 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Vicky
Date: 2004-12-26 01:19
Hi!
Do any of you know any good sites on how to fix your clarinet?
THanks!
Merry Christmas!
Vicky
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Author: Hank Lehrer
Date: 2004-12-26 02:47
Hi Vicky,
A good place to start would be to look over on the rigth side of this screen and follow the link for Service. There are a lot of sponsors for this BB listed there.
What kind of repairs do you need and where are you located? Someone may be able to suggest a repair tech in your area.
HRL
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Author: Vicky
Date: 2004-12-26 04:27
I'm located in a little old Clovis, New Mexico. I usually go to Lubbock, TX to get my clarinet fixed. It seems as though I am there every month. Although, the two hour drive isn't too bad. I won't be able to go to Lubbock until the end of January. I was wondering about the posts on the clarinet. Mine have shifted, and I feel vibrations on the tips of my fingers. It seems as though I am forcing the sound to come out. I shouldn't be doing that!
I wanted to see if there was a way I could fix that myself.
:D
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Author: Gordon (NZ)
Date: 2004-12-26 08:26
If you are going there so often, then it is definitely time to find a better technician. Once per year should be quite enough.
Ask ESTABLISHED local teachers and players for their recommendation, until a pattern emerges. Then you get past the poor referrals that might be based on kickbacks and friendship loyalties, rather than quality of workmanship.
If you want to work on your clarinet yourself, you need to be aware that there are hundreds of pitfalls for the inexperienced, and you may well do a lot worse job than your current technician. Also, a fair bit of equipment is needed for many servicing operations. It is very rare for a player to do a good job of servicing their own instrument. It is more likely that players working on their own instrument build up a large legacy of work that needs to be later corrected.
Some technicians train at a formal school, some learn through an apprenticeship, and others, such as myself, are largely self-taught.
If you are interested in formal training, the following may be of interest:
http://www.napbirt.org/schools/schools.htm
If you want to undertake a specific task yourself, then the technicians who frequent this forum are as good a resource, via the forum, as any.
Post Edited (2004-12-26 08:28)
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Author: sfalexi
Date: 2004-12-26 14:45
I was recommended to "The Clarinetists Notebook" which can be purchased from Van Cott (sponsor of BBoard). It has a ton of information in it, including pictures, and recommended tools.
Also, I don't know if it's been mentioned, but it'd be best to buy a few junker clarinets to practice on. If you can take a POS clarinet that you bought off of someone for fifty dollars or so, and make it work reasonably well, then you're off to a good start.
I'd be MORE than hesitant to make any permanent changes to my main instrument, ESPECIALLY when just starting out.
Alexi
US Army Japan Band
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Author: Vytas
Date: 2004-12-26 15:48
****If you are going there so often, then it is definitely time to find a better technician. Once per year should be quite enough.****
Without knowing the brand of the clarinet this statement is at least unfair. Some 'cheap brands' just don't hold the adjustments no matter what. Many technicians (including myself) simply refuse to work on certain brands for this reason.
Vytas Krass
Professional clarinet technician
Custom clarinet mouthpiece maker
Former professional clarinet player
Post Edited (2004-12-26 15:55)
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Author: Gordon (NZ)
Date: 2004-12-26 20:03
I intimately know a repairer technician who works on many cheap brands. The underlying faults of cheap brands can be corrected to give a good degree of reliability. Without successfully doing this, this technician would not be in business!
So I defend my statement.
However if the instrument needs a overhaul - say most pads torn, or pads not properly glued in, .... - and the technician has not been given permission to correct it, then the technician should have made this abundantly clear. If the clarinet is in such state, then it is probably not appropriate for the player to work on it.
It is a shame that the repair place has been named. I agree that there is insufficient detail of the case to fairly name the repair place concerned.
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Author: Vicky
Date: 2004-12-26 20:11
I have a Vintage Buffet. I just got it this year. I'm still having to adjust it the way that I like. I believe the technician that I go to is very good. Actually, he's the only one that I trust going to from around here. The posts shift often, and that's the only thing that is pretty much bothering me.
It's a slight adjustment, and that clarinet seems to be playing beautifully. I just went and played with the Roswell Symphony and I got many comments on how beautifully the instrument playes.
So all in all, I'm pleased with the repairs. I'm just picky when it comes to my clarinet. :D
Vicky
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Author: Vytas
Date: 2004-12-26 20:54
****I have a Vintage Buffet......The posts shift often, and that's the only thing that is pretty much bothering me.****
Ok then, Gordon is right! It is definitely time to find a better technician. Adjusting posts is not going to help here. Adjustment only temporarily deals with the problem but the problem never goes away. Posts should be adjusted and secured/locked in place.
Vytas Krass
Professional clarinet technician
Custom clarinet mouthpiece maker
Former professional clarinet player
Post Edited (2004-12-26 21:13)
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Author: ron b
Date: 2004-12-26 21:02
Posts (pillars) can be tightened. Although it's a little more 'technical' than most home do-it-yourselfers care to tinker with, it's do-able. If you're determined and have lots of patience there are frequent visiting techs who will be glad to advise you. For most first-timers I would suggest using thin paper shims... 'cause other methods are messier....
- r![[cool]](http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/smileys/cool.gif) n b -
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Author: Gordon (NZ)
Date: 2004-12-27 01:25
Unless the thread is stripped, or the sloppiness is enormous, a post can easily be secured by unscrewing it a couple of turns, using smooth, parallel-jawed pliers, working a small amount of pumice powder between the post and the timber, and re-tightening the post.
As with pretty well all work on instruments, there is the potential for the unexpected, and for things to go wrong. Significant damage is possible.
This is where experience is a invaluable, and where most DIY people go sadly awry. The technician needs to be aware of what can go wrong, to take precauti0ons to prevent such mishaps, and to be able to deal with them effectively when they do occur.
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Author: Vicky
Date: 2004-12-27 22:26
Thanks for the advice everyone! I'll just wait for a until next week to get it all looked at!
Vicky
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Author: Vytas
Date: 2004-12-27 23:22
****"Unless the thread is stripped, or the sloppiness is enormous, a post can easily be secured by unscrewing it a couple of turns, using smooth, parallel-jawed pliers, working a small amount of pumice powder between the post and the timber, and re-tightening the post".****
Interesting solution! Nice going Gordon! And I thought I know everything there's to know about the clarinet repair. Must be NZ thing. Ha-ha!
In the situation you've described I used to drive a small pin through the side of the post into the wood. Now I'm using small aluminum washers I make myself from the disposable aluminum cooking plates or whatever they're called. After tightening the post washer is not visible.
Vytas Krass
Professional clarinet technician
Custom clarinet mouthpiece maker
Former professional clarinet player
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Author: Gordon (NZ)
Date: 2004-12-28 02:25
I think I got that from the Eric Brand repair manual.
Whatever the source, it is an old technique, and not a NZ thing, much as I would like to claim it. :-)
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