Who made this flute?

Irish Flute
1

Hi!

My mom was just at the flea market and found this flute. She sent me these two photos from her cell cam, and I managed to buy it over phone for about £70 after some haggeling.
The seller had no idea what the story of the flute is (as she bought it at an auction), nor the maker. But it seems to be an early 20th century flute, and for sure, its certainly not a new one. The condition is however very good. No cracks or damages, and it seems to have been kept humidified.

So this leaves me wondering. Who made this flute? And can somebody give me an age appoximation on it?
The keys probably need adjustment. Can I do this myself?

Its just too bad that I cant see the flute for myself for a week or so, since I dont live in my old place anymore. I can provide proper photos if it is necesary, for identifying it.

Many thanks.

Edit: new photos added

2

it looks like my no name old German flute, the kind they call “nach Meyer”.

3

Yup - looks like a nach Meyer to me, too… Some of these are great players and I think you got a great deal!

Pat

4

Hey AbraXas,

Good Catch for that price! :party:

I believe the flute is a Mollenhauer, based upon the shape of the swells at the sockets.

Have Fun!

5

Yup OG… not “Original Gansta”

but “Old German” :smiley:

I have a few just like that.

Not to be a downer but don’t get you hopes too high.

There is chance the tuning may be simply awful.

On the plus side I see wear marks at the tone holes so someone put some playing into it and it might be ok.

Its a fun way too learn about old flutes… just get’em as see what makes them tick… or not.

6

If yer old flute ticks,

I’d advise cleaning and oiling

:smiley: :thumbsup:

7

Thanks for the quick replies.

Yeah, I won´t get my hopes up too high, Aanvil :stuck_out_tongue:
What kind of tuning problems did you have with your OG? Key related, or just bad craftsmanship?

I am waiting for a 5-keyed Lehart, so this will not be my main flute, as the one I have ordered is customised for my pipers grip. I am loooking forward to trying the OG though.
But let´s say that it is in tune, and I fix it a bit. What do you think would be a suitable resale value for it? I guess it is worth a bit more than the 70 pounds I paid for it.

8

The craftsmanship is usually really nice its the math used in the bore.

You paid around 100 bucks US.

Its probably not worth more than that if it plays well enough.

Personally I’ve already been down this road so I wouldn’t give you a wooden nickel for it.

Its worth the money though as a tutorial in old flutes so what you paid is a good enough deal.

9

I get your point. I just have to find somebody who hasn´t already been down this road. Just kidding :stuck_out_tongue:
So there is a basic mathematic error in early flute making, regarding the bore? Or is this typical for old german flutes?
It has obviously been used a bit, so I guess the tuning can´t be that bad after all, if the player wasn´t completely tone deaf.
Where does the intonation slip up on your OG (old gangsta and old german :stuck_out_tongue:) flutes?

10

I have six key Bb fife with nearly identical keywork, but I’ve never wanted to play in Bb enough to put the work into finding out how well it can play.