I’m in the market for a keyless flute. I’ve been playing an M&E steadily for a year and am ready to get a wooden flute. I’ve done a lot of research/reading/listening and have narrowed down the list a bit (I’m not willing to wait longer than 6 months or so which leaves out Olwell and Wilkes). So: Hamilton, Copley, Lehart, McGee. Are there others I should be thinking about? (I know there’s Grinter but I haven’t been able to ascertain how long the wait is).
I’m sort of leaning towards the Copley based on posts I’ve read here before. I also like the fact that he’s in the U.S. which would make logistics easier.
Last I heard McGee’s waiting list for a keyless was well over a year and a half long, and Chris Wilkes’ was only about 7months for a keyless - Are you sure you have your timeframes correct?
I sent Terry an email awhile ago and he said around 6 months. But I didn’t realize that Wilkes’s period was that short. Just what I need–another maker to consider!
Wow, when I wrote him a year and a half ago he told me the wait would be 2 years. Hmm, perhaps there was a misundertanding and he was giving me the time frame for a keyed flute…
Yes, Wilkes’ waiting list for keyed flutes is insanely long, so most people assume there’s a really long wait for his keyless flutes as well, but that waiting list is much more reasonable.
You should also look at Skip Healy’s instruments at http://www.skiphealy.com (I’m his Webmaster and I own two of his keyless flutes). They’re incredible insofar as tuning and tone is concerned.
Skip just moved his workshop and is still getting sorted out, but I think his waiting list for a keyless instrument is holding steady at 30 days. You’ll get better information from the man himself at skip@skiphealy.com.