Smokey smell within a used flute

[Virginia Veach]

I purchased a reconditioned Armstrong 104 from eBay for my daughter. She says it smells very smokey, and has trouble playing it because of this.
The case does not have a smokey smell, it's coming from inside the flute. At the moment we are leaving it out of its' case to try to dissipate the smell.
Does anyone have ideas about how to get rid of the smell? Any ideas about what would cause such a smell other than use of the flute by a smoker?

[Band_Geek]

Leaving out of the case for long periods of time is very hazardous to the flute. I dont think that leaving the flute out of its case will do anything to get the smell away. I have no idea how you could get rid of the smell. It might be built up mold as it is a used flute. You could probably take it to a shop and get it checked out. The age of the flute may be a factor. My friends Gemeinhardt flute which is about 20 or 30 years old smells like attic, so it might be age.

[MeLizzard]

Was this instrument damaged in a fire?!? Or even present in one? I used to work for a dry cleaner which performed fire/smoke restoration work. Information from a combination of sources might be helpful to you. First, contact a reputable repair tech. Eliminating the smell could be as simple (not really cheap, though) as replacing all the porous/smoke-absorbing parts of the flute--pads, corks, bumpers, crown cork, etc. Good luck!!

[Virginia Veach]

Thanks for the suggestions! The EBay seller suggested that I wipe the inside of the flute with a fabric softener sheet. (If that did not work, he was willing to clean the flute.)
Much to my amazement, this worked! The keys stuck a little bit but my daughter fixed that with some paper. She is now using the flute with no problem. Of course, now, it smells a bit like fabric softener! But no more smokey smell.