Klarinet Archive - Posting 000235.txt from 2006/04

From: "Kevin Fay" <kevinfay3020@-----.net>
Subj: RE: [kl] Silencers
Date: Fri, 21 Apr 2006 00:02:52 -0400

Karl Krelove asked:

<<<I just finished cutting up a perfectly good double-skinned bladder pad to
get silencer skins for the left hand E/B and F#/C# lever keys - the packing
that has to go around the pins at the ends of the keys (I have a very old
Selmer 10G Bb - way before they started coating those pins with Teflon or
using plastic for the pins on some instruments). It's a small nuisance but
enough that I wondered if some of you have found better materials to use. I
used to buy ready-made, cut-to-size skin discs for the purpose, but I
haven't seen them and wonder if someone is now making them out of something
more space-age, like Teflon or some sort of polyester.>>>

I've found that the fish-skin (or sheep's bladder or whatever) that sits on
top of felt pads not to be the best material for silencing. For years I
used plastic - like from a garbage bag, or (if there's a fair bit of play in
the keys) a little thicker, say from a Hefty or even a Zip-Loc sandwich bag.
Very durable, very cheap, very silent.

. . . even better is some Green Stuff that Morrie Backun gave me. I *think*
he said it's a kind of plastic tape used to shore up tomato plants that he
got at a home store. It's plastic, but stretches more. (And it's Green!)
I'd go find out what it is and buy more, but he gave me about a foot of it.
At the rate I'm going, it should last my lifetime.

kjf

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