Klarinet Archive - Posting 000108.txt from 1994/05

From: "Jay Heiser, Product Manager, Govt Systems" <jayh@-----.COM>
Subj: Keys: plated, forged, lighter?
Date: Thu, 5 May 1994 10:15:34 -0400

I think I got in trouble with this once, but let me take another
stab at forged keys.

Cheap keys are cast, resulting in something that is inexpensive
to produce, but brittle. Cast keys might have a seam from the mold,
although this should be filed clean at least on the top.

Good keys are forged. The raw piece of metal is heated up and then
smacked really hard with something shaped like a key. This results
in a durable key that withstands a great deal of flexing.

I thought that most woodwind keys were brass. Sax keys seem to be.
(why are student horn keys plated while pro horns are just
lacquered?'

My Gemeinhardt flute has silver plated keys that are pitting now,
making them unsightly and slightly uncomfortable. Flute makers
advertise solid silver keys and I assumed that they were made from
the same material as the body. I'm not sure that this would be
too soft -- what I have now is pretty soft.

My Selmer clarinet has fairly sturdy keys that I had always thought
were nickel plated. It takes them a long time to oxidize, but
once they do, its not practical to clean them. Playing surfaces
are bright & shiny, but my repair guy refuses to buff them out
unless he's doing an overhaul. There's no sign of plating wear
on these keys.

There was some talk of using new materials that would result in
lighter keys? Why would you want to do this? I never thought
of the keys as being too heavy. See my next posting.....
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