 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: LeeB
Date: 2005-09-04 00:19
Just got a Selmer D* mouthpiece for my recently acquired Selmer 1440 contra alto clarinet, and am having a blast playing it. The horn sounds very good, and is quite easy to control (and I haven't even had it in to get tweaked by my tech yet).
Unfortunately, the bass clarinet swabs I have are just barely long enough to make the round trip through the instrument. I suppose I could splice in some additional cord, but that would pose a danger of getting hung up in the instrument. I don't want to regularly have to disassemble the "drain trap."
Does anyone know of a good source for a longer length swab for these lower, one-piece instruments?
Also, I suspect that the instrument hasn't been swabbed often in its past life. It has a slight bit of the sour smell. Any suggestions for a clean-out method without completely disassembling the instrument? I was thinking of soaking (then wringing out) a swab in a solution containing some Clorox bleach. Would this be a dumb idea? Is there a better cleaner/freshener? The horn is a composite, so no wood would be damaged. I got a new case for it, so the smell is not in the case yet.
Also, any recommendation for the gymnastics of getting the swab through the instrument? I'm currently lowering the swab through the bell end, jiggling it around until I can grab it out of the mouthpiece end.
Any tips would be appreciated.
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Author: David Spiegelthal ★2017
Date: 2005-09-04 01:18
I would just splice in additional shoelace cord --- make a good strong knot and trim any loose ends to reduce the chances of it getting hung up. So far in about five years of occasional contra-alto playing I haven' t had any problems with such an arrangement.
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Author: BassetHorn
Date: 2005-09-04 01:38
I live in a fairly moderate weather environment so I don't experience much condensation problem with playing my Bundy/Selmer, in any case, I always make sure the instrument warms up fairly well before I play it, so I don't find swapping to be a big deal. Occassional swaping of the detachable mouthpiece pipe is all that's needed. And of course, cleaning the mouthpiece after each playing session as well.
When I do find a need to clean the plastic body, I simply swap the lower joint using those swapping thing on a long stick made for saxophones. Sorry, don't know the technical name, and that works OK.
If you think swapping this instrument is difficult, try swapping a paperclip contra.
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Author: joannew
Date: 2005-09-04 08:54
I would be careful combining strong solvents like bleach with synthetic polymers - maybe you should do a spot test before you dump bleach down a multi-thousand $ instrument! Perhaps something less corrosive may be in order, like hydrogen peroxide?
Maybe we have some chemists here who could offer more solid advice?
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Author: Lelia Loban ★2017
Date: 2005-09-04 12:27
I have a 1440 plastic contra-alto manufactured under its former name of Selmer-Bundy. Mine has a Selmer C* mouthpiece that I use with a Rico Royal baritone sax reed. I use a bass clarinet silk pull-through swab, with an extra length of ball chain added. The ball chain gives enough weight to drop all the way through without hanging up. With a plastic instrument, the ball-chain seems to be safe enough, since the solid links are less likely than open links to catch onto anything inside the instrument. I haven't had any problems with the swab in the year and a half or so that I've owned this clarinet.
I bought the contra-alto from Jim Lande, who had kept it in clean, playable condition, but when I buy stinky old metal saxophones and clarinets from flea markets, I take off all the keys, immerse the whole body of the instrument in soapy water (utility sink or bathtub) and wash out the inside. The Men in Black have informed me that most the things growing in clarinets and saxophones are fungi-related illegal aliens. They come down in their flying saucer and instead of saying, "Take me to your leader," they mutter among themselves, although not in English, of course (this is a free translation), "Now, the guys on the mothership warned us to hide from the humans right away, so let's go find ourselves a nice dark clarinet or saxophone and make ourselves at home." It's important to wash out the neck. Often that's what smells the worst. That's the private apartment where the Blob Captain lives. I flush him outta there. The MIB will catch him in the sewers later and send him and his crew back to Regulus IV or wherever. That's not my job.
For everyday swabbing, I use a standard clarinet swab for the necks of saxophones and my alto and contra-alto clarinets. For cleaning up neglected large instruments, I bought bore brushes (like bottle brushes) from Ferree's, but for a clarinet, where the bore is more vulnerable than a saxophone bore, I tie a clean cotton flannel rag around the brush. I let the instrument dry in sunlight. Often a lot of the stench comes from the fabric lining the case. If the lining looks salvagable, I wash it out with Febreze and water on a sponge, rinse it and dry it in the sunlight.
The corks and the pads soak up bad smells, too, so I take off the old corks and pads before I put the keys back on and the instrument back in the case. If I don't have time to re-cork and re-pad right away, I put the keys back on the instrument for safekeeping, but seal up the old corks and pads in an airtight plastic bag so they won't stink up the case again. I like to keep those old pads for reference. The size and shape will have changed if they're deteriorated, but they'll usually tell me what type and size to use for replacements.
Lelia
http://www.scoreexchange.com/profiles/Lelia_Loban
To hear the audio, click on the "Scorch Plug-In" box above the score.
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