 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Ralph G
Date: 2004-10-07 03:25
Okay, boys and girls: I used to not care about swabbing in whatever direction, until last night. Now I'm out $13 in beer money.
Finished up a rehearsal last night with my woodwind quartet (hey, we're makin' $50 of beer money apiece here and there playing weddings!) and our bassoon player had to rush off. We were at his house, so the rest of us felt we had to hurry up and shoo. In a rush I swabbed out my horn (bell to barrel) without completely unraveling the swab, and as you can guess, it got hung up on the register tube tighter than my college ex's Jordaches.
The tech at my local music monopoly dislodged it in about 2 minutes, but is set me back the aforementioned baker's dozen and earned me a stern admonition to always swab barrel to bell.
Count me in as a new convert. So, kids, always swab barrel to bell. And stay in school
________________
Artistic talent is a gift from God and whoever discovers it in himself has a certain obligation: to know that he cannot waste this talent, but must develop it.
- Pope John Paul II
Post Edited (2004-10-07 03:27)
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Author: ned
Date: 2004-10-07 03:49
I'll probably earn the wrath of most, but I don't swab (either way) unless I have to pack the instrument back in the case after playing, in which event I do bell to barrel and I've never got it stuck yet.
I generally leave the clarinet on the stand as I'm practicing every day and it drys out fairly quickly this way.
I also believe that swabbing too much can cause excess wear of the bore, however any scientists among us can correct me if they wish.
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Author: Igloo Bob
Date: 2004-10-07 04:00
Mr. Kelly, you are my hero. Being a rebel! You'll show them, we don't need any of those swabs! But in seriousness, I swab the mouthpiece and neck on my (school-owned) one-piece Bass but not the body, simply because I've never had a swab long enough to do so, though I know I could buy one for cheap.
Er... I meant, because I believe swabbing would cause excess wear on the bore. Yes, that's it.
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Author: Burt
Date: 2004-10-07 04:34
Ralph, I learned the hard way also. Fortunately, it only cost me a swab. I used my flute rod to get it past the register hole, then grabbed it with tweezers and pulling it apart.
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Author: psychotic lil clarinet girl (don't as
Date: 2004-10-07 05:08
well... I have yet to get mine stuck and I do it both ways.. One day I'll swab from bell to barrel, the next barrel to bell... Or I just take it all apart and swab each joint individually... Or I take off the bell and the barrel swab them individually and swab the two joints (which are still put together)... There are many ways to do it... Anyways, now I think I've broken my spit swab :( how saddening... hehe... I've heard on this Bboard of swabbing through the tone holes, but I have yet to figure out how to do it... oh well.. hehe
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Author: ned
Date: 2004-10-07 05:12
Dear Mr Igloo Bob,
I do believe you are taking the mickey out of me, and that's OK too, I have a well developed sense of humor.
How's yer Mum then?
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Author: Gordon (NZ)
Date: 2004-10-07 10:48
When I put on shoes, I make sure they match
When I put on my t-shirt, I get it the right way out
When I eat with a fork, I make sure it does not go up my nose
When I put on the mouthpiece, I make sure it is the right way around
And when I swab (from the big end) I make sure the swab is not in a tangle.
Without even thinking.
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Author: Matt Locker
Date: 2004-10-07 12:02
As I've said before, there are two types of clarinetists - those who have had their swab get stuck & those that haven't yet gotten it stuck. For those who insist that bell-barrel is the correct direction, I hope your day doesn't come while you are standing on stage with 300+ people watching you.
Mary, a year isn't enough time. Come back after 20 years and give us your experiences. You're learning a lot now. My recommendation is to learn (from Ralph in this case) and start swabbing from barrel to bell. It'll save you a lot of grief someday.
Barrel-Bell for me!
MOO,
Matt
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Author: Brenda
Date: 2004-10-07 12:15
Well, this is after more than 20 years, and I've never got one stuck yet, from either direction!
The cotton rag swabs are thicker and have the tendency to get stuck but with some common sense a person wouldn't force it through, now would they? If it gives a lot of resistance then back it out instead of forcing it through. No swab is longer than one clarinet section, so you might have to dismantle the instrument if the end has disappeared down the bore.
The silk swabs are, in contrast, perfect gentlemen and will gracefully accomplish the task without causing grief. And that's advice from Mom, whose advice is always ignored - I'm used to it.
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Author: Avie
Date: 2004-10-07 13:20
There are many previous threads on the swabing direction subject. Not to be repeditive always unravel your swab before swabing no matter what direction and if you feel the slightest jam back off immediately and try again. Haste makes waste.
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Author: Don Berger
Date: 2004-10-07 13:36
For those of you who are trying to decide between UP or Down, I suggest, 1. look down the U J at the register tube, 2. as best I know , most tubes are about the same length, BUT 3. some are mounted partially outside the U J, and some are flush with the U J's outer surface, the latter then projecting farther into the bore and offer the greater chance to snag your swab INSIDE in an uppward pull!! Please dont take any offense, it seems elementery to me !! Don
Thanx, Mark, Don
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Author: hans
Date: 2004-10-07 13:42
Ralph,
........"without completely unraveling the swab"....?
