Model 650/2
The 650/2 has a mechanism constructed of nickle-silver heavily coated with pure silver and comes standard with the Split E mechanism and French-style pointed tonearms attaching the trill, G# and D# keys.

• Handmade grenadilla wood piccolo
• Silver plated mechanism
• Split E mechanism
• Choice of Hammig Cut, Modified Wave, or Modified Wave Thin headjoint
• Straubinger pads
• $3,295

Model 650/3
The 650/3 has a mechanism constructed of nickle-silver heavily coated with pure silver and comes standard with the Split E mechanism and French-style pointed tonearms attaching the trill, G# and D# keys. The 650/3 features the high G# mechanism, enhancing the production of this note.

• Handmade grenadilla wood piccolo
• Silver plated mechanism
• Split E mechanism
• High G# mechanism
• Choice of Hammig Cut, Modified Wave, or Modified Wave Thin headjoint
• Straubinger pads
• $3,595

Model 650/4
The mechanism of the 650/4 is made of solid sterling silver and comes standard with the Split E mechanism and French-style pointed tonearms attaching the trill, G# and D# keys. The 650/4 features the high G# mechanism, enhancing the production of this note.

• Handmade grenadilla wood piccolo
• Solid sterling silver mechanism
• Split E mechanism
• High G# mechanism
• Choice of Hammig Cut, Modified Wave, or Modified Wave Thin headjoint
• Straubinger pads
• $4,695

Separate Piccolo Headjoints

• Hammig Cut, Modified Wave and Modified Wave Thin styles
• $650 each

High G# Mechanism
Included on Model 650/3 and 650/4
Available on the Hammig 650/3 and 650/4, the high G# mechanism eliminates the necessity of employing an alternate fingering when playing the high G#. This innovative mechanism adjusts the venting height of both thumb keys when the G# lever is pressed, increasing the clarity and stability of high G#.

The Straubinger^TM Piccolo Pad
by David Straubinger

The modern day piccolo player is expected to spend a great deal of time learning new music and performing that music at an exceptional level of skill and artistry. Today’s piccolo player must also contend with air conditioning, dry central heating, air travel, and the problems they may create.

For the most expressive playing, it is very important that the pads totally cover the pad/tone hole interface with the lightest touch. Slight leaks caused by instability of the pad can be the cause of poor intonation, uneven tonal response, reduced dynamic range and loss of tonal flexibility. A conventional felt pad carefully installed on the piccolo will in time, because of dimensional instability, no longer cover the tone hole as it should. We have all experienced that problem.

After more than 25 years of overhauling and rebuilding piccolos for professional players and their students, I have concluded that the standard felt pad simply wasn't designed to meet today's needs. The answer is obvious: meet today's needs with today's technology. I began my search for a more stable piccolo pad in the late 1980s. My ideas for the piccolo pad are an extension of the Straubinger^TM Flute Pad, available since 1Y117. The flute pad is designed specifically for the flute. The Straubinger^TM Piccolo Pad is designed specifically for the piccolo and its acoustical needs. The purpose of my search was to develop a pad that was stable dimensionally, had a somewhat soft feel, required little attention, and would seal with the lightest touch. In my judgment a properly adjusted pad is one that when touched to the tone hole, and before any compression of the cushion, the pad face will be touching around the entire rim of the tone hole. My search was for a pad that could be adjusted precisely and one that would hold those adjustments.

The ultimate design uses a support unit precision machined to close tolerances. This unit has a thin sharp outer rim and centrally located inner hump. It is covered with a layer of synthetic felt, 0.031" thick, made from micro fibers one tenth the thickness of a silk thread. When the pad is made and placed on a special ironing tool, the outer rim and inner hump cause the felt to be more compressed in those areas leaving the tone hole pad interface still soft and pliable. The end result is a pad that is hard where it needs to be hard and soft where it needs to be soft giving it the stability needed.

I designed a slight radius on the surface of the pad, which gives a two-fold advantage. The radius helps the skin stay taut on all tone holes that are covered. On a pad that is usually in the closed position, as are the trills G# and D#, the humid air inside will cause the skin on a flat pad to expand, but on a pad surface with a proper radius this is less likely to happen. It is acoustically important that skin not be so loose as to vibrate. A vibration on only one pad greatly reduces the strength of the sound being produced. This radius is also a big advantage on closure of the pad. Slurring is much more homogeneous. A pad that has a perfectly flat surface will slur different from the Straubinger Pad TM with a radius.

Today's rigorous schedules demand instruments that can be played with the lightest touch. The piccolo player who must play with a heavy hand to overcome pad leaks may fall prey to impaired coordination, forced tone quality, and general distraction from artful playing. Put simply, there is no substitute for an instrument in the finest playing condition.

By Judi Dietz

A crack in a piccolo or wooden flute is the opening or separating of the wood fibers. Cracks always follow the natural direction of the wood grain, that is, from top to bottom. A crack looks like wood grain that has opened or is separated. Most cracks in piccolos originate from the bottom of the headjoint and travel up to the embouchure hole. Cracks can also originate from a post or a tonehole.

Temperature change and moisture loss are the two leading causes of cracking. Grenadilla wood fiber consists of wood cells linked end to end. These cells lose their moisture from the sides, not the ends. This means that the change in the wood is lateral, either expansion or contraction. If the circumference of the piccolo shrinks, the headjoint can very likely crack at the socket end where the body goes in. This area usually has a metal insert that the grenadilla wood surrounds. Since the metal changes at a different rate than the wood, the wood relieves itself by cracking.

This is not the end of the world - just money! There are two procedures which will restore your instrument back to playing as before. One is pinning, and the other is a newer procedure called graphite banding.

Pinning has been around for a long time. To pin you need:

• a # 54 drill rod threaded to 0-80
• a #55 drill
• a bench motor
• a jeweler's saw
• a small file
• a flexible shaft tool
• some leather

First lay out the pin placement. I locate the end of the crack and with a pencil, lay out a pin route anywhere from 1/4 to 1/2 inch beyond the end of the crack. That will be where my first pin will be. Then measure every 1/2 inch and mark for your next pin. Continue marking for pins for the length of the crack. Once marked, drill for the pins. I like to angle the pins so they are not exactly 180 degrees to the body of the instrument. For instance I'll put the first one in at about 160 degrees, the next at about 200 degrees, the next at 160 and so on.

To drill, start 1/2 inch to 5/8 inch from the crack. With my flexible shaft drill in one hand the joint in the other, I begin to drill. Start at 90 degrees to the body for the first 32nd, then roll to the proper line for going through only the wall. As you drill you will often be able to feel when the bit reaches the crack. Continue drilling and watch for a ring of heat percolated oil to appear at the other end. When drilling for a pin that will show on both ends this tells you that you are almost through. For blind pinning stop! (Blind pinning refers to the far end of the pin not showing.) Withdraw the bit. Measure the length of the hole with your bit. Mark the threaded pinning rod now placed in your bench motor 4 threads shorter than your hole length. Cut a notch a third of the way through the wire. Now run the pin in by hand until the notch reaches the surface. Turn the chuck 3 1/2 turns by hand. The notch is now down. With a quick snap of the joint towards you, the pin will break off below the surface. Repeat for each pin. To finish and hide your pins you will need an old 78 record and a wood burning pencil. I use two different records. I have a blue label Don't Bury Me On The Lone Prairie for professional and a green label Yippy-I-Ty-Ye for students. Simply entertainment. Plug in the pencil while getting organized. Warm the hole with the point of the pencil and gently shave some melting record in. Tamp it. Push it in with your thumb. It's not that hot. Build up to slightly higher than the surface. To finish, start with the 6 inch file and lightly bring the filler down to the surface. Sand the file marks out with 400 grit sandpaper. Lastly, I use a thin strap of leather with buffing compound. Shoeshine it till you get the level of sheen you want. As for filling the crack itself, black crayon melted in with a fine spatula on the average crack will seal it. Wax has good elastic properties allowing it to move with the wood. For the grand finale, rub a little natural oil over the surface.

The second procedure is graphite banding. I feel this is a wonderful discovery. The procedure starts with mounting the headjoint in the lathe. Cut a track .030 of an inch deep, the length required, without touching the embouchure hole or tenon ring. Mix up some 45 minute epoxy. Latex gloves come in really handy at this time. Pull the graphite through the epoxy. Begin to wrap it clockwise into the crack. Clockwise is advantageous so when you are machining it down, the lathe bit does not grab and tear it out. Wrap tightly but do not squeeze out all the epoxy. This shrinks a little, so go a little higher than the surface. Let it dry overnight. Machine down to the surface. Next use a three cornered file, 400 grit silicone carbide paper, followed by 600 grit or 1800 grit Micro-Mesh. I again finish with the leather and lastly, natural oil.

Graphite banding has been the most supportive repair for piccolo cracks that I have found to date. I get my graphite banding threads from J.L. Smith in Charlotte, NC, USA.