 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Claire Annette
Date: 2013-04-02 12:43
...about swab weights gone naked.
I have a Doctor's silk swab and a Hodge silk swab. They are each very effective and my only disappointment has been that each one has lost the protective coating that encased the metal weight. I'd like ideas on what I can do to recoat the weights so my clarinet will be protected. Wrapping a rubber band around the metal made the weight too wide to pass through the top joint and barrell.
Suggestions?
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Author: rtmyth
Date: 2013-04-02 12:49
dip it in rubber cement and let it drain and dry
richard smith
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Author: Claire Annette
Date: 2013-04-02 12:52
Good ideas!
Mark, how long does the product stay viable in the container once it's been opened? Months? Years?
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Author: Mark Charette
Date: 2013-04-02 13:05
Claire Annette wrote:
> Mark, how long does the product stay viable in the container
> once it's been opened? Months? Years?
Spray can - over 4 years.
Dip can - over 2 years if you remember to close the cover. If you forget to close the cover it becomes a half hard, half gooey mess.
Personal experience. YMMV. Close the cover.
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2013-04-02 14:34
You can use heat shrink insulation tubing which can be bought from any electrical components supplier (in a variety of colours), so measure the diameter of the weight and get the tubing that's slightly larger in diameter so it goes on easily. Then cut the tubing to slightly longer than the entire length of the weight then dip it in boiling water to shrink the plastic around the weight, then trim the excess off the end.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: Paul Globus
Date: 2013-04-02 14:58
Wrap the weight with black electrical tape. Very easy, very cheap, very effective.
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2013-04-02 15:02
The problem with some insulating tape is the adhesive which can get very sticky and migrate. Heat shrink tubing is available without any adhesive, plus you can get it in clear if you can't find the correct colour match.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: Paul Globus
Date: 2013-04-02 16:00
So if the electric tape comes off, you put on another piece. No big deal. I've had the same piece of tape on my swab for the better part of a year and it's still there.
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Author: Nessie1
Date: 2013-04-02 16:29
Yes but we are talking about getting sticky goo on the inside of your clarinet which may affect sound/get into tone holes/stick to your pull through on future uses and goodness knows what.
Another idea I have heard is to use fishing weights - they have a slot in them because they are designed to be moulded round fishing line and they are made of metal which is sufficiently soft that it will not scratch the bore.
Vanessa
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Author: kdk
Date: 2013-04-03 00:23
Nessie1 wrote:
> Yes but we are talking about getting sticky goo on the inside
> of your clarinet which may affect sound/get into tone
> holes/stick to your pull through on future uses and goodness
> knows what.
I doubt it - you usually drop the weight straight through. It doesn't need to come into tight contact with the bore or tone hole openings.
>
> Another idea I have heard is to use fishing weights...
> they are made of metal which is sufficiently
> soft that it will not scratch the bore.
>
I'd be a lot more leary of a lead fishing weight's not doing damage (if that's the soft metal it's made of). It isn't *that*soft. Besides, if you handle it you risk absorbing lead into your system. And unless you mold your own to the right size (which some experienced fishermen do at the risk of inhaling lead vapor), the commercial ones I've seen are too wide to get past the register tube.
I wouldn't take sides between shrink tubing and electrical tape - they both seem like workable solutions (I'd be the one to forget to close the can of Mark's plastic dip). You just need to watch to see when a problem of any kind develops.
Or, you could just buy a new swab.
Karl
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Author: LJBraaten
Date: 2013-04-03 05:05
Someone on this board recommended liquid (Electrical) tape, it comes in a small bottle with a brush. it appears to be similar to the plastic dip that Mark recommends, and is also easy to find in hardware stores. I've used it on my doctors swab weight, it works fine.
Laurie
Laurie (he/him)
Post Edited (2013-04-06 05:09)
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Author: Claire Annette
Date: 2013-04-03 19:45
I saw the liquid electrical tape option. It is cheaper than the plastic coating, according to the famous Wally World site.
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Author: BartHx
Date: 2013-04-07 04:08
I had the covering come off of my Doctor's swab, too. I consulted