OK as you know I have an old beat up Bundy flute I am learning on. It works fine for the moment considering I am a newbie. I took it to a tech and got it checked and playworthy. I am having a problem with a sticky foot joint though. They never mentioned it and my tutor was surprised that they didn't. I wiped the ends down with alcohol to clean any residue off which helped but it still goes on and off hard. Any tips?

Thanks in advance for your time.

The best thing to do is to take it back to the repair person and have it properly fitted. I have a few tricks that will work, but you really need to have it done with the right tool.

The easiest home remedy is to apply some parrafin (canning wax from the supermarket) to the tenon and then put it together rotating the footjoint. Then take it apart and clean the wax off with a paper towel..

If Gordon chimes in, Thank him. I learned that trick from him and it does work great..

Joe B

Marie, to add what the others properly said, I just would advise you to take care when mounting the footjoint not to apply force over the mechanism. It may bend and cause air leak.

Zevang

Gordon, I've used your paraffin method on a tight footjoint and it worked great.

Marie, since you are so new to handling a flute, I would advise caution. It's too easy to create an air leak, so a re-visit to the tech is probably your best bet. The tech should be able to do it quickly and easily, and probably won't charge you for it if he has just worked on the flute for you.

Let's see. My favorite remedy -- Cork grease from a clarinet player. Really. But paraffin wax is quite nicely, too.

You should definitely take it back in and get it fitted properly. It saves so much hassel.

No, please do not use cork grease what ever you do. As it has been said in other threads, it will gum up, make a mess and cause you more troubles then what you started with. Please be careful about what advice you are giving out.

Kara is absolutely right. Never apply cork grease, vaseline, chapstick, or anything else to the tenons of your flute.

My school's flutes all have a tube of cork grease with them, but I never use them, though many others use them.

Ugh!! I wish band directors were taught proper maintenance of instruments, that and common sense!

I am curious on the theory of using parafin (as a one-off technique). How is it supposed to improve a too tight fit?

Over the years I have used nearly everything that has already been mentioned (either out of ignorance or desperation). What I found through my own personal experience is that no matter what you apply, the key to success is to completely wipe it off (joint and tenon), several times over, or it will just gum up like crazy.

Listen to the experienced people (previous posters)on this. I did not have anyone to guide me during those pre-teen and early teen years. It's a wonder I didn't do damage.

I am curious on the theory of using parafin (as a one-off technique). How is it supposed to improve a too tight fit?

Quite simply the paraffin has just the right consistency to act to compress the tenon just slightly when you put it together. If the tenon is just a little too snug this will take the "edge" off the tightness.

Leave the paraffin in there and it will continue to compress and gather dirt and lint and ruin the tenon and socket ALA cork grease or any other substance added to the tenon.

That's why the myself and the other techs here are adamant, that if you do use this method, THOUROUGHLY clean the paraffin out!

Joe B

Yipes. Seems like everyone disagrees with me! Listen to the majority, then.

I've used small amounts of cork grease (put it on, wipe it off, put the flute back together) for years and years and never had any problems.

But if everyone else is so strong about it, listen to them.

You've been very fortunate so far, but it's still a terrible thing to do to your flute, and I would strongly suggest you discontinue that practice now. The joints are (or should be) sized to fit into each other snugly. They should go in easily, but stay where you put them, and should never need ANY kind of lubricant. If you have a difficult time putting the flute together, it's a sure sign that you should talk to a repair tech about sizing the joints.