 The Clarinet BBoard
|
Author: john gibson
Date: 2002-03-26 17:16
How do scratches inside a mouthpiece affect it's sound? I'm not talking about big ones....just surface scratches from those MPC brushes. Thanks....John
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: ron b
Date: 2002-03-26 19:44
In my meager experience, John, small to moderate scratches inside a mouthpiece have negligible effect to its sound :]
- ron b -
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Bob
Date: 2002-03-26 20:08
I never use a mouthpiece brush. Many mouthpieces I've seen have longitudingl fine "scratches" in them and I've always assumed those are from the manufacturing process. If you are using a mouthpiece brush that is actually scratching the mouthpiece maybe it's not a good idea
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Wes
Date: 2002-03-27 01:07
Polishing a clarinet bore gives the instrument a more focussed sound. One could assume that a mouthpiece with a polished bore will sound better.
Today, I looked at a fine Selmer clarinet that had been only used by a sax player for dance or jazz band. While the bottom section had a mirror finish inside, which was typical of Selmer clarinets, the top section had a certain amount of crud in it. When brushed out, the top section showed a lot of checking and even has what appears to be an interior crack about three inches long. This is the result of leaving saliva in the instrument. Since it was only used for short periods of time, the saliva didn't get to the bottom section. The saliva probably dried on the top section and was probably not even removed at the end of the gig if the player swabbed at that time.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Bob
Date: 2002-03-27 14:36
I think the original comment was about mouthpieces but the comment on bores is also interesting. Not having that much experience with mouthpieces I don't know whether a polished interior is better than a semi-finished one...but I won't assume anything. Regarding the bores of the instrument itself..."plastic" horns I've seen all appear to be "polished" i.e. "as molded". I've seen bores on wood horns both "polished" and "semi-finised". I assume that if you are creating the bore surface and you get "to dimension" before polishing you dare not polish. 3M makes an artificial steel wool which I have thought about using to polish the bore on an old horn just to see what diff. it would make....but I haven't got up the nerve yet.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
The Clarinet Pages
|
 |
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
