 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Margaret
Date: 2009-04-20 02:27
Hello,
Have clarinet barrel sockets ever varied in diameter?
I ask because I recently decided to take the papers that shimmed some of the tenon rings on the clarinet that I restored last year off, and try to humidify them back to their original dimensions, having read how to do this on this board.
It worked, but now my mouthpiece wobbles in the barrel. This is annoying and likely bad as far as sound goes too. Everything else is fine.
So is this a normal outcome and, regardless, is there a mouthpiece that will fit the barrel? I have no way of measuring the diameter, so cannot provide any figures.
Thanks,
Margaret
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2009-04-20 13:00
You can have your mouthpiece tenon recorked so it fits better, though this won't completely cure the wobble but will reduce it significantly.
Just be sure the socket rings remain really tight before doing this as loose rings and tight fitting tenon corks will cause cracks in the socket.
But socket diameters vary from make to make as there's no standard diameter, and also the socket diameters can vary over time within the same makes.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: Margaret
Date: 2009-04-20 17:32
Thanks for the information Chris.
My mouthpiece fits my other clarinet well, so I'll have to get another one and alter it. How unfortunate that the measurements aren't standardized.
Margaret
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2009-04-20 17:47
Although there's no definitive industry standard for barrel sockets, makers do approximate to a variable standard if that makes sense.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: Caroline Smale
Date: 2009-04-20 19:32
It may still be worthwhile to have a new cork fitted to your mouthpiece since a cork that is resilient and flexible will be much more capable of taking up the small differences in socket diameters than an older, probably stiifer cork.
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Author: Margaret
Date: 2009-04-20 22:22
Hi,
Thanks guys. I will have to go buy a mouthpiece and change the cork this summer. Based on what you've said, I think the cork fix should work.
Incidentally, the clarinets are from the same company, but the one with the larger barrel was made approximately 30 years before the other one. Oddly enough, if you look at the two barrels from the side, the one with the larger top socket appears to taper more towards the top, although it could just be an illusion.
Margaret
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