How It's Made
The flute was originally made with bone, and later advanced to materials like bamboo or wood. The instrument is now commonly made with sterling silver in American, while most European flutes are created with wood.
Steps:
Steps:
- Manufacturers start by producing the head joint by injecting a steel bar into a sterling silver tube, then reducing the diameter using a press.
- The center joint is created by making another tube with drilled holes, which are used to mark the tone hole positions. Small titanium "spiders" are added on the holes, then a tone hole is added around each. Using small copper wires to temporary hold parts in place that will later be soldered, ribs and posts are added. A "profile cutter" is then used to shave the tone holes, effecting the sound.
- Wax molds are used to create duplicates of the 120 parts of the flute. These are used to create a "tree" of parts, this is then used to make a plaster mold that shapes the parts, then eventually creating the silver pieces used on the flute. These pieces are then soldered together, including the mouth piece parts, before being polished for the shiny finish.
- Excess metal is cut away from the lip plate, and a hole is cut in the head joint and using copper wires to hold the lip plate to the head joint.
- Using "straight springs", the keys are added. These springs help to open and close the keys. Producers then test each key and pad to check for air leaks.
- Logos are added and the instrument is wiped down before completion, taking a total of over 120 hours to create.