it was pretty cracked up. What happened to it? I assumed you wanted it to canabalize for the keys to put on a better flute that you would make.
So I might want to try my hand at redoing the key pads. Though, I am not redoing the Austria-Hungarian thing, I’m sending it out forthwith after I try the blue tec. (I told a neighbor that I wanted blue tec and he said he node one that trees good) I do not understand about the shalac behind the foam key pad. Is the purpose of the shalac to hold the foam pad in the cup or is it to put the exact proper tilt to the pad. If it is the former, my sheet foam that I cut pads from had a stickie paper bascking and needs no glue. If I wanted to glue it, I could smear a wee bit of rubber cement on the back. If the reason for the shalec is to get the right tilt, why wouldn’t a dab of rubber cement work better, no heat. In the olden days, shalac was all they had. A lot of questions here so please explain, those who are bored can fast forward.
Nelson
It was canabalized! It was like the American Indians, every part of the beasty was used, I even grind up the wood and use as crack filler… The problem with those look alikes, are they don’t sound alike!
So I might want to try my hand at redoing the key pads. Though, I am not redoing the Austria-Hungarian thing, I’m sending it out forthwith after I try the blue tec. (I told a neighbor that I wanted blue tec and he said he node one that trees good) I do not understand about the shalac behind the foam key pad. Is the purpose of the shalac to hold the foam pad in the cup or is it to put the exact proper tilt to the pad. If it is the former, my sheet foam that I cut pads from had a stickie paper bascking and needs no glue. If I wanted to glue it, I could smear a wee bit of rubber cement on the back. If the reason for the shalec is to get the right tilt, why wouldn’t a dab of rubber cement work better, no heat. In the olden days, shalac was all they had. A lot of questions here so please explain, those who are bored can fast forward.
Nelson
Shellac is still used for glueing pads. Yes it is used as a adhesive and to possision the pad. You could use a little silicon caulk also. With the flat keys the foam will fit right in, so you could use just about anything that sticks.