Klarinet Archive - Posting 000716.txt from 2001/03

From: "Kevin Fay (LCA)" <kevinfay@-----.com>
Subj: RE: [kl] help me!!
Date: Wed, 28 Mar 2001 12:33:05 -0500

Kelly asked:

<<<I just bought a brand new Buffet R-13 about a week ago, and I love
it...but, a couple of the joints fit very tightly. At first I thought
that I just needed to use some more cork grease, but it still is very
hard to put together & pull apart...what should I do about it? Is there
any way I would be able to remedy the problem on my own? Thanks!>>>

You have either a minor problem or a very minor problem. Not dealing
with it could become a major problem, though.

How serious the fix depends on what the problem is. If it's too tight
because there is too much cork on the tenon, you have a very minor
problem that you can easily fix yourself with a piece of sandpaper.
Sand the cork down so it's not so tight. If you go too far, it will
cost you fifteen bucks or so to get a new cork put on the tenon and a
lecture from the repair tech that you should have gone to them in the
first place.

[Side hint -- if you need to *expand* the cork on a joint for a
temporary fix, you can either (a) burn it a little with a match, which
makes it expand -- or (b) wrap the cork with some dental floss. Some of
these temporary fixes have been known to last for years.]

If you have too much wood, you have a minor problem. The solution is to
remove some. Most folks aren't comfortable taking a whack at the wood
with some sandpaper, so you may want to take it to a repair person --
but they won't do anything other than what you would do. (Also, if the
tech is an authorized Buffet dealer, the work may be covered under
warranty).

Typically the problem will be with the very tip of the tenon. Rather
than mess with that, though, the technique taught to me was to place the
sandpaper over your thumb, stick it in the socket and rotate the part so
that you end up taking a uniform amount off the inside. (This is very
easy to do with a barrel or a bell, much harder with a lower joint.) If
you go slow and test along the way, there is very little chance that
you'll take off too much wood. Mpingo is a very, very, very hard wood,
and it will be quite a while before you take a meaningful amount off.
Even if you mess up and take too much off, moreover, the downside is
that it will cost you fifteen bucks or so to get a new cork put on the
tenon and a lecture from the repair tech that you should have gone to
them in the first place.

A story -- when I bought my first Buffet R-13, way back in '77, the
barrel was too tight. Really tight -- couldn't get it off. I carefully
wrapped it and took it to my lesson with Bill McColl next Saturday,
hoping that he could work some magic.

Bill's kind of an interesting guy -- he has a great big pile of ancient
clarinets that he tinkers with and does most of his own repair work, so
he had absolutely no fear. When he couldn't get the barrel off, he
instructed me to (horrors!) pop the top joint in my refrigerator. Sure
enough, it came off. (Note -- I still cringe when I think about having
done this. Do not try this at home. If you do, don't blame me if it
explodes or otherwise destructs.) I then spent the next hour working
very hard to sand enough of the barrel socket so that it would fit.
That was 24 years ago, and the horn still works great today.

What you *don't* want to do is continue to jam the tenon together, no
matter how much cork grease you put on. Most folks try to keep their
clarinets from cracking -- this would be the equivalent of splitting it
with a wedge. Whether you send it back, take it to be fixed or try to
do it yourself, you should do it pronto.

Good luck (and congratulations on your new horn!)

kjf

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