Klarinet Archive - Posting 000163.txt from 2006/02

From: Don Yungkurth <chalumeau@-----.net>
Subj: [kl] Re: Eb Barrel Crack
Date: Sat, 11 Feb 2006 17:29:40 -0500

Curtis Bennett <curtis.bennett@-----.com> wrote in part:

>I have an Eb clarinet that has a slight crack in the barrel. An
>attempt was made to repair the barrel at one time, but appears to be
>leaking. As such, it no play so well, to put it mildly.

>However, if I hold my thumb up to the crack, and "seal" it, what I can
>play with just my left hand sounds superb. It has a clear, resonant
>tone - better, in fact, than the other Eb that I normally play in
>community band.

. . . . . .

>But my question is - is it possible to fix these kinds of things? How
>feasible is it to replace these barrels? This isn't a Buffet
>instrument, it's a Cabart, so I'm certain that the manufacturer has
>long been lost to time. Can a professional woodworker recreate a
>barrel given an appropriate piece of wood to work with?

I had an identical problem and was told by the most respected local repair person that it could not be repaired because of the thinness of the wood. My clarinet teacher suggested I try what an oboist recommended to him, using beeswax to fill the crack. I did this by spreading the wax along the crack, on both the inside and outside of the barrel. I then used a heated metal rod to melt the wax and let it flow into the crack, and then cleaned up the excess wax.

I haven't had any problems since and it has been at least five years since this was done.

Don Yungkurth

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