Klarinet Archive - Posting 000072.txt from 2003/05

From: GrabnerWG@-----.com
Subj: [kl] Tolerances revisited - the difference .04 mm makes
Date: Sun, 4 May 2003 18:46:31 -0400

A couple of weeks ago we had a small thread on tolerances, and whether or not craftsmen really measured down to the hundredth of a mm (or thousandth of an inch).

Let me share an experience.

I have four new Selmer C* bass clarinet mouthpieces on my workbench. Two are really excellent, one good, and one is "funny".

How is it funny? Well, as I was playing on it I noticed that some of my 12ths were way off. Now I'm a real stickler on intonation, and I have worked hard tuning my bass clarinet. So I tend to be conscious of these things quickly.

I pulled out the tuner and found the 12ths in the left hand, like chalumeau A to Clarion E, were way too narrow. The A was almost 20 cents sharp, E about 10 cents flat - really unacceptable.

When I went back to any of the other three mouthpieces that 12th was "right on".

How is this possible? Four mouthpieces, same brand, same model, bought at the same time, from the same store. When I measured the bore of the "funny" one, I found the diameter of the bore was .04 larger than the other three. I took spot checks and it seems like the bore of the chamber of this mouthpiece continues larger correspondingly.

It appears to me that the "weird" 12ths have to be caused by this. A difference of .04 mm has made this $120 mouthpiece virtually unusable.

Walter Grabner
www.clarinetXpress.com
bass clarinet mouthpieces, repairs, and extensions

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