 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Michael McConnell
Date: 2011-09-12 00:27
I apologize if this question has already been addressed, but I was wondering if anyone out there has experimented with making their own cork pads for their clarinets.
I imagine that there are two approaches that you can take:
1. Buy sheet cork of the thickness that you need, and then use a punch to create the pad.
OR
2. Use something other than sheet cork to begin the process.
I imagine that the 1st approach is the one that most repair technicians use to create their own cork pads. This makes sense, since it's probably easier to order high quality sheet cork products from reputable music supply dealers, and all that you need is a punch to create the pads. I don't really want to discuss this approach.
What I am curious to hear your opinions about is the 2nd approach. I'd like to know if anyone has experimented with any other sort of cork product to make their own pads. I thought that perhaps it might be possible to make cork pads quite cheaply from high quality wine corks.
You would need a high-precision (metal) lathe to cut the wine corks to the proper diameter, and then some type of precise cutting tool to ensure that the correct thickness is achieved for each individual pad.
Have any of you experimented with this?
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Author: Wes
Date: 2011-09-12 01:06
The cork pads from Ferrees work great and are made from excellent cork, but are fairly expensive. I've tried to make cork pads from sheet cork and bottle corks but have had no success due to the small holes and irregularities in those products. Laboratory equipment sellers sold sets of hole cutters which work great or one can make them from sharpened thin wall tubing. The quality of available sheet cork has not been good enough plus I often cut the sides of the corks at a angle other than 90 degrees. Good luck!
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2011-09-12 09:19
Even excellent quality sheet cork often now doesn't have so many areas that are the same quality as cork pads you can buy. Already made cork pads are usually (at least from some sources) very good quality cork, with no chips, grain, cracks, etc. like a lot of cork sheets. I think most suppliers buy cork pads and cork sheets as opposed to making the pads themsevles. The makers (AFAIK there are a few who supply to pretty much all the suppliers) probably already use the best for pads, leaving everything else for sheets.
As far as making pads from sheets, wine corks, or anything else, as long as the cork is good and you can do that it's fine. You just have to find cork good enough to allow a pad without issues.
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Author: kdk
Date: 2011-09-12 13:06
Michael McConnell wrote:
>
> What I am curious to hear your opinions about is the 2nd
> approach. I'd like to know if anyone has experimented with any
> other sort of cork product to make their own pads. I thought
> that perhaps it might be possible to make cork pads quite
> cheaply from high quality wine corks.
>
> You would need a high-precision (metal) lathe to cut the wine
> corks to the proper diameter, and then some type of precise
> cutting tool to ensure that the correct thickness is achieved
> for each individual pad.
>
I'm not sure that your emphasis on precision equipment is all that well placed. The shaping of the pad is pretty straightforward and could probably be done well enough with a sharp knife, a file or two and various levels of abrasive on a flat surface. It only needs to sit solidly in the pad cup, have a flat, blemish-free surface and seat perfectly on the tone hole. The craft of installing cork pads, whether hand made or bought from a supplier is in getting them level so they seal the hole, since there's little to no give in the cork surface.
The problem I always hear about regarding cork pads (the upper joints of my clarinets are done with cork) is that it's hard to find cork of the necessary quality. Any porosity or surface imperfections can allow air to leak through or under the pad and brittle cork can be hard to work without its splitting as it's being shaped.
Sadly, too, good wine corks (unless maybe you're drinking much more expensive wines than I do on a regular basis) are becoming harder to find. Many of the bottles I buy now come with synthetic corks or, if it's real, the cork has become somehow brittle and hard to cut cleanly. More bottles are even coming with (gaaak) screw caps! :(
Karl
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2011-09-12 13:14
You can buy wine corks in bulk. I use them to shave off thin slices of decorative cork for use on thumbrests and also for other places where a very thin piece is used (such as the inside of the feather key retainer hoop on oboes or the undersides of the C and Eb keys).
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: Caroline Smale
Date: 2011-09-12 18:44
To cut cork cleanly it is best to use a very thin wall tube of correct diameter with well sharpened edge and spin it in a lathe / bench motor, pressing the cork onto the cutter with a wood block.
This works fine for making pads for water keys of brass instruments.
As noted earlier getting cork of good enough quality for woodwind pads is tough. It needs probably the top 0.1% of cork quality and this I am sure is reserved for the specialist pad makers.
Economically it makes little sense for professional repairers to make pads but if a hobbyist wants some fun go ahead.
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Author: ned
Date: 2011-09-13 03:23
Karl writes: ''......Many of the bottles I buy now come with synthetic corks or,..........''
Karl - I had this idea too reading the thread. If synth cork is OK for a good wine, then is it good enough for a clarinet?
