Klarinet Archive - Posting 000500.txt from 1996/06

From: Doug MacDonell <dougmac@-----.ORG>
Subj: Re: Choosing Pads
Date: Sat, 29 Jun 1996 12:22:49 -0400

>Allow me to add to Doug's comments:
>
>Norbeck pads seal perfectly when the keys fit well, but they do not "take a
>seat", since the material has no memory and they always return to their
>original (flat) shape. This makes key fit much more critical and very
>intolerant of the type of slight misalignment a marching horn always seems
>to incur. This, in my opinion, makes them unsuitable for use on the kind of
>horn you might want to waterproof, which is their greatest claim to fame.
>
>Goretex pads are found exclusively on the top line Buffets, unless another
>brand has been repadded; they are only available from Boosey- Hawkes/Buffet,
>however I repadded my own Concertos with them, and they remain on my
>Prestige A. I like them very much. They will take a seat as well as a skin
>pad, and in fact they are standard Buffet skin pads with an additional layer
>of the goretex material stretched over them. Some people feel the goretex
>makes for a brighter sound than plain skin, but I'm still not sure.
>
>If this is your first pad job, you may want to use skin pads until you gain
>confidence. They are dirt cheap compared with Goretex, and won't frustrate
>you like cork and Norbeck.
>
>By the way, Valentino is going stronger than ever. Betcha didn't know that
>-every- Buffet comes with a Valentino pad in the register key, and many
>other manufacturers are using their artificial cork key silencers and pads.
>I consider myself a purist in these matters, but I recently broke down and
>bought a large assortment of their stuff!
>
>Best Regards
>
>Dave Lane
>
Maybe I wasn't too clear. I feel that Norbeck pads do seal very well. They
take a little more effort than bladder, but less than cork, to get really
level. My point is that, since they do retain their shape, I really can
feel a small piece of lint or hair which occasionally gets caught between
the pad and the tone hole. (I wonder if there are some electrostatic
properties to the material?) Your point is well made about any slight
misalignment of the pad cup creating a leak.

Yes, I know about Valentino pads on register keys... use 'em there myself,
sometimes, especially on rental horns. You can get better results with a
properly shaped cork pad, however. I am also aware of Valentino "cork"
silencers being used on some clarinets (new Vito & Olds, from what I have
seen). They come into my shop peeling off. What I see happening is the
synthetic material peeling away from the adhesive backing. The bond between
the adhesive backing and the instrument remains quite strong...
unfortunately, the synthetic material parts company. I also see this
happening with Valentino tenon corks and saxophone neck corks. I still feel
that cork lasts longer for key silencers (felt, too, where appropriate). I
will, however, admit to "cheating" on occasion and using stickem' Valentino
cork for a key silencer when I don't want to disassemble the instrument to
replace a cork.

It is my understanding that Valentino is developing a pad that has a thicker
cardboard backing, which will make it easier to float. I am eager to try
these on the bottom joint. (I have heard of folks peeling off the thin
paper backing and installing a thicker cardboard backing, giving the pad a
shape closer to that of a bladder pad. I don't have enough leisure time for
that :-) )

I am surprised about Buffet using Goretex... I thought I read that Selmer
was using it. I trust my memory less and less, these days! OK, Dave, you
have sent me back to the catalogs for more study!! I appreciate the
information.

Take care,

Doug MacDonell