The #3143 is just a couple of numbers difference then mine #3036, nice! I am not much of a fan of the Abell head style, but I bet it sounds nice…
That Rudall Carte & Co, look at the spacing of the tone holes on the lower section??? The G hole appears to be larger then the F3 hole??? Well I guess the F# is not flat, if they pushed it up next to the G hole.
I think anyone contemplating purchasing the “Rudall Carte Project” should check with the vendor the size and spacing of the RH holes, and drill them into a scrap of broomstick to make sure they can make that stretch. On that flute, the gap between R1, R2, Short F and R3 are about equal. On most flutes, the gap between R1, R2 and R3 are about equal, and Short F is shoe-horned in a little below R2.
Kind of reminds me of the hole spacing on the smaller band flutes that they made, like the Eb and F flutes. Of course you can manage that stretch, but on a D flute? This is no doubt a military band flute with the short foot…
to be clear, the “project” flute was actually made this way by RRC.
If you look, you will see the RRC stamp on the RH section to be above the G hole, when the stamp is always (nearly) between G and F#. There was simply no space for them to stamp it there.
Best I can guess is this was a custom flute made for someone who was either with a shortened middle finger (lost to accident or amputation?) or missing their ring finger (less likely since you can play with index-middle-pinkey just fine w/o difficulty in the reach, same with middle-ring-pinkey set-up).
the spread is ample, but not unreachable.
I’ve simply never gotten around to doing this flute and offer it as advertised, a “project.”
The Rudall with Abell head is a bad-ass player. And the Abell head (i’m not a fan either, but it works on this one) is very nice looking on this flute, as if it belonged there.
Was going to sell them separately, but frankly thought it best for the new owner to keep them together.
you could sell the head easily for about $700 on its own and recoup a fair bit of the flute price, frankly.
This is no doubt a military band flute with the short foot…