Hi Marie,
Betty is a 'seasoned citizen' indeed.
Quite a few people play on antique, or even just older flutes which were made by some of the masters of flutemaking. A flute that Verne Q. Powell made himself inthe 60's, or a vintage Haynes, or even an original Louis Lot can be a real treasure.
Modern flutemaking and newer scale designs do make a difference, though. Also, many new techniques in headjoint making have been taken advantage of, and the newer flutes are usually easier to play well.
I remember that the Armstrong Heritage flutes were made by a well known master craftsman- who was it, guys, and what era?
My Yamaha 800 series was made in 1998, and took a LONG time to sell before I bought it on eBay. It has a C-footjoint, so it was likely overlooked by B-foot snobs in this country. To be fair, it also had an unintentionally asymmetric embouchure hole, making the headjoint just OK, so I had to replace that before she really began to sing.
I'll have to find out when my piccolo was made- actually both of them- I have a solid silver 'CSS' Gemeinhardt (whose model number was long ago replaced) and a Zentner wood picc, which is no longer made.