Best Cleaning Tools?

[ninjanoman]

When it comes to cleaning my flute, I have previously been quite lax about it and neglected my student Trevor James quite a bit. I used a 'pipe-cleaner' style wand until that broke, and then moved onto an old hankie on the cleaning rod supplied with the flute, occasionally cleaning it out (terrible, I know!). However, due to the requirements for the higher grades, I recently purchased a solid silver tube Intermediate Di Zhiao flute and am VERY attached to it, so polish and clean it after every use.

I have suddenly realised that I am not sure whether or not there are better cleaning products available. I use a Trevor James Flute silver polishing cloth and either a cotton hankerchief or muslin cloth on the cleaning rod supplied. Are there any specialist cloths available?

If anyone could help with this it would be brilliant,
ninjanoman

[pied_piper]

There are several good flute swabs you can consider. DO NOT use the "pipe cleaner" style. That just holds the moisture next to the pads and causes premature deterioration of the pads. Always store the swab OUTSIDE of the case away from the flute. The moisture can also cause mold or mildew inside your flute. If you have a case cover with an outer zipper compartment, store the damp swab there.

IMO, here are the options you should consider. All are safe for intermediate/pro flutes.
Low price: plain gauze swab http://www.fluteworld.com/Sweetheart-Gauze--CC-SG-.html
Med price: Silk swab http://www.fluteworld.com/Hodge-Silk-Fl ... -SFS-.html
High price: Flute Flag http://www.fluteworld.com/Take-Down-Flu ... TDFF-.html

The silk swab works a bit better than the gauze type, but both do a good job on the flute body. The Flute Flag is the ultimate swab. The square end does a better job of removing moisture from the headjoint near the cork.

I use a silk swab on my Muramatsu flute and piccolo flag for my picc...

[fluteguy18]

I agree with PP entirely. I only want to add that for cleaning the exterior, it's important to use an untreated cloth. Many polishing cloths have an abrasive additive that polishes by removing a fine layer of metal. That's why they turn black as you use them. Most flutes (even solid silver ones) are also plated so that the solder lines along ribs, rings, and toneholes match the color of the silver. Sometimes that plating is on top of a copper 'strike' which gives the plating a uniform appearance. Eventually these treated cloths eat through this plating and expose the metal underneath.

Something like ultra-suede or microfibre would be ideal.

an example: http://www.fluteworld.com/Beaumont-Microfibre.html

The point of polishing the exterior is not to actually polish, but to remove skin oils from the metal's surface. So in fact you are merely cleaning it. Polishing is a process of gradually removing material to remove scratches, and should be left to your technician.

[dddiam]

I do not like short cleaning rods. I want to be able to clean my flute during a gig or concert without breaking it down. So I like a full-length flute cleaner.

One person in this thread mentioned the "Take-Down Flute Flag", which is $40 and getting harder to find. I have one and, unscrewed, it fits most brief cases.

Another full-length flute cleaner is the Floozi. It is around $20, and it is the diameter of a flute's interior with its softness and cleaning surface running its full length (unlike the Flute Flag which has an integrated swab only at its end). You can see the Floozi Flute Cleaner at https://www.etsy.com/shop/FluteHoot. This is my preferred flute cleaner. It is flexible, and can be bent to fit any type of bag. It also does not produce the scratchy feel of the Flute Flag's plastic rod against the end of the foot joint.

The Floozi is available in either flannel or in micro-fiber. I actually prefer the flannel for cleaning my flute. I wrote to the manufacturer who told me that the flannel version is a little less snug than the micro-fiber, and I do not want to chance polishing the gold-plated interior of my head joint. I just want to dry it.

[blowtorch711]

Not available. Do they make them to order?

[SylvreKat]

Offshoot question--what's best for swabbing out a bass flute?

I have a tenor sax silk drop, which seems to do fine for the body. But it's not thick enough to reach all sides of the U-curve and leaves the outer edge damp still.

My tenor friend has a thicker pull-through that's rather like a shammy. But I'm' concerned this might be TOO thick for the curve. Although it does fit through the narrowess of her tenor's neck....

What have anyone here found that works for drying the U-curve?

>'Kat

[Gandalfe]

Fabricate your own from materials locally available at fabric stores. Just sayin' ...