Klarinet Archive - Posting 000484.txt from 2000/09

From: Gary Truesdail <gir@-----.net>
Subj: Re: [kl] Hypothetical question
Date: Fri, 15 Sep 2000 03:14:53 -0400

Interesting subject here. Can anyone tell me what processes are applied to the
wood used in clarinets before it is actually put on the assembly line? Is there
special handling during the drying period immediately after harvest? What type
of treatment is applied to the wood and in what manner to prevent it from
becoming a stick of fire wood? Is it impregnated with a nonvolatile material
through a pressure treatment.

One of my hobbies used to be refinishing furniture and I now live in a log home,
both of which have opened my eyes regarding the staying power of various types of
material used to cover the surface of wood and the effects that heat, cold, and
sunlight have upon these materials. So, I find it amazing that the wood used in
the manufacture of a clarinet can retain its "volatiles", natural or mechanically
applied, for so long a time without drying out.

Does anyone have data on how much change there is in the bore size of an older
instrument from the specifications to which it was originally manufactured? Does
the wood shrink as it dries out? In what direction? I my experience with wood (I
built my own log house) I have observed 3 very obvious directions of shrinkage:
1. length, seems this would raise the pitch of a clarinet, it just makes lumber
shorter
2. everything shrinking evenly and towards the center (of the bore). This might
not result in
cracks but would make the bore smaller. This type of shrinkage makes lumber
narrower in
thickness
3. the wood shrinks towards the center of itself: the outer surface of the wood
moves toward
the inner surface of the wood, and the inner surface of the wood moves
toward the outer
surface, resulting in a thinning of the wall material. In lumber this will
probably result in cracks
and splits.

Is there any data that shows these types of shrinkage apply to clarinet wood?

GaryT

> >JMarioneau@-----.com wrote:
>
> >> Naylor can reoil and revitalize the bore, but you would still have an old
> >> horn. They can't transform an old instrument into a new one.
>

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