Dear fellow members,
Are there any other places on the internet that sells used flutes besides ebay that I can trust to get a good brand and that will not need work? I may be asking for too much, but I have been warned about eBay many times. I am not looking to spend a fortune. I am looking for a good flute for my daughter to start off on. It has been so long since I have been flute shopping that I am not sure as to what is considered good as far as student flutes go. Any suggestions? Thanks so much!
Also look at http://www.usedflutes.com
These are mostly flutes from private parties looking to sell their own flute, perhaps for an upgrade, so you don't see nearly as much 'flute flipping' here as on eBay.
There are good ways to find a flute on eBay, you just have to be smart about it. You generally can't just buy a flute in an auction, and it's in fine shape to play. If, however, you factor in the cost of some repairs, you can come up with a nice flute for the price.
The eBay flutes will almost always need some sort of repair, from an adjustment and a pad or two to a complete rebuild/overhaul. Find one from a dependable make/model, for a student flute Yamaha 200 or 300 series, Pearl 500 or 600, Jupiter 500 or 600. Cheaper but still reasonable for a beginner would be Armstrong 104, Emerson, Gemeinhardt 2sp. Make sure there are good pics, a ding or two shouldn't be a problem but lots of them indicate a beat-up instrument.
Stay away from any off-brand Chinese flutes, the majority of these will not be suitable for normal adjustment and repair, most flute repair people will not repair them because the repair will not hold. They do make nice lamps, though...
I have a pretty good instrument repair tech fellow in town, and he will receive an eBay instrument for me, take a look at what repairs it needs and at what cost, and send it back for me if it looks like a bad bet. Many, but definitely not all, eBay sellers will let you return a flute that won't suit you, if you do it within 5 or 7 days.
Sometimes a used flute smells bad, from a smoking household or something similar. If it needs all new pad/cork work anyway you can get a replacement flute case and that usually takes care of the problem.
Shipping a flute costs around $15, depending on exactly what you do- USPS, UPS, FedEx, flat-rate shipping, etc.
(I would personally just avoid the hassle and buy a rebuilt flute from Kara...)
That is exactly what I did. I bought a beautiful Yamaha from Kara and I should have it within the week. She was also kind enough to add a nice gem in the crown. My daughter is going to love it. Thanks to everyone who jumped in to help. I was very lucky to find such helpful people to guide me in the right direction. I will do a follow up when the flute arrives.
hmm... i was wondering if "symphony" brand flutes are any good. ive never heard of that brand before. and i didnt want to be upset with my purchase if i were to buy it.
As far as I know, the "Symphony" flutes (off eBay) are a very inexpensively made import flute. I don't think that a reputable instrument repair technician would work on a flute like this, unless what you really want is to convert it into a lamp. When they use really cheap materials, you literally cannot make soldering/metal repairs to the flute because the solder on the flute is so soft- it will bend too easily and go out of adjustment really quickly.
If you want an inexpensive flute, buy a used Yamaha 200 series flute and plan on paying to overhaul it ($300 or so). If all it needs is an adjustment and a couple of pads, you're way ahead of the game money wise. You'll end up with a much better flute that way.
I agree with Tibbie. I sell the used 200 series for $325 that are close to new condition and adujusted, so you wouldn't need to over haul it for that extra $300 That is, if I ever finish up the two that I have. Summer is crazy..
Why would she look at Yamaha.com if she has already bought a Yamaha from me? You might want to read through a thread before responding. Just a thought...
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That is, if I ever finish up the two that I have. Summer is crazy.. 
