 The Clarinet BBoard
|
Author: David Spiegelthal
Date: 2000-08-30 17:34
Do NOT try WD-40. That is a penetrating oil, not a cleaning product. I assume Bob meant something like ArmorAll? Actually, I'm not sure there is any product that can truly restore the original uniform black color of a discolored rubber clarinet (or mouthpiece). As has been pointed out in an earlier posting, the discoloration is the result of a chemical change in the rubber from UV light (sunlight) exposure, and I suspect it's irreversible.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Don Berger
Date: 2000-08-30 18:15
Well said, Dave, harsh solvents like WD 40 [acetone etc] may soften the H R, make it sticky etc. It may be that the brown-green is just surface [oxidation?] and might be removable or at least diminished just by rubbing or buffing dry, or with rubbing alcohol iC3H7OH, but do try out a small spot first!! I may experiment and will report results. Don
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: David Spiegelthal
Date: 2000-08-30 21:31
Don, et al,
I'm still fairly certain the discoloration is a chemical change (perhaps a molecular cross-linking, any chemists out there?) which is more than just 'skin-deep', but nevertheless, I've been able to mitigate (though not eliminate) the discoloration by using rubbing/polishing compounds, then finishing up with lots of rubbing with a cotton towel, to polish the hard rubber. The resulting shiny finish may not actually change the color back, but the increased reflectivity makes it appear darker and certainly more attractive.
BTW, WD-40 is not what's typically considered a solvent (like acetone), it is instead a petroleum distillate (i.e. a light oil, like key oil, or Liquid Wrench).
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: J. Butler
Date: 2000-08-31 01:27
Actually ammonia can "lift up" that old oxidation from the rubber. Hard rubber becomes green because free sulpher in the rubber comes to the surface. It can be buffed off, but is an awful job on a clarinet body. Soaking a mouthpiece or rubber joint in amonia will eliminate the sulpher--which combines with nitrogen in the ammonia and precipitates. The surface is left "un-shiney" and the posts may tarnish, but both can be polished back to a shine. (Posts are best removed during this process if possible.) If you don't have a buffer to polish the rubber, a commercial product called "Gel-Gloss", that can be found at hardware stores for polishing fiberglass and counter tops, works well. With household ammonia the soaking will take some time. Ammonia fortis must be diluted.
J. Butler
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Lindsay
Date: 2000-08-31 04:31
Also--try a little lemon juice. My teacher uses that after cleaning his mouthpiece, so it returns the natural black hard rubber color. It's also pretty harmless to the rubber, and smells great, too.
--Lindsay
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Willie
Date: 2000-08-31 05:39
I use lemon juice to clean my MPs and my old 2RV still looks like "Army surplus" except where the lig was for years. Its ugly but plays really good on some of my horns. I'll take any suggestions I can get and be grateful as I have an old cadaver to experiment on first. I've got four clarinets of my own to over haul but I've got to get the kids' horns out first. I've never seen so many hand-me-down and pawn shop clarinets in my life as this year!
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: David Spiegelthal
Date: 2000-09-01 14:32
With respect to John Butler's excellent advice on cleaning rubber mouthpieces with ammonia to remove discoloration, a reasonably effective and easy result can be had by polishing the mouthpiece with Brasso --- it contains ammonia and a mild abrasive, and removes some of the discoloration while restoring the shiny finish. Naturally one has to clean the mouthpiece very thoroughly with soap and water afterwards, before sticking said mouthpiece in one's mouth.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
The Clarinet Pages
|
 |
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
