David Straubinger improved the lives of flutists everywhere when he developed the Straubinger Pad. From his teens, he demonstrated his giftedness, both musically and in his ability to detect and repair malfunctioning instruments. He began his musical training on the piano, went on to briefly play the flute, but ultimately landed on the oboe. His talent took him first to the Jordon School of Music, and then on to The Juilliard School. From there Straubinger began a career playing oboe with The Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, which at the time kept a 36-week season. This shorter season allowed him time to flex his technical muscles. In 1969 he set up a repair shop in his home, and residing just 36 miles north of Indiana University, music students began to bring him their instrumental problems. As a professional musician with a genius for repair, his reputation spread like wildfire.

As David worked with each of the instruments, his goal was to hand back to the musician the absolute best quality repair job possible. However, there was one instrument for which he never felt completely satisfied: the flute. While he could repair many instruments and not see the owners again for years, the flutists came in time after time, even with brand new flutes. As the weakest tone generator of all wind instruments, Straubinger knew that the flute required the most precisely positioned tone holes and pads, the latter of which were often extremely unstable. His dedication to solving that problem ultimately led him to develop properly functioning pads and tone holes, as well as the tools to make his system operate optimally.