This flute showed up on eBay :
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=150602736717&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT
I’ve never seen such an instrument. Top finished. It’s not really my taste, but surely required craftmanship to make.
Terrible pictures, not even one of the left hand section, and doesn’t show much of the holes. Looks like it has medium-small holes? From the 1830s?
I confess I find the keywork aesthetically busy.
Chased rather than chaste?
Acanthus leaf model
Grinter flutes :
Peter Noy make a beautiful copy as well…gold plated keys…(a bit much for my taste, but it’s striking).
What a beautiful flute! Peter Noy told me he cast his keys from the original Rudall that he had in his shop. I like the keywork, classic salt spoon clam shell design.
Anyone know why there are screws in the shared block for the C/C# foot keys? Can’t say I’ve ever seen that before, I’m curious if it’s a repair or a way to adjust the somehow. Also interesting is the fact that all the blocks have pins running through them, I wonder if any of them had popped off or they came with the flute.
The screws look like a bad repair, (maybe the winner will send it for a repair) 
the silver pins in the blocks are stock, though they used steel most of the time.
Looks like a short head joint to me. Sugest anyone wanting to play at modern pitch checks it aginst Terry Mc Gee’s flute size table to see what pitch it is.
For someone with more knowledge/better eyesight than me: where’s the tuning slide? I would have expected a double ring where the tuning slide would be, and I can only see single ones.
I need to have a better look at it - only browsed it via my phone yesterday… (ok, have done - yep, poor photos) but the thing that stood out to me was the sounding length - 598mm. Assuming it is correct (and the vendor’s blurb reads as that of someone who knows his stuff), that says Low Pitch! Not very surprising in a relatively early flute. Someone needs to quiz the vendor directly on that (done!).
Here’s what I asked:
Hello. It really would be very helpful to have more and better photos! Some taken in decent ambient daylight, perhaps? Individual ones of each joint, perhaps from at least two sides, one showing the tuning slide extended or the barrel separate from the head…? If you can’t add them to this listing, how about hosting them on e.g. Photobucket and posting a link here?
Also, some more info on pitch. I know you have given the sounding length of 598mm. That suggests to me this flute is not playable as high as A=440. Could you comment on its playing pitch? If you can measure it, what Hz value do you get for A with the slide open about 1/3 (10-15mm) of its potential extension? It would also be helpful to have the overall assembled length and the C#-Eb length - from the centre of the top open tone-hole (L1) to the centre of the cup of the Eb key with that aligned with the finger-holes.
Lovely flute - hope it does well for you.
It is very beautiful! I suspect the pitch issue may have something to do with the realistic starting price. If I’m right, this is not a modern ITM usable flute, which of course significantly restricts its market and perhaps, therefore, its value. However, it may be of greater interest to period instrument players than most R&Rs if it plays c420 and is certainly of greater interest to collectors given the fancy furniture. A pity if it weren’t to be played, though!
NB, he’s only willing to sell/post within GB!
Darned if I can tell - the photos are inadequate, and I hope they update with more. Description says there IS a tuning slide, and that the head is lined.
One cannot see it on the current photos, sure, but I’d lay odds there are rings both ends of the head but no upper ring on the barrel - probably due to the weight/thickness (cost?) etc. of the rings. Two of them adjacent would be too too much! It isn’t all that unusual to find flutes with no upper barrel ring or maybe something like a narrow plain band for reinforcement which actually disappears under the fat decorative one on the head when the slide is full closed. I would not doubt the vendor’s statement that there is a slide…
The seller confirmed to me that he only ships to UK. I asked for more pics but he didn’t answer to this.
Well, if it has a barrel it must have a tuning slide also, or the head would be directly attacked to the body…
Regarding the tuning slide, the “single” ring is actually split down the middle (one side on the headjoint and one side on the barrell). When the tuning slide is fully closed it will give the appearance of only one ring. I had a good inspection of Peter Noy’s own copy of this style of Rudall back in February.
David
Ah well, I’ve tried.
