Klarinet Archive - Posting 000538.txt from 2002/06

From: "Daniluk, Bill" <bdaniluk@-----.com>
Subj: RE: [kl] Key rods on old Albert
Date: Mon, 17 Jun 2002 09:22:09 -0400

I have about 20 Albert systems of various makes and pitches, and all of the
rods that I've removed have threaded ends - then again, they all also had
slotted heads for removal. Many of these instruments came with wooden
mouthpieces, but most could not be coaxed to play, and I haven't attempted
any mouthpiece restoration. My biggest disappointment has been the HP
instruments - who to play with? Perhaps this could be rectified by use of
the "slowdown" utility posted recently.

Bill Daniluk

-----Original Message-----
From: LeliaLoban@-----.com]
Subject: [kl] Key rods on old Albert

Oh ye repair pundits:

Yesterday I bought an Albert system clarinet at a flea market. The
condition
looks amazing: no cracks, gorgeous wood, nickel keys all in basic working
order and everything fairly clean except the wooden mouthpiece, which looks
undamaged but was put away dirty and is lined with dried-out slime. Someone

set this clarinet up and played it in the mid-20th century. The reed that
was glued to the mouthpiece with whatever interesting growths cultured
themselves from the former owner's spit is a Rico, marked the same as the
Ricos I was was buying in the 1960s.

So my first question is about the mouthpiece: It looks like it's in good
condition, and it's made of wood that matches the very dense, black wood of
the clarinet (Cocus, I think), but the mouthpiece has to be cleaned.

I've never cleaned up a wooden mouthpiece before. I do want to use it if
possible, because the shape is radically different from that of a modern
mouthpiece. Normally, on wood this filthy, I would use Murphy's Oil Soap: a

solution of it in a bowl in which the mouthpiece would soak for five minutes

or so to soften that gunk. I'm thinking that Cocus or other dense blackwood

can tolerate a brief soaking followed by cleaning with a soft toothbrush.
Is
that a good or a bad idea? Other suggestions?

The clarinet needs pads and corks now, but the ones on there are clearly
replacements. (The case is a 1960-ish Bundy case meant for a Boehm-system
clarinet. It doesn't fit this instrument well at all, but fortunately it's
loose rather than tight, since this is a short, high-pitch instrument with a

narrow bore. I'm going to gut the case and re-line it today.) The clarinet

has 13 keys, two rings and no serial number or maker markings whatsoever.
With one exception, the keywork looks exactly like that of the classic
Albert
that's the middle instrument pictured on p. 21 of _The Cambridge Companion
to
the Clarinet_ (ed. Colin Lawson, in the 1997 reprint edition), in Nicholas
Shackleton's article, "The Development of the Clarinet." The exception is
the G# key, which looks like the one on the Hess clarinet on the right of
the
same page, with the little extra flange on the G# lever, to allow that key
to
be played with the right index finger.

My other question has to do with the rods. They don't have screw heads.
Instead, the rod itself is bent at a right-angle where it emerges from the
key post. If possible, I'd like a good educated guess as to whether I can
expect these rods to have threaded screw ends, before I try to remove the
rods to do the repadding and oiling. (Fortunately, the clarinet itself is
not in the same dirty condition as the mouthpiece. I think that normal
oiling will do any cleaning that's necessary.) The key action is sluggish
enough to suggest that the old lubricant has dried out, that there may be
some rust or dirt in there, and that I will need to use some pressure to
remove the rods. My instinct is to drip some WD-40 into both ends of the
post-holes, let the oil soak briefly, then first try turning the rod to the
left ("lefty loosey"), on the theory that if it's not a screw, turning it
won't work but also won't damage anything; whereas pulling might strip
threads or break off the bent rod end. However, I'm wary that these rods
might be neither conventional screws nor simple pull-rods. Any suggestions?

Thanks,
Lelia

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