Doublereed Archive - Posting 000006.txt from 2005/11

From: PhilFrei@-----.com
Subj: [DR-L] Rigotti oboe shaper tip holder
Date: Wed, 02 Nov 2005 20:22:44 -0500

Hi -

I just started using a newly purchased shaper tip holder, and am very pleased
with it. Just wanted to share my appreciation.

The arms that hold the cane to the shaper tip slide down completely out of
the way, so one can easily take the cane on and off of the shaper tip without
having to work around them. Even better, the arms press down evenly on the cane
over a length of about half an inch. This holds the cane very securely. I used
to have problems with the cane moving during shaping, causing distortions to
the shape. My previous shaper only held the cane via an 1/8th inch contact
point. I've seen other shaper holders that have even smaller contact points. That
doesn't seem to me to be a good idea.

There was some concern that a large knob used to hold the tip in place would
be in the way. But since I do my cutting inwards towards the base of the
shaper (doesn't everyone?), I did not find it to be a problem at all.

The engineering works so well, I'm wondering if Rigotti's gouger's, etc., are
as well designed.

I'm not having a much luck with a switch over to Rigotti's gouged, unshaped
oboe cane, though. I'm batting one halfway playable reed out of 5 attempts.
Usually out of 5 attempts, I get at least 2 or 3 decent reeds. These new reeds
seem springier than the previous cane I was using. The results are tending to be
overly bright and hard to control, even when I'm able to keep the opening
size down to something reasonable. I can't figure out what I need to do
different. I'm assuming one just has to work with a gouge and reed brand for a while
before learning how to deal with it. If anyone has any suggestions or
observations, I'd love to hear them.

Meanwhile, I have to go back to the more expensive brand I usually buy and
hope I get something working in the next couple days.

- Phil Freihofner

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