Sent Date: 09-May-11 11:50 BST
Dear darlington1952-58,
Hello. It really would be very helpful to have more and better photos! Some taken in decent ambient daylight, perhaps? Individual ones of each joint, perhaps from at least two sides, one showing the tuning slide extended or the barrel separate from the head…? If you can’t add them to this listing, how about hosting them on e.g. Photobucket and posting a link here?
Also, some more info on pitch. I know you have given the sounding length of 598mm. That suggests to me this flute is not playable as high as A=440. Could you comment on its playing pitch? If you can measure it, what Hz value do you get for A with the slide open about 1/3 (10-15mm) of its potential extension? It would also be helpful to have the overall assembled length and the C#-Eb length - from the centre of the top open tone-hole (L1) to the centre of the cup of the Eb key with that aligned with the finger-holes.
Lovely flute - hope it does well for you.
Cheers!
- jemtheflute
Sent Date: 09-May-11 14:07 BST
Dear jemtheflute,
Wow. So many questions. I was only able to put four pictures on E-bay. I don’t know what you mean by ‘photobucket’. I’m a bit of a technophobe. I got most of the information about the flute from an old insurance valuation I had. It was valied for ‘insurance purposes’ for £4,000 at the time. Going back a few years now. I play Irish music and once warmed up I used to have the flute pulled out about 1/2 inch to play in sessions. Hope this helps.
- darlington1952-58
Sent Date: 09-May-11 14:48 BST
Dear darlington1952-58,
Um, OK. Thanks for your reply. Photobucket is a free web-host for images. Just Google it. There are many others. You upload your photos to a folder you create on an account you set up, then you can “share” them elsewhere on the Web.
Re: pitch etc., OK, you’re saying the flute plays in tune for you in company in a modern session context with an average slide extension. That’s good news - just leaves me wondering about the measurement you gave, then. It sounds too long. I’d expect in the upper 570s (my own R&R is a typical 578mm). Can I ask you to re-check? Please measure the sounding length (centre of embouchure to level with far, open foot end) in mm, and also the overall length and the C#-Eb length as explained in my first query. That would be very helpful. Extra photos would be a bonus - if you could take some (outdoors is best!) and e-mail them to me to jemhammond@yahoo.co.uk I’d be grateful - and I’d even put them online for you if you like. As things stand, you are potentially reducing the possible price you might get due to doubts over playing pitch.
(BTW, I’m not in a financial position to bid myself, much as I’d like to - I’m just an interested bystander and involved in online discussions of these things, cf this thread on your flute: http://forums.chiffandfipple.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=82066&start=0. - you may well have potential bidders/buyers there! You may also find it worthwhile joining Chiff & Fipple as an ITM player yourself… assuming you haven’t already)
Best wishes,
- jemtheflute
Sent Date: 09-May-11 18:26 BST
Dear jemtheflute,
Hello again. As I stated before, I am a bit of a technophobe and all the questions you are asking go over my head. I have played this flute in many sessions. There is no problem with its tuning. Thank you for your kind offer of assistance. I am very grateful for your interest, but as you are not in a position to bid on the flute, I hope you will excuse me if I do not get into a discussion about it. With very best wishes.
- darlington1952-58
So, our “technophobe” vendor can’t use a tape-measure or attempt to understand plain English requesting specific measurements (though writes good English him/herself) or see how giving this information could assist the sale outcome… and judging by another comment in the Q&A, doesn’t seem to have very high expectations of what this flute could achieve despite an insurance valuation of £4k!!! Probably can’t (be bothered to) take better photos either! I don’t blame him/her for the final part of the last response given where I said I’m coming from, but it does seem a trifle brusque!
Still, I hope this flute does get what it ought to - I’m inclined to believe the vendor’s saying it plays OK for modern pitch use with a “normal” slide extension and to discount the given SL measurement. Given the fancy silverwork, this one should have a bit of a premium on it - ought to get £3k minimum unless there are concealed faults - which I also doubt - I think the vendor is being straight.
I asked if he could email me photos as I know a few who would be interested in having this flute out here on the west coast of the US. He responded saying that he will only ship to the UK. Too bad, because he may have ended getting a good price for it. He’s not trying too hard!
Casey
Make him ship it to someone in UK (Jem?) that is willing to ship it in the rest of the world…