Klarinet Archive - Posting 000723.txt from 2002/03

From: Bill Hausmann <bhausmann1@-----.net>
Subj: Re: [kl] clarinet repair question
Date: Mon, 25 Mar 2002 06:26:39 -0500

At 09:40 PM 3/24/2002 -0600, Diane Karius wrote:
>Could one of the repair experts on the list do me a favor and please
>describe for me the process of repairing the lower joint of a clarinet
>(upper end) with cracks that are too major for mere pinning (they are
>long...)?
>
>Needless to say, my clarinet is suffering from this very malady and I have
>been given conflicting opinions by the two mega-repair folk in town (one
>says the cracks are not repairable and the other says they are
>repairable). They've described processes to me that seem to be mirror
>images of each other, so I've missed something along the way. I'm trying
>to decide what to do (personally, I'm seriously thinking of having my
>"mid-life crisis" a year or two early and getting the clarinet of my
>dreams) and I need a better description of the process to figure out if
>its worth it...

Cracks in the lower joint tenon socket are not good news. The wood there
is too thin to be pinned, and the joint takes a lot of stress. Plastic
clarinets with broken tenons CAN be repaired with epoxy if all the pieces
are there and will usually hold up for a while if not abused. I have seen
a wood clarinet repaired with a large band (about an inch wide) around the
whole socket. It's not pretty, but it could do the trick. If the cracks
extend into the thicker part of the wood, conventional pinning or banding
will take care of those portions, but if the cracks are that long, and if
the repair would be very expensive, it may be time to treat yourself to a
new instrument!

I have a crack in the tenon socket of my bass clarinet, but, aside from
keeping the ring good and tight, I am just living with it. It won't leak
there anyway.

Bill Hausmann bhausmann1@-----.net
451 Old Orchard Drive
Essexville, MI 48732 ICQ UIN 4862265

If you have to mic a saxophone, the rest of the band is TOO LOUD!

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