RARE PRISTINE LOUIS LOT SOLID SILVER FLUTE, RESTORED. Totally original, never cut, enlarged or "re-tuned". Start Price USD 9,640.00 Current Price USD 9,640.00 Time Left - Bid Count 0 Buy It Now Price USD 9,870.00 Reserve Price - Start Time Friday, November 28, 2008 End Time Monday, December 08, 2008 Location Wichita, Kansas See more about 'RARE PRISTINE LOUIS LOT SOLID SILVER FLUTE, RESTORED.' Description WICHITA BAND INSTRUMENT COMPANY 2525 East Douglas Avenue Wichita, KS 67211 Tel: (316) 684-0291; FAX (316) 684-6858 Email: wbic@wichitaband.com A FINE AND ORIGINAL FLUTE FROM THE LOUIS LOT WORKSHOP, MADE IN PARIS IN 1892. Serial number 5350, made in 1892. All .925 sterling silver, seamed construction, with multiple maker’s marks and French hallmarks on each joint and on most keys. Sounding length is 604 mm, the embouchure is original and 10.1 x 11.9 mm. The head has not been shortened, the embouchure never enlarged. All pad spuds and washers are original, the case is original. Never “re-tuned”, now with new pads and corks from our shop in Wichita. Superb and clean early L. Lot silver flute showing minimal wear to the keywork. Tube thickness is .014 inch. “Originality” is of utmost importance with any Lot flute, in our opinion. Having restored more than 300 vintage French flutes over the past quarter of a century, here are a few things that any prospective Louis Lot buyer should examine carefully. If the instrument wears serial number 2500 or later, make certain there’s are maker’s stamps and French hallmarks on the body, head and keywork. Early Lot flutes were usually not hallmarked. Later Lot flutes, if solid silver, almost always were. We advise clients to inspect keywork very carefully. Most (not all…) pre-1900 Lot flutes wear “tear-drop” D-sharp key touches. If the D-sharp touch looks like it came from a later flute, there’s a chance the foot is a later replacement. The head is engraved “L. L / Louis Lot / Paris / 5350 / Brevete “. The embouchure is stamped with the French stamp for sterling silver and with the maker’s stamp. The body: never dinged or dented, 100% original. Seamed construction under the trill posts, visible at the tenon and above the trill-keys rib. Engraving is sharp, not buffed or polished over. The tube of the body and all keywork wear the French stamp for .925 sterling silver as well as the stamp of the maker. Total length of the head is 227 mm. The body is engraved “L.L / Louis Lot / Paris / Brevete “. Total length of the body, end of foot tenon to the top of the head socket is 367 mm. The foot: As with the head and foot, the condition is superb, 100% original. The clutch arrangement for the low C is “pinless”, as on a modern Powell or Haynes flute. Total length of the foot is 133 mm. Sounding length of the flute, assembled, is exactly 604 mm. We believe the flute was built to A = 435 / 438 pitch. The instrument has recently had new pads and corks installed in our shop in Wichita. Our premier flute repairman, Allan Shorthill, has been with our company more than 30 years, has restored hundreds of 19th. century French flutes. The instrument “feels” solid, plays very well and is very similar to Louis Lot #4566 that I’ve reserved for my own use. All tone-holes are soldered to the tube, in typical French “hand-made” pattern. The G key is in-line and the keywork extends to low C. All springs are of blued steel and are original. The leather case is original and in good condition. Pad spuds are the original “spike and washer” that were typical of those from the Lot workshop. Other than the points noted above, the flute is original, unaltered, never “re-tuned” or otherwise damaged. It’s a very clean example that wears new pads and corks from our shop in Wichita and that has had almost no wear to the keywork. The instrument is listed on our web site at $11,500. Our EBay price is lower, predicated on the recent strength of the US dollar versus the Euro. Please note… We take seriously our role as conservator and restorer of fine musical instruments and may decline selling a particular item to a client who might alter, replace important component pieces, “re-tune” or otherwise damage an irreplaceable musical treasure. For reference, see the following: “The New Langwell Index”, a Dictionary of Musical Wind-Instrument Makers and Inventors”, by William Waterhouse, published by Tony Bingham, London, 1993. “Great Flute Makers of France, The Lot and Godfroy Families, 1650-1900” by Tula Giannini, published by Tony Bingham, London 1993. “Das goldene Zeitalter der Floete, Frankreich 1832-1932” by Karl Lenski and Karl Ventzke, published by Moeck, Celle, 1992. Wichita Band Instrument Company is a small musical instrument emporium located in the center of the USA. We’ve been in business since 1953 and have had the same owner since 1963. Originally we were a repair shop that specialized in woodwind and sax restoration. Today we have 18 employees including eight of the finest repair technicians in the country. Virtually ALL the items we sell have been fully reconditioned in our own shop, although we do sell a few unrestored historical instruments each year. Due to the heavy demand for our services, we do no school repairs, and very few “walk-in” repairs. It’s sometimes possible to buy a vintage flute on Ebay for a lower price, but unless that instrument wears all new pads and corks from a reputable shop, you won’t know how it plays until you spend another several hundred to have it mechanically overhauled. With a used flute from OUR shop, you know it’s in the finest condition when it arrives at your home! Wichita Band’s service warranty is the same as it’s been for more than thirty years: “ALL new and all used instruments sold by Wichita Band Instrument Company come with our 24 month service warranty. It’s in addition to any factory guarantees. For two full years, we will repair or replace, whichever in our estimation is the more advisable, pads, corks, springs or other parts required, at no charge to the customer. The customer is responsible for shipping and insurance charges. Cases and plating finishes are not covered by our service warranty but are sometimes covered by factory guarantees.” Wichita Band Instrument Company maintains a repair department capable of restoration work of the highest quality. Even though repairs are essentially “free” for the first two years, after that period has expired, we remain at your service to maintain and repair your musical equipment forever. It’s our “service after the sale” promise and has been since 1953! In the event that a customer requires service under factory guarantees or Wichita Band’s service warranty, the item must be returned to us and not directly to the manufacturer. Anything we sell can be sent to you for a short approval period without obligation. We collect NO SALES TAX, unless you’re lucky enough to live in Kansas. The customer is responsible for shipping and insurance and must pre-pay back to us any freight and insurance charges on returned equipment. International shipping is available. Returned items will be refunded within 3 weeks of receiving the item. We’re happy to send any instrument “on approval” for ten days, but ask the prospective buyer to pay shipping both ways and to reimburse us for restocking and clean-up charges , 2.95%, on any returned instrument. VISA/MASTERCARD/DISCOVER/MONEY ORDER/CHECK/WIRE TRANSFER ACCEPTED. Credit cards not accepted from some countries. Must ship to the credit card billing address with exceptions made at our discretion. Our specialties are “Golden Age” flutes from Haynes, Powell and we often have a selection of vintage flutes from the Paris workshops of the nineteenth century. We’re happy to respond to any and all questions about flutes and other musical instruments, but please don’t write and ask “What’s granny’s mellophone worth?”. Do an Ebay search and you’ll learn more than we’ll ever be able to tell you. **** Place a Bid!