 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: James
Date: 2008-07-11 23:08
Today when I was doing some general maintenance and cleaning on my clarinet I noticed a buildup in some of the tone holes in the upper joint. It's only under the keys that have cork pads, and it's about the same color as the cork so I'm guessing that's what it's from. The real problem is that I can seem to clean it off. At first I just used a wet q-tip which didn't do much of anything, and then I tried some Doctors Products wood cleaner. It seemed to be taking it off, but after dirtying up 4 different swabs the residue is still there, solid as ever. I've only had the instrument for about a year and a half and I bought it used, so I don't know how long it's been building up or even how much it is affecting the sound. I'm wondering if there is a different type of swab or a different chemical that could remove it in one fell swoop without doing any damage to the wood. Any insight or ideas as to what exactly this might be and/or how to remove it would be greatly appreciated.
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Author: Ed Palanker
Date: 2008-07-12 00:10
I must say I don’t ever recall coming across something like this. I can’t believe a cork pad would bleed through to the clarinet unless there is a chemical in the cork. It sounds to me like it might be a calcium buildup from your saliva, perhaps mixing with the cork compound. In any case I would suggest that you try finger nail polish remover. If that doesn’t work perhaps a mild solvent like paint or varnish remover but use it sparingly. Try to avoid contact with the pads. Perhaps someone else will have a better suggestion, if not, try it. The other thing is to take it to a trusted repairperson and ask them for advice. Good luck, ESP
www.peabody.jhu.edu/457 (Listen to a little Mozart, Live recording)
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Author: Snowy
Date: 2008-07-12 03:38
James, are you certain that the build up is something that has occurred since you acquired the instrument or could it perhaps have been there beforehand ?
I ask because partially filling tone holes with some sort of filler is a recognised method of fine tuning certain notes on the instrument and is the sort of thing done by a technician who really knows what he is doing. I own a pair of Selmer 10S's and this tweaking had been expertly done for their first owner.
Just a thought.
Snowy.
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2008-07-12 04:28
If it is dirt and not what Snowy mentioned, also get the tone holes very close to a bright light and check if they have dirt at the bottom, usually looks like a circle making the tone hole smaller. Too much dirt in tone holes will make the notes sound stuffy and flat. Some types of dirt are impossible to clean with just water and q-tip. Some cleaners may work but make sure they don't damage the wood. As much as I like some of the products from the Doctor, I think his wood cleaner is pretty much useless since it's not better than soap and actually doesn't clean as good. The best (and sometimes only) method to clean this is disassembling all the keys and completley washing the instrument with soap. You need small bottle brushes to clean each tone hole. At least some gum tooth brushes work good and are very grabby. This will usually remove all the dirt but in extreme cases you may need something even stronger. But first make sure it is really dirt and that isn't an easier way to remove it.
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Author: Jack Kissinger
Date: 2008-07-12 05:16
If you have some of the Dr.'s Grenad Oil, try a small amount of that on a Q-tip. That's what the Yamaha technician used on my clarinet last week at Clarinet Fest. I don't think that it's all that unusual for a small deposit of reddish-brown dust to build up under pads over time. I'm not sure what causes it. It could be particles of cork but I suspect that it's actually just a mixture of dust, condensation from the warm air passing through the instrument and color from the dye used on the clarinet. It happens pretty regularly on my clarinets. Sounds like you already know to remove the keys that cover the toneholes you are cleaning up. If you don't have Grenad Oil, bore oil will probably also work.
Best regards,
jnk
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