Hi guys!
I bought a used wooden recorder and it plays beautifully- as if it were new. The only problem is that it reaks of cigarette stench (my hypothesis is that it`s in such good condition because a smoker wouldn`t have had the lungs to play it much.)

My question- is there any simple way to get the smell out without damaging the instrument?

I was thinking about heaping animal bedding made from recycled newspaper (called Carefresh) on it for a week or so to see if that would wisk some of the smell off.

Any other ideas? I was also thinking about pledge or other wood polishes, but I`d like to hold off doing something that drastic...

Thanks!

i have one too, sorry, that isnt smoke. its natural.

I`m not sure how much of it is a natural scent since a lot of it has dissipated after a week sitting around in my house. It smells much better after some fresh air. It could have been a combination of natural scent and smoke.

That does provoke a new question though: why would that be the natural scent? That`s not really what wood smells like so does it have to do with how they cut it?

If a smoker had played it for a long time, it is difficult to get rid of the smell. It`s difficult to get rid of the tar in the smoke that penetrated deep into the wood. Good luck.