Klarinet Archive - Posting 000825.txt from 1998/07

From: Jack Kissinger <kissingerjn@-----.EDU>
Subj: Re: [kl] Undercutting?
Date: Thu, 23 Jul 1998 11:56:17 -0400

Kenneth Wolman wrote:

> WHAT does it mean to "undercut" tone holes?
> Is this supposed to be good? I would thing so since all the manufacturers
> list it as a feature on their intermediate and high-end instruments. Is
> there any advantage to NOT undercutting, whatever that means?
>

Hi Ken,

I'll take a shot at this question though some of my knowledge in this area is
admittedly imperfect.

The (crude) diagrams below are a cross section of the wall of a clarinet showing
a tone hole. The undercut tone hole tapers out into the bore of the clarinet.
For clarinets with undercut tone holes, after the straight tone hole has been
drilled, a special tone hole undercutter tool is used (obviously from the inside
of the bore) to taper the opening. According to the Ferree's Tools Catalog,
"Accomplished clarinet players feel that ... undercutting improves the tone,
response and clarity of many of the notes on the clarinet." The catalog also
notes that undercutting is standard on many French manufactured clarinets which
suggests that it may not be standard on, e.g., German clarinets. Perhaps a
Wurlitzer user on the list can comment?

I seem to remember reading (a long time ago) that the undercutting process was
not invented (or, at least, did not become common) until around 1950 and is one
design advantage shared by more recent clarinets over older models. My memory
could be faulty, however, and the process may have been around longer. I have
seen older clarinets that appeared to have undercut tone holes but, of course,
the undercutting could have been done more recently later. Perhaps one of the
repair techs on the list could clarify this point.

To tell if a clarinet has undercut tone holes, look up into the bore. If the
holes look fairly large, the instrument has probably been undercut. If they
look quite small, it probably hasn't. A genesis of undercutting around 1950
would explain why Balanced Tone Selmers do not have undercut tone holes while
Centered Tone Selmers do as I believe the model change occurred around 1950 (+
or - a few years). Again, my dates could be off by a big margin though and I
would appreciate correction.

"Straight" tone hole "Undercut" tone
hole

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Best regards,
Jack Kissinger
St. Louis

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