Klarinet Archive - Posting 000268.txt from 1995/05

From: Adam Korman <adamk@-----.NET>
Subj: Re: swabing the mouthpiece
Date: Mon, 8 May 1995 08:19:18 -0400

At 9:08 PM 5/7/95 -0600, CLARINETS ARE THE BEST wrote:
>Hi
>I have a question for everyone. I've heard over and over that
>you are not supposed to run the swab through the mouthpiece. It damages
>the mouthpiece. What I'm wondering is what damage is done and why?
>I don't dispute that is does damage but I was wondering if someone out
>there with more experience than me could explain for me.
>Thanks,
>
> Sean

I happened to overhear a guy who makes saxophone mouthpieces talk about
this once, and I would presume the same is true for clarinet mouthpieces.
Anyhow, he said (in a nutshell) that pulling a swab through the mp can
(over time, of course) stretch it out slightly... You can probably imagine
how this might be bad. I suppose it could be good too (if you're
extrememly lucky). I would think this problem is mainly because swabs are
generally too big to easily pull through mouthpieces, but I would say
cleaning it out carefully with a cloth wouldn't be a problem, no?

adam korman
adamk@-----.net