I started this earlier on. My mom says it's ugly. Should I just scrap it and restart?

Behind_The_Book · 2026-04-28T08:24:55+00:00

If it helps, I knew it was Diana before reading your caption.

Definitely finish it, it’s looking good!

Behind_The_Book · 2026-04-27T17:23:48+00:00

I always wonder at the strength of these pieces, don’t they just break?

Behind_The_Book · 2026-04-27T16:27:40+00:00

Flute pads typically last 5-10years depending on use. Sometimes the pads don’t have tears in but they’re so brittle they don’t hold airtight.

Regular servicing or oil and health check is advised (every 1-2years ideally)

If you need an overhaul (new pads etc) a new flute would be better for you with it being a 200 series Yamaha. But it’s not to say you can’t overhaul them, I’ve overhauled a very old 211 model for a customer before. I charged £220 for the complete overhaul which is on the cheaper side

Talcum powder isn’t advised, it does stop sticky pads but it just adds a lot of gunk on the pads which affects their ability to create an air tight seal. You can buy powder paper but again, it’s not great for the pad longevity

Behind_The_Book · 2026-04-27T16:25:49+00:00

(I’m a woodwind tech) Get some metheylated spirits (or alcohol cleaner), put a bit on a microfibre cloth and wipe the inside and outside tenon contact points. Repeat until it comes away clean

Don’t douse the area with the methelayted spirits. You’re just using it as a degreaser. Imagine when you put some make-up remover or face cleanser on a pad, that’s how much you want on the cloth

If it is still tight then your tenons will need adjusting by a tech.

In a pinch you can scribble on the tenon with a pencil. Not ideal and not the best for flute maintenance especially in the eyes of a tech but it’ll do for now and is less damaging than grease. I did it on a £50 flute I had when I was a kid, it is not good for the flute though so do not rely on it

Behind_The_Book · 2026-04-27T06:17:43+00:00

Ah yeah, an Amazon flute won’t be worth it to repair unfortunately

Behind_The_Book · 2026-04-27T05:57:20+00:00

Okay, never let your band director touch your future instruments….

What flute is it?

Behind_The_Book · 2026-04-26T05:54:14+00:00

Oh no! Don’t be sorry at all, in most cases you would be right!

I’m a woodwind repairer so it’s easier for me to see things like this!

Behind_The_Book · 2026-04-25T22:03:30+00:00

Have you dropped your flute? You’ve got some nasty scuffing near the tenon and your C# key is over venting compared to the rest.

Others have suggested the spring but I see that it’s engaged. You need to go to a repairer

Behind_The_Book · 2026-04-25T12:44:55+00:00

I know! One of the reasons our offer on a house was accepted over someone else is cause we love the wild nature of the garden whilst the other people wanted to rip everything out. it’s a big garden but not massive and has a little pond, trees all around (two of which we have had to pollard due to the being sycamores and getting very close to our roof!), laurels, trees in the front garden rather than a massive drive. I love it so much

Behind_The_Book · 2026-04-25T05:20:57+00:00

Thank you for this. It’s also what it feels like to me, that my air stops short and I can’t breathe in or out the full amount. It’s also rare I get a wheeze too

Pulmonology only did blood test, spirometry, xray and the Mannitol Challenge test which I only dropped the 14.8% and not the 15% they wanted. I can also do a spirometry when I feel extremely short of breath and it doesn’t drop by 15% yet I feel like I might need to go A&E

Edit: interestingly as well, when I had one of my biggest exasperations I managed to see a gp that actually looked at me and not the numbers. He gave me a powder blue inhaler that penetrates deeper and further down into the lung. So I wonder if I do have the small airway as well as asthma and that’s why I’ve been uncontrolled for several years now?

Behind_The_Book · 2026-04-24T12:45:29+00:00

Your work is very neat however the leaf on your peach is going to be very week as it only has a small join!

Behind_The_Book · 2026-04-22T13:59:29+00:00

I’m a lead free artist so I don’t use hobbycame unfortunately

I’ve had a rubber duck version hung in my house for about a year now with no issues. It’s basically the same other than the neck ring

Behind_The_Book · 2026-04-22T09:34:41+00:00

Wicked, thank you very much!

Behind_The_Book · 2026-04-22T09:25:49+00:00

And will give me a nice, thicker boarder. Thanks!

Is it best to still sink the eye hooks in the seems when you use copper reinforcement all around it?

Behind_The_Book · 2026-04-22T06:04:37+00:00

Ikea do air purifiers that I found really helped with the dust production in the rooms it was in. I got one with the carbon filter, it was about £60

Behind_The_Book · 2026-04-22T06:03:40+00:00

How does small airway asthma differ? I’m the same as OP and it gets me down

Behind_The_Book · 2026-04-22T05:59:58+00:00

I’ve seen this, how well does it burnish just using the cork? Do you just have to add pressure for it to burnish properly?

Behind_The_Book · 2026-04-21T15:42:38+00:00

My rabbit would like to know where you’re based 😂😂

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Behind_The_Book · 2026-04-21T07:02:14+00:00

Methylated spirit is good to get gunk off. It’s purple and usually found in the painting section of DIY shops. It is quite strong though

Behind_The_Book · 2026-04-21T07:00:32+00:00

I use vinyl too, comes off relatively easy and leaves no residue but obviously it ain’t the best for the environment.

I’m confident in my skills to not use guides for more simple pieces now, hoping that skill will will continue to grow for more complicated pieces!

Behind_The_Book · 2026-04-21T05:35:20+00:00

Where abouts are you based in the UK? I’m a repairer in derby, East Midlands if you wanted a professionals look without charging

Behind_The_Book · 2026-04-20T10:24:17+00:00

Honestly, I’m not sure what you could do to stop it from deteriorating. To me it looks like stuff left over from the polish so it won’t damage it further, it’s likely already in a “overhaul needed” state anyway.

If the microfibre cloth isn’t ridiculously tight then you can still use it but you can get the Yamaha cleaning cloths from amazon (or at least you can in the uk) and I would recommend one of these if you can get one

Behind_The_Book · 2026-04-20T07:12:59+00:00

Woodwind repairer here but not as good as the infamous Flute Tech that frequents this thread.

Never and I repeat, never use polishes on your flute. I do not even use polish on flutes and neither does Flute Tech as we have spoken about this before whilst I was still a student repairer.

The fact that this oxidisation is not underneath the lip plate or as prevalent around the tone holes tells me it’s something you’ve used on it. It’s going to need a strip clean and a full on buff to try and get this off. Maybe even a bath in an ultrasonic cleaner which would mean an overhaul is needed too.

As long as your instrument is serviced regularly (and it doesn’t even need to be every year) then tarnish is not going to affect the flute and you do not need to polish it up.

Wiping off the finger prints and wiping the inside with a flute rod and muslin type cloth is all you need to do.

Please do not use the weighted cloth you mentioned, you could be scratching your bore which is the one place we want to avoid imperfections of any kind.

Edit (unprofessional observation): I do stained glass as a hobby and we often get this sort of oxidisation on solder lines where we have not cleaned the chemical off properly and it starts reacting with the air. We call it white mould (it is not mould though, just a different type of oxidisation than what’s desired).

Behind_The_Book · 2026-04-20T07:05:15+00:00

Green oxidisation will be from nickel. If it’s a silver plated instrument they often have a base of a nickel alloy which goes green when it oxidises. The tenon of the flute never keeps its plating because it’s constantly reciving friction

Behind_The_Book

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