FLUTES + PICCOLOS

J&H Clean, Oil, & Adjust

The COA is a thorough cleaning, regulation/setup, and “oil change” for your instrument.

Much like your car engine, there is continual wear and tear on your instrument through normal use, so regular maintenance is required to keep your instrument running at full potential. We recommend a COA once or twice a year depending on how much you play. Each player has a different body chemistry and wear pattern on the instrument, so we will discuss your individual needs to help prolong pad life, optimal mechanics, and the highest level of play at all times.

The instrument is fully disassembled and gently cleaned. The body and keys are polished if desired.
Wooden piccolos are oiled if desired.
The headjoint and footjoint tenons are cleaned and the fit is adjusted as needed.
The headjoint cork is checked for proper fit and placement and corrected or replaced as needed.
All keys, rods, and screws are cleaned, lubricated, and checked for proper function. Binding or excessively loose keys are addressed.
The spring tensions are checked and set to customer preferences.
All pads are cleaned as needed and properly shimmed or floated to ensure a complete seal and a positive feel. Excessively worn, dirty, or damaged pads are changed as needed.
If a pad is changed, the tone hole is checked for flatness and leveled if applicable.
Any noisy or unstable regulation materials (corks, felts) are changed as needed, and timing adjustments are optimized.
Intensive play testing and adjustments are made until the horn has “settled in”.

J&H Professional Optimization

The Optimization is a fundamental reworking of the structure and mechanism of your

instrument to bring a positive feel and stability for years to come.

People often contact us with the complaint that their instrument played great for a while, but it didn't last, or that certain notes on the horn always feel stuffy, or they just can't do X Y or Z. Sometimes people don't notice until they play a horn that just "plays like butter" and they wonder why their horn never feels like this. This is often because the mechanics are too sloppy to maintain a consistent adjustment, a tenon isn't fit optimally, the bore of the instrument is leaking, or a plethora of other issues that are commonly overlooked.

Our COA takes care of the standard things needed to make your instrument play well, but the Optimization takes it to the next level. This is where we take a deep dive into the key fitting, the tone holes are dressed, the tenons are addressed, the body is leak checked, and every detail is checked and corrected, but we use the pads and materials that are already in place. This isn't possible for every instrument due to pad and material age, so contact us to see if this will work for you. This option is excellent as a "New Horn Setup" if you want the foundation to be as good as it can be right out of the box.

The instrument is fully disassembled and gently cleaned. The body and keys are polished if desired.
Wooden piccolos are oiled if desired.
Any dents are removed as necessary.
The headjoint and footjoint tenons are cleaned and the fit is adjusted as needed.
The headjoint cork is replaced and placement is set and optimized for intonation and response.
All keys, rods, and screws are cleaned, lubricated, and checked for proper function. All keys and mechanisms are meticulously fit to remove binding, excess motion, and noise.
The spring tensions are checked and set to customer preferences.
The tone holes are leveled and dressed as applicable.
All pads are cleaned as needed and properly shimmed or floated to ensure a complete seal and a positive feel. Excessively worn, dirty, or damaged pads are changed as needed.
Any noisy or unstable regulation materials (corks, felts) are changed as needed, and timing adjustments are optimized.
The mechanisms are lubricated where applicable.
The key venting is carefully set and tested for proper response and intonation.
Intensive play testing and adjustments are made until the horn has “settled in”.

J&H Repad

The Repad is a materials refresher for instruments with worn out pads and noisy or unstable corks and felts.

This is a solid option for horns that are structurally sound and need little to no mechanical work to achieve their playing goals. Student and school instruments, back up horns, outdoor gigging warhorses, and any others that don't require a precisely nuanced mechanism would all be good candidates for this repad.

To save our customer money, our sacrifice is in the last 5% of detail that can sometimes add an extra day or two to the entire job, but the player may not even notice. We still address everything required for a solid pad seal, quiet mechanism, and easy play. Not all flutes are good candidates for the Repad, and if that is the case we will discuss the next best choice for you.

The instrument is fully disassembled and gently cleaned. The body and keys are polished if desired.
Wooden piccolos are oiled if desired.
Any dents are removed as necessary.
The headjoint and footjoint tenons are cleaned and the fit is adjusted as needed.
The headjoint cork is replaced and placement is set and optimized for intonation and response.
All keys, rods, and screws are cleaned, lubricated, and checked for proper function. Binding or excessively loose keys are addressed.
The springs are cleaned or replaced as needed and spring tensions are set to customer preferences.
The tone holes are leveled and dressed as applicable.
The pad cups are checked for flatness and corrected as needed.
New pads of your choice are installed and painstakingly shimmed and leveled until stable.
All corks, felts, and other regulation materials are replaced, and timing adjustments are optimized.
The key venting is carefully set and tested for proper response and intonation.
Intensive play testing and adjustments are made until the horn has “settled in”.

J&H Overhaul

Our Overhaul is a complete mechanical correction and rebuild of the instrument from the ground up bringing a level of precision to your instrument that is not only better than new, but will last for decades.

To make your instrument truly "better than new" takes dedication and meticulous attention to detail. We strive to take your instrument to the pinnacle of stability and precision through experience, a high level of craftsmanship, and the latest tools and materials available.

The majority of professional "player's horns" will fall into this category when it is time to replace the pads. Not only do the pads and adjustment materials need replaced, professional players will find a great technical and stability benefit in having the key work optimized.

The instrument is fully disassembled and gently cleaned. The body and keys are polished if desired.
Wooden piccolos are oiled if desired.
Any dents are removed as necessary.
The headjoint and footjoint tenons are cleaned and the fit is adjusted as needed.
The headjoint cork is replaced and placement is set and optimized for intonation and response.
All keys, rods, and screws are cleaned, lubricated, and checked for proper function. All keys and mechanisms are meticulously fit to remove binding, excess motion, and noise.
The springs are cleaned or replaced as needed and spring tensions are set to customer preferences.
The tone holes are leveled and dressed as applicable.
The pad cups are checked for flatness and corrected as needed.
New pads of your choice are installed and painstakingly shimmed and leveled until stable.
All corks, felts, and other regulation materials are replaced, and timing adjustments are optimized.
The key venting is carefully set and tested for proper response and intonation.
Intensive play testing and adjustments are made until the horn has “settled in”.

J&H Everything Else

Any minor repairs, custom modifications, or a la carte jobs will be discussed and quoted on a case by case basis. We enjoy new challenges and modifying or creating things that help the player get exactly the feel and sound they are chasing. Let us know if you have a new idea you want to turn into reality on your instrument!

Piccolo/wooden flute tenon replacement and recorking
Crack repairs
Tone hole replacement
Plugging of or modifications to tone holes
Custom note facilitators
Custom key risers, reshaping, or relocating of touch pieces
Spring optimization options
Replating services
Insurance appraisals
Any other major or minor repair that you can dream up!

Pricing and Quotes

For us, every instrument is unique and individual. For this reason, we quote every job individually based on what we see. Call, text, or email us to discuss your instrument and we will be glad to help you make it the best it can be!