 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: moolatte
Date: 2010-04-19 02:25
Would it be possible to make a clarinet with magnetic joint rings? You wouldn't have to worry about cork grease because all you have to do is just stick your bell to your bottom joint, barrel to the top joint, etc.
That'd be cool. You'd need some lightweight supermagnets though I'd think.
Post Edited (2010-04-19 02:26)
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Author: EEBaum
Date: 2010-04-19 03:36
The cork also provides an airtight seal. I don't think any known magnets can exert that kind of force on air molecules (definitely not any that are small and lightweight enough to fit on a clarinet and wouldn't cause significant damage to all objects in the vicinity).
-Alex
www.mostlydifferent.com
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Author: RoBass
Date: 2010-04-19 10:44
What's the advantage of magnetic force against the friction force of tenon cork?
kindly
Roman
PS@Mike: Do you tune in the midbody gap or with the bell?
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Author: BartHx
Date: 2010-04-19 15:32
To answer the question more directly: Yes, there are magnets that could allow the assembly of a clarinet without cork. If magnetic rings were placed at the bottom of the socket and on the end of the tenon, they could be coated with something like teflon to achieve an airtight joint. However, since disassembly would require pulling the magnets in direct opposition to each other, the disassembly process could be quite difficult. The magnets I used to use in the classroom for demonstration were about 1 cm in diameter and needed to be slid off of each other to separate them. A body part accidentally caught between them could be painfully pinched. On the down side, tuning by pulling a joint could only be accomplished by using something like tuning rings. In addition, joints would need to be loosely fitted in order to allow for the slight dimension changes that normally take place as the environment changes. I imagine that, for the right price, a mechanism could be devised that would allow for tuning, but why?
Don't get a mechanical watch or any device that stores data in magnetic form near your instrument. I once palmed one of the magnets to demonstrate my magic powers over an electron beam. When the students accused me of having something in my hand, without thinking, I dropped the magnet in my back pocket. I had to get all my credit cards reissued.
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Author: Mike Clarinet
Date: 2010-04-19 15:44
Hi Roman,
I normally tune between the barrel & top joint. I was taking the original posting to mean ALL joints to be replaced with magnetics, not just the bell to bottom joint. The mental picture I had was the sections fitting together flat against flat, not a socket and tenon. This would leave a gap between sections in whatever joint is used fo tuning. My mental picture is probably wrong.
If a magnetically held socket and tenon is used, I guess you would need something like a Conn saxophone micro-tuner neck, which has a threaded part you screw out or in to adjust tuning. Otherwise how do you stop pulled-out sections from pulling back in again.
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Author: Gordon (NZ)
Date: 2010-04-20 10:18
I work a lot with magnets, selling them as a sideline.
I cannot see any possible way of doing this which is sensible, whereas the current corked-tenon concept is 100% sensible.
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Author: skygardener
Date: 2010-04-20 13:50
There are some flutes that have magnets in the keys; no springs. I have tried them and they have a really interesting smooth feel to the tension. I wonder if this would ever work with clarinets- maybe clarinet has too many closed keys to be practical.
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Author: timg
Date: 2010-04-20 23:20
The force between magnets falls very rapidly as they are separated, so any slight separation caused by a knock or shake would cause the instrument to fall apart. Of course this can be overcome with stronger (more expensive) magnets, but when dismantling the instrument there would be an awful lot of force pulling the magnets away from their attachment points on the wood.
Certain specialist connectors achieve airtight metal-to-metal connections without using grease or rubber, but they are large, heavy, and very, very expensive.
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Author: BartHx
Date: 2010-04-21 16:05
David -- that's brilliant. The options are endless. How about elastic Velcro for easily adjustable spring tension? Eliminate ligatures. Attach decorations to suit the instrument to the situation. Eliminate the thumb rest and have a custom fit for everyone. It boggles the mind.
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