Anyone else want to comment before I pop down to the bottle shop?
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Author: TJTG
Date: 2011-09-13 03:28
Those corks are sometimes really porous. They're solid enough to seal the wine, but wouldn't have a flat pad seal. I'm not sure if it'd work because of the small holes you'd have just above the pad hole... I've thought about it too though.
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Author: ned
Date: 2011-09-14 01:40
TJTG writes ''Those corks are sometimes really porous...........''
Are you referring to synth or real corks, or to all wine corks?
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Author: TJTG
Date: 2011-09-14 01:45
oops... Synthetic... They seem to, at times, be really foamy but not with a smooth side like Valentino might have. I think if this synthetic material worked well for this on its own Valentino wouldn't bother making a smooth side to his foam pads.
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Author: Bob Bernardo
Date: 2011-09-14 02:35
I really like cork pads. I've been using them since the late '70s. You should change them about every 8 or more years when the cork starts to really dry out and you can hear them clicking when pressing down the keys. If people in the band or orchestra can hear the cork hitting the key holes it's time to change. I feel the left hand thumb, octive key, is a must to have. I actually thin the cork in diameter, which seems to get rid of some stuffy notes and if the octive key is set right you won't feel that thud.
It takes a lot of time to seal them, once sealed they last a very long time. I use real cork, not synthetic. I don't really feel the cork is that expensive because it lasts a very long time and it seals so well. After breaking a few pads while you recork the horn your final cost should be less then perhaps $20 or so for the upper joint; depending where you buy it. I use different sources, for assorted pads, not just cork. Email me if needed for sources.
Designer of - Vintage 1940 Cicero Mouthpieces and the La Vecchia mouthpieces
Yamaha Artist 2015
Post Edited (2011-09-14 03:02)
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Author: skygardener
Date: 2011-09-14 14:08
Using wine corks or other bulk cork just to make a pad seems to be a bit too much work for me when the cork pads from repair supply places is already so good. Why go through all the work just for something that will be the same in the end?
Although, I have does quite a lot of experimenting with several non-cork materials and have found pros and cons to all of them.
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Author: Ed Palanker
Date: 2011-09-14 20:50
My old repairman in NY, Murray Snyder, a well respected tech in his days used to ask his customers to bring in the wine bottle corks when you came back. My present repairman uses high quality sheets but is very fussy about which pieces he uses. Saves a lot of time. ESP eddiesclarinet.com
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Author: Michael McConnell
Date: 2011-09-15 01:17
Thank you for all of your insightful comments. I recently ordered a Sherline lathe, and will soon experiment with making my own cork pads from a variety of cork products to see what works best. I'll make sure to post a link with some pictures of the process, as well as my results.
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Author: Bob Bernardo
Date: 2011-09-15 02:23
Back in the days I'd get sheet cork and had a machinist make a punch for me, the exact diameter of the upper joint keys. The cost was around $100 back then.
Alhough a bit expensive for a tiny piece of cork, in my opinion, the already cut cork works fine for me, although thay are harder then wine bottle cork.
Eddie Palanker, I actually forgot about the wine cork, yes I used that too. I asked all of my friends to save their cork from the bottles, back from the Peabody days. I got a bit smarter and asked a local bar to save the wine corks for me. Those dang wine bottle cork had a mess of impressions, dimples, whatever, plus the screw marks, so you could only get a few good pads out of each cork. Well I got even a bit smarter, hard to believe, but I did! I started ordering cork from the local wine companies here in California. Bought them in 100 packs for very little money; perhaps 10 bucks or less. It worked very well because these corks were soft and spongy with no screw marks. It is really the best fantastic cork to use. With that hand punch it took very little time making cork pads.
Since I'm repairing a few school horns and horns from a few local colleges, and a few local pro's, I usually just buy the formed cork now. Again, it is much harder. I have to say wine cork is by far the best cork to use due to the softness, with little or no clicking on the key holes for many many years.
You have to watch for tiny cracks and minute holes and often one side of the cork was fine, but the other side was smooth. You can still use that cork, needless to say with the cracked cork place upside down. Some of the 100 pack cork was useless, too many holes and such, but if you are a bit creative you can get the kids some Elmer's glue and see what kind of mess they can come up with! Boats were the most common, because they float!
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Author: DeletedUser
Date: 2018-05-03 19:51
I am pretty sure that this board is dead but anyway - have a lot of wine corks that I bought and there is a ton of them that I can not use for pads - but when I do get lucky enough to find a section of cork I use nothing more than a steel thin walled tube that I sharpened a little and work it into the pad material by hand - I rotate it carefully and slowly so the outside of the pad dosent look so raggedy
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