Klarinet Archive - Posting 000147.txt from 2004/08

From: "Christy Erickson" <perickso@-----.net>
Subj: RE: [kl] Care of Leather Pads?
Date: Fri, 6 Aug 2004 18:38:01 -0400


>=20
> >I've been wondering if there are any special care or maintenance
> >instructions for an instrument with leather pads. When I think about
> >leather, I think about the "dry, cracked and crinkly" quality that =
comes
> >with age on leather furniture, for example.
>=20
> Are you sure you mean leather here, and not naugahyde?

Yes, I do mean leather pads. Do they make pads out of naugahyde also?! =
It
somehow seems to me that that wouldn't work very well at all. Did you =
ever
try on a pair of those naugahyde pants I've seen in the stores? UGH!
Didn't you ever have a pair of leather shoes that got wet or am I simply =
an
old fogie who remembers leather shoes that were not waterproofed? =
Leather
car seats got very dry, cracked and crinkly in the old days if they were =
not
maintained properly and allowed to sit in the sun for long periods of =
time.
They have to be oiled but I can't imagine oiling the pads on your
instrument. =20

> It's worth noting that the original equipment manufacturers (that is,
> cows) wear their leather coats regularly in ALL kinds of weather, wet
> and dry, without significant adverse affects.
> --
> - Tim Roberts, timr@-----.com
> Providenza & Boekelheide, Inc.

Yes, but those cows are living creatures when they are wearing their =
coats
and they are producing natural oils that repel the moisture. I did a =
little
research and I think I found the answer to my own question about tbe =
leather
pads. It seems they are treated with silicone for waterproofing. =
Hopefully
they aren't spraying those cows with silicone while they are alive. My =
sax
has kangaroo leather pads and I can't imagine getting close enough to =
one of
those to spray it. LOL! I really just wondered how long any type of =
leather
pads, in general, last-especially if an instrument is not played =
regularly.
I guess I would wonder about a bass clarinet for example, that doesn't =
see
much use. Would it better to go with some material other than leather =
if
the instrument will be unused for lengthy periods of time? Perhaps it
doesn't matter if the leather is treated? Christy =20

---------------------------------------------------------------------
Klarinet is a service of Woodwind.Org, Inc. http://www.woodwind.org