Armstrong 104

About the Armstrong 104

Built in Elkhart, Indiana, the 104 pairs a silver-plated headjoint and body with closed-hole Y-arm keys and an offset G that follows the natural contour of a student's hand. Its bottom-adjusting mechanism and beryllium springs, finished to a high polish, are the same fundamentals found across Armstrong's beginner range, but the 104's defining detail is its CNC-machined key cups - manufactured to a tolerance that lets pads sit perfectly flat against the tone holes rather than needing hand-fitting.

That precision matters more on a beginner flute than it might seem: air leaks from imperfectly seated pads are one of the most common reasons a cheap student flute plays inconsistently, and Armstrong's answer was to engineer the leak out at the manufacturing stage rather than relying on setup adjustment after the fact.

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Source: https://reverb.com/item/48192907-armstrong-104-model-closed-hole-flute-usa-good-playing-condition

Sound character of the Armstrong 104

This is a beginner flute built from silver-plated nickel tubing rather than solid or sterling silver, which gives it the brighter, more direct tone typical of the student tier rather than a warmer solid-silver core. Its closed-hole (plateau) keys fully seal each tone hole, and Armstrong's CNC-machined key cups seat flat on the pads to minimize air leaks, so the tone stays clean and focused rather than airy or unfocused.

Technical data for the Armstrong 104

Price history for the Armstrong 104

Cheapest seen: 161 EUR  ·  Most expensive seen: 172 EUR

The history of the Armstrong 104

Armstrong builds the 104 domestically in Elkhart, Indiana, positioning it as a dependable and widely-recommended entry point into flute for beginning students.