IMO that was the cause of the jam, not the direction of swabbing. But you have my sympathy for the $13.
Gordon,
Thanks for the laugh from your quasi-poem. Very funny.
Regards,
Hans (a careful swabber, from the big end)
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Author: Ralph G
Date: 2004-10-07 13:51
Brenda,
I was using the Doc's Black Legend silk swab -- very light and stretchy, yet it still got caught up. No doubt the Doc intended it to be as foolproof as possible, but I'm a new breed of fool.
hans -- I agree, unraveling it would have saved lotsa grief, but had it occurred going barrel to bell, enough swab would probably have stuck out of the top of the joint for me to pull it back.
Heck, now watch me go back on autopilot and go bell to barrel immediately.
________________
Artistic talent is a gift from God and whoever discovers it in himself has a certain obligation: to know that he cannot waste this talent, but must develop it.
- Pope John Paul II
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Author: David Spiegelthal ★2017
Date: 2004-10-07 15:06
Which is the better way; barrel to bell?
or bell to barrel? I can't tell...
One thing's for sure: if you leave in the spit
then your poor clarinet will start playing like...........
caca
Henry Ralph David Waldo Emereau
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Author: DavidBlumberg
Date: 2004-10-07 16:17
Get a GEM swab and it will never get stuck - ever.
But do swab out bell to barrel as the barrel is the wettest part of the instrument.
Also the Gem swab won't put the friction on the Bore of the Clarinet which has been known to melt it thus giving the feeling of blow out 
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2004-10-07 17:34
I got a swab stuck once but the only bad thing that happened is the that swab was torn. I pulled it back the other way so nothing bad happened. The swab was just too big for the clarinet.
About the GEM swabs, eventhough the chance of them getting stuck is pretty much non-existent, I don't like them since they don't feel very absorbant.
I used to be like John Kelly and almost never swabed my clarinet. The outcome - 2 barrels, a bell, and an instrument all got cracked.
Leaving your instrument without swabing it and letting it dry on its own is probably the worst thing you can do to it. If I left my clarinet assembled and let it dry, I suddenly couldn't take the barrel or bell apart! I had to wait a few days before I could take the bell off only to find it was cracked. Since then I always swab my clarinets after I stop playing. I don't think it matters if you do it barrel to bell or bell to barrel, because if you feel it is getting stuck imediately stop and try again. For me it really doesn't matter since I take the clarinet apart first and swab every piece seperately and also swab the inside parts with my fingers.
Post Edited (2004-10-08 13:49)
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Author: DavidBlumberg
Date: 2004-10-07 17:40
I use for myself a hunter green colored Buffet synthetic material swab (silk??).
It has never ever gotten stuck in the 4+ years I have used it.
My students use the Gem and none have gotten stuck, and they are very absorbant. There are many swabs on the market which I think are just too big and get stuck easily.
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Author: BobD
Date: 2004-10-07 22:33
I posted a while back about having a similar problem with a chamois swab. No matter how careful you are you may get a stuck swab....eventually....and it's a lot easier to unstuck it if you go barrel to bell.
Of course the youngsters who don't swab at all won't have that problem. I'm now using Doc's latest black silk job which some ancient Japanese guru helped him design. It works great....but I still swab barrel to bell...for good luck.
Bob Draznik
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Author: hans
Date: 2004-10-07 23:52
Ralph,
I forgot to offer this earlier... since I got into the habit years ago of pulling the swab string out on the side of the bore opposite the register tube, there has been much less tendency for swabs to catch on the tube and there has been no stuck swab incident for at least ten years.
I'm currently using one of Dr. Henderson's silk creations. The music store generic swabs didn't catch or get stuck either... but they didn't look as cool, didn't absorb quite as well, and frequently caught fire from all the friction.
Regards,
Hans
P.S. - Repeat after me: I will unravel my swab first. I will unravel my swab first. I will unravel my swab first. I will unravel my swab first. I will...etc.
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Author: Gordon (NZ)
Date: 2004-10-08 00:13
"...frequently caught fire from all the friction."
And friction = wear!!!! Wear = "BLOWN OUT!" :-)
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Author: ned
Date: 2004-10-08 03:43
This is yet another engrossing topic of conversation, which has been endlessly regurgitated over the years.
Very simply - just LOOK at the SIZE of the object to be inserted ( from either end) and make a judgement thereto.
Geez I'd hate to watch some of you lot park a car!
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Author: BobD
Date: 2004-10-08 15:14
Easy Big Boy and don't stand behind me when I park....
Bob Draznik
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Author: Ralph G
Date: 2004-10-08 15:28
Who likes to pull straight into a parking space and who likes to back into it?
________________
Artistic talent is a gift from God and whoever discovers it in himself has a certain obligation: to know that he cannot waste this talent, but must develop it.
- Pope John Paul II
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Author: Dori
Date: 2004-10-09 02:23
Ralph G wrote:
> Who likes to pull straight into a parking space and who likes
> to back into it?
>
I prefer parking spaces where I can go through to the next space and not have to back in OR out.
Dori (who is short & can't see the end of the car)
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