The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: JJTheJetPlane
Date: 2009-07-20 21:25
I just bought a pedler silver clarinet from an antique shop the other day for only 30 dollars. I've done the research and the clarinet is actually one of the original made by pedler when he owned the company, and not by martin. This was a very good find, the only thing is that it's missing a barrel, any help in finding one would be greatly appreciated.
Please if you're not going to offer me any factual information and just leave it at "oh it's impossible to find" or tell me to just buy another clarinet on ebay don't waste either of our time and skip on answering. If you knew anything about metal clarinets you'd know that original pedler clarinets are one of the highest grade metal clarinets made.
Thanks much for any help!
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2009-07-20 21:36
If a replacement barrel can't be found, I reckon a replacement can be made from scratch if you can get all the vital measurements from someone who has one (and a good set of verniers, plus a photo of the original) or have one to borrow to get the measurements copied from.
Is this clarinet solid silver or silver plated brass?
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: David Spiegelthal ★2017
Date: 2009-07-21 01:57
If you can email me a photo of the barrel end of the instrument, and measure its diameter, I might have a barrel lying around that could work from a couple of parts-donor metal clarinets.
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Author: Molloy
Date: 2009-07-21 02:22
Attachment: Photo 645.jpg (89k)
The top-of-the-line Harry Pedler metal clarinets have an integral barrel -- the barrel is not a separate piece.
The intermediate-quality Harry Pedler clarinets that I've seen have a barrel that looks like this (see attached photo of a barrel from a Harry Pedler 400).
It appears to me that a barrel from one of the better Pedler models, like a Premiere, is compatible, only lacking the twist-tuning mechanism. Those Pedlers sometimes go cheap enough to get one just to cannibalize the barrel.
Post Edited (2009-07-21 02:28)
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Author: BobD
Date: 2009-07-21 12:50
Just curious how you can tell it's solid German Silver. I assume it's branded Harry Pedler and has a serial number?
Bob Draznik
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Author: Old Geezer
Date: 2009-07-21 15:12
JJTheJetPlane writes;
"the clarinet is solid german silver."
How does he know? Did it speak German to him?
Clarinet Redux
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Author: JJTheJetPlane
Date: 2009-07-21 22:50
I know the clarinet is solid silver because my repair man, one of the most highly respected in the Philladelphia area, confirmed that it was indeed silver when I took it to him for an estimate on the work that was to be done. Not that that's the most important issue here
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Author: Mark Charette
Date: 2009-07-21 22:58
JJTheJetPlane wrote:
> I know the clarinet is solid silver
Silver or German silver? German silver has not one bit of elemental silver in it - a common cause of confusion when it comes to value.
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Author: JJTheJetPlane
Date: 2009-07-22 04:58
Mark Charette wrote:
>
> Silver or German silver? German silver has not one bit of
> elemental silver in it - a common cause of confusion when it
> comes to value.
Well I'm not selling it, I'm trying to get a barrel for it.
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2009-07-22 08:15
If you want a barrel for it, or have one fabricated, will it be made from nickel silver (which is German silver - an alloy of copper, zinc and nickel) or sterling silver (92.5% silver content)?
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: JJTheJetPlane
Date: 2009-07-22 08:33
honestly i'd just go with which ever is easier to come by, i'm mainly a bass clarinet player but i happen to have a collection of clarinets going on. i'm pretty sure the pedler is the only one of signifigant value.. i have one of those cheap plastic colored ones that someone got me as a joke, a blessing clarinet from a few years ago, and an artly. i'm away right now so i'm not sure when i can get those measurements.. probably sunday
Chris P wrote:
> If you want a barrel for it, or have one fabricated, will it be
> made from nickel silver (which is German silver - an alloy of
> copper, zinc and nickel) or sterling silver (92.5% silver
> content)?
>
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Author: scot455
Date: 2011-10-01 06:58
Harry Pedler & Co made several types of top-end metal clarinet in 1927-1928-1929
They were made in Albert and Boehm systems, and you could get them in nickel or silver plate.
The mouthpiece barrel could be attached or detachable, and you could get a one-piece or two piece body.
The bell was highly engraved and generally detachable
The barrel was adjustable and fairly complex -- If you wanted to repair one you would have to be an expert solderer (I know because I have taken one apart)
The one I have has an oval logo that says Harry Pedler & Co Elkhart Ind, with a Lyre shape above the logo .It has a heavily knurled ring above the logo for adjustment
My clarinet is silver plated, gilded bell, one-piece body ser no 11530 and sold for $80 in 1927-1928 (I think).
If Eberhart Kraut reads this, please contact me -- I am trying to research Harry Pedler Snr
Good Luck and Be Safe !!!!!
Ivan
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Author: jim lande
Date: 2011-10-02 20:56
Almost all metal clarinets of the era were silver plated. Some were silver plated over German silver (which as noted, was mostly nickle). Some were silver plated over brass. Most of the better models were the former and most of the student models were the latter, but there are exceptions in both directions.
I have only seen pro model Pedlers that had the built in barrel but detachable bells.
Since you won't have the original barrel, you need not be concerned about collector value. Presuming that the upper part of your clarinet is a corked tenon that fits into the missing barrel, another approach is to use a wooden barrel. One of the custom barrel makers can make one the proper length and with the proper socket size. It will look odd to a clarinet player, but not to anyone else. (Seriously. For a while I used a wooden barrel on a Silva Bet. It was a Moennig style reverse taper barrel and played very well. I went to blues jams and nobody ever seemed to notice the odd profile.)
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Author: Klarnetisto
Date: 2011-10-09 14:37
This website (in French; but I'm writing a translation):
http://www.clarinette-metal.fr/
..has a page which which gives contact info for someone who makes replacement barrels for metal clarinets (see about 2/3 of the way down, link "fabrication de barillet"):
http://www.clarinette-metal.fr/comment_restaurer_sa_clarinette_metal.htm
Otherwise, there's been someone on the Unmentionable Auction site who sells off his accumulation of metal clarinet barrels one by one (he calls them something other than "barrels," though exactly what I now forget). Search there for "metal clarinet" from time to tiem and you'll probably see this come up eventually. If what he has offered at the moment isn't right for you, write him directly and ask what he may have.
Klarnetisto
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