The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: GBK
Date: 2012-02-24 15:20
What is the "standard" fix for a loose lower bell ring?
...GBK
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Author: tictactux ★2017
Date: 2012-02-24 15:34
Thin Superglue. After carefully having re-humidified the wood if it was overly dry. If it's a wooden bell, that is. And it depends on the amount of "looseness" of the bell ring; if it is so loose that it rattles you might have to compress it somehow, eg by making the cross-section "V" a bit narrower.
(At least that's what I am doing. I don't claim to be "standard" in any way. And maybe there's no such thing as a "standard" bell)
--
Ben
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2012-02-24 15:39
You're best applying superglue to it while it's still loose, then next winter when the wood shrinks again it'll still be tight.
If you rehumidify it and then apply superglue, then it will only become loose again once the humidity level drops.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: tictactux ★2017
Date: 2012-02-24 15:59
Point for you, Chris. :-)
On the other hand, I thought that loose rings often come with neglected or long-time-storage instruments. And what if during the summer (or whatever your favourite rain period) the wood swells and expands the ring (or crumbles the brittle superglue), then you're at square 1 next Christmas...
--
Ben
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2012-02-24 16:03
I've fitted loose rings this way in the past and they haven't loosened the following year when the humidity levels drop - the superglue hasn't broken down when the wood expanded and the rings still remain tight and rattle-free.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: tictactux ★2017
Date: 2012-02-24 16:14
Well that's good to know, Chris. One step less... <scribbles in mental notebook>
--
Ben
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2012-02-24 16:23
I did the same thing but using shellac instead of superglue a long time ago and that just crumbled.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: Alseg
Date: 2012-02-24 17:15
Lag bolts with zinc galvanized sinkers.
Sometimes humidity or an application of bore oil near the ring will correct it without resorting to drastic measures.
Former creator of CUSTOM CLARINET TUNING BARRELS by DR. ALLAN SEGAL
-Where the Sound Matters Most(tm)-
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Author: Hank Lehrer
Date: 2012-02-24 17:38
Alseg,
You must have also been an orthopod in another life. Everything they did when I got new knee in 2010 seemed over built.
HRL
Post Edited (2012-02-24 17:39)
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Author: tictactux ★2017
Date: 2012-02-24 17:56
I have a friend who claims to have been an octopod in a former life.
--
Ben
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Author: Ed
Date: 2012-02-24 18:56
My tech has a bell press that will compress it ever so slightly (if careful!) so that it holds. It is a similar concept to the one for loose rings.
Not all shops have this.
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Author: Grabnerwg
Date: 2012-02-24 20:20
I sincerely wish that the manufacturers just stop putting on a bell ring in the first place. They are nothing but trouble. If they are there to keep the bell from cracking, they are not doing the job if they are so loose. It's just another problem to deal with.
Walter Grabner
www.clarinetxpress.com
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2012-02-25 06:19
I'd also use super glue or epoxy. You can heat epoxy after mixing to make it much thinner. Like Chris, I also found that glue filled loose bell rings, even with super glue, don't become rattly again when weather changes (and in my city, it changes a lot, sometimes even in the same day).
Re:
>> If they are there to keep the bell from cracking, they are not doing the job if they are so loose. <<
Whether intended or not, the main reason for this seems to be to protect the bell rim from breaking when it gets bumped etc. which is important sometimes and for some players, but completely unecessary for others.
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Author: tictactux ★2017
Date: 2012-02-25 10:08
In that case, they should make a groove around the bell rim and put an O-ring in there. An accidentally dropped bell would bounce right back into the hand of the owner.
Plus you could sell aftermarket O-rings in a variety of colours and finishes and claim it'll improve the tone.
--
Ben
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Author: jbutler ★2017
Date: 2012-02-25 16:33
I purchased an Allied bell press a long time ago. It comes in quite handy when working with older clarinets with loose bell rings. Sadly, Allied stopped producing the press due to lack of demand. Super glue does work, is cheap, and any possible clean up can be done with 0000 steel wool.
jbutler
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Author: rtmyth
Date: 2012-02-25 18:02
Loose bell ring, or maybe, shrunk wooden bell . The ring has more attractive options than the wood bell.
richard smith
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2012-02-26 03:25
>> See the last item, 573/5 <<
I have a lot of tool from Boehm, they are usually excellent. I would buy this one too if I thought it was needed. But actually I would rather have the bell ring repaired with glue than by shrinking, even if I got the tool for free. So I decided not to buy this one.
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Author: MichaelW
Date: 2012-02-26 17:43
I use hot-melt glue. It won't crumble, and it is easier to get the ring off again if necessary.
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Author: Tony F
Date: 2012-02-27 11:06
If the ring is only slightly loose I'd use thin superglue, but if it was really loose I'd use warmed epoxy because the gapfilling properties are better.
Tony F.
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