 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Bill
Date: 2005-01-24 21:46
I do believe I may be the only person in the world who has this problem, but I have never been able to get a Bonade ligature to fit comfortably around the circumference of my (several) B-flat clarinet mouthpieces. Today, my teacher brought out two of his (one silver-platyed, the other gold-plated) and they both slid down onto my mouthpiece like they were born there.
I must depend upon my Harrison (or other) ligature, all of which fit without difficulty.
Please help.
Frustrated in Washington, DC
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Author: sfalexi
Date: 2005-01-24 22:32
lol @ Dave.
There's plenty of alternatives to Bonade ligs. Even some which to me seem similar in concept to bonade ligs (Such as the BG Super Revelation, seems like the same concept to me with two bars holding the reed, or Vand optimum with parellel rail plate, or even FL or Spriggs lig which are all very similar in concept)
Go ahead and go lig shopping, and get ready for a GRAND 'ol time!
Alexi
US Army Japan Band
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Author: Bradley
Date: 2005-01-24 23:11
I've had a similar experience with a Bonade Inverted Eb lig. It just won't fit either of my mouthpieces well, and has scratched both of them before I realized what the little monster was doing on the other side in order to fit around my reeds. Now I just use a Leblanc lig while I'm waiting to get a better one- probably a Vandoren Optimum since I use one of those on Bb.
Bradley
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Author: Alseg
Date: 2005-01-25 04:05
Go to home improvement store and get duckbill type pliers. Crimp alongside the screw-in areas on either side.
Shape it so that the ligature does not impinge on the sides of the reed.
The resultant shape is ovoid....it will fit.
Alternative is to make a reed template out of aluminum strip....roughly 1.2mm thick and curve it on a bench grinder to resemble the shape of the reed. Take a throw-away cheapo mouthpiece, clamp the template on it, and work the ligature to shape with side of a metal screwdriver.
Newer metal ligs are just plain too thick to shape as easily as older ones.
Bay ligatures are very thin, but fragile.
Former creator of CUSTOM CLARINET TUNING BARRELS by DR. ALLAN SEGAL
-Where the Sound Matters Most(tm)-
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Author: LeWhite
Date: 2005-01-25 06:54
Interesting to note people's reactions to a 'fixed' Bonade - mine sits down on the reed i.e. the 'bad' way but no matter how much money I spend, I simply can't find anything better than a Bonade. What a waste of money, I wish I'd knows years ago that I'd only even need one ligature for the rest of my life.
__________________
Don't hate me because I play Leblanc! ![[down]](http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/smileys/smiley23.gif) Buffet
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Author: BobD
Date: 2005-01-25 13:19
A pleasant morning surprise to hear from Gregory again....and YES, a very good read...
Bob Draznik
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Author: Bill
Date: 2005-01-25 22:43
Thanks everyone for your comments! I'd like to be able to use a Bonade (DAVE ) because of the design, because my teacher uses one, and, I dunno, just to have it as an option (actually, the Harrison is fabulous).
Off to the tool box!
Bill.
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Author: BobD
Date: 2005-01-29 16:53
Based on comments here I decided to give my two Bonades another chance. I've been using an Eddie Daniels for over a year. Alseq's solution intrigued me even though I have never found a duckbill plier in a hardware store(Ferree's is expensive). I did decide that the "regular" Bonade with the rails on the screw side would be the more difficult so I went to the inverted one. First of all I am of the opinion that the metal is too soft to rely on any mechanical deforming to last so I went for the aluminum tab idea. That worked somewhat Ok but I wanted to raise the rail area even higher....i.e. get the Bonade away from the reed edges. By the way...success depends on the reed too as the Gonzalez are thicker than a VD. So, I picked up some rectangular brass tubing about as wide as the widest distance between the rails. I slit a piece to length and then slit out one of the widest sides, filed the edges and then bent over the two short sides. Hammered it down slightly and inserted it between the reed and rails of the lig. I am convinced that I am now getting a tone to die for.
I am afraid to alter this prototype as I feel that the adjustment needed for this mod is so delicate as to defy measurement. I can sympathize with LeBlanc's attempts at quality control on the Bonade.
Bob Draznik
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Author: Bill
Date: 2005-01-29 19:09
Bob - I'm going to read this again (and again). I was terrible in shop. But - fascinating. I'm not done with my inverted Bondae either (the duckbill is on its way). My teacher's slid onto my mpc. so perfectly. He didn't divulge his secret(s). At $75/hour, it would have been value added.
Bill.
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Author: pewd
Date: 2005-01-29 20:28
i know one guy who glued thin strips of cork over the rails on a bonade. seems to work pretty well. I'll try it on one of mine one of these days.
anyone else tried this trick?
-paul
- Paul Dods
Dallas, Texas
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Author: BobD
Date: 2005-01-29 23:15
I'm still puzzling over the concept of vibration deadening. Of course one's lips would seem to deaden vibrations and that's why I'm thinking that the fabric and rubber ligatures tend to cause a deadening or muffling. I'm thinking that, aside from the lips, there should be a "solid" connection between the reed/ligature and the reed/mp. I have tried the cork strip idea previously and it didn't seem to do anything positive. I believe the old Winslow ligs employed discrete reed contacts and so does the Optimum. Although the BG Super goes partway it still has a fabric enclosure. Probably not making much sense here. The metallic strips that Alseq and I are talking about are not unlike the inserts that come with the BG Super and the Optimum.....just thinner. Using my insert the Bonade "bands" don't touch the edges of the reed at all.
Bob Draznik
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Author: William
Date: 2005-01-30 15:33
Don't know why, but my old Bonade inverted ligs work just fine and do not slip. However, a new one that I recently bought is practically unusable. And I know how to adjust them. However, I have discontinued using the Bonades--mainly because of the constant readjustment hassel--and am current opting for the VanDoren Optimum with the parallel rail insert. That set-up works the same as the old Bonades and without having to use the needle nose before each gig.
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Author: Bill
Date: 2005-02-02 23:08
Attachment: Bonadeache copy.jpg (66k)
I have read Alseq's notes and those of BobD. I bought a pair of duckbill pliers. Unfortunately, I still have no idea what adjustment could be made with pliers that would render the Bonade, which appears simply "too small," or to have insufficiently-long gripping bands ("not enough metal"), useable.
For example, in the mouthpiece in the photo (a very old "Perfecta" "Diamond" Ebonite Vandoren 2RV that came to me with the tip and beak broken off), the Bonade lig just isn't big enough, never mind how the rails address the sides of the reed, to be used at all. It's like a pair of jeans that shrunk in the dryer. You're not going to get them back on.
For me, this is the case with the Bonade (and one I owned before it) on each and every mouthpiece I have (most of which do have playing ends and tips, unlike the Vandoren).
What is the adjustment with pliers (if any) that might make it fit around the mouthpiece (without removing screws!!!).
Bill.
Bill Fogle
Ellsworth, Maine
(formerly Washington, DC)
Post Edited (2005-02-02 23:11)
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Author: DavidBlumberg
Date: 2005-02-02 23:17
Instead of the cork, Moennig suggested using leather (sax pad) glued to the pressure points.
Also cutting out the center of the ligature so that ony 4 points contact the reed. I played that setup all throughout High School. (I had the Bonade Gold Plated as I liked the response/sound better back then - I prefer Silver now).
Now they offer it that way (Fred Weiner if I recall has that option to buy the plated Silver or Gold).
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