Heard of a Martin flute?

[idahott]

Has anyone ever heard of a Martin Galaxy flute before? It seems to be a nice open hole flute but my wife says it doesn't fit her hands very well and is a bit too much of a stretch. I have searched with no luck. Thanks

[flutepicc06]

I have not heard of that particular brand, and I have played instruments from nearly every maker imaginable. There are many, many brands of junker flutes coming out of China, and the names are constantly changing. I'd be inclined to believe it's one of these, and thus would suggest you steer clear of it, even if it were to suit your wife.

[fluteguy18]

I have heard of galaxy before, but not necc. Martin Galaxy. If you cant find anything about them online, then I would steer clear of it as well just as a precaution. If the purchase has been made already, then I would get plugs to plug the holes that she is having trouble reaching, and make do until the flute either quits, or she feels she needs to change to a different flute.

[idahott]

Thank you both for the feedback! I found reference to a stencil Martin Galaxy on a sax web forum and that’s about it. Unfortunately we have already bought the flute. We actually got it about 13 or 14 years ago used. The wear on the case indicates (if original) it’s at least that many years again since it was made. It sounds pretty nice, better than the Armstrong she use to have she said. But it had a bad dent too. Should we plug the holes and she will get use to it or is there different reaches for flutes? If so should I try to get what I can from this one and buy her a new student model? And any idea what I should ask for it & look for? I have found 2 used Armstrong and Gemeinhardt student Flutes for around $100. Thanks in advance.

[fluteguy18]

chances are, are that what she means by it is too far to reach, is the left hand G key. So, she probably has an inline G flute. It is common for flutes to also have an offset G key on them, and this makes the 'reach' a lot easier. I used to play on an inline, but having to stretch my finger so far was starting to cause discomfort, so I switched to an offset g key.

So, if you go and buy another flute, try to find one with an offset G key, which is very common on all levels of instrument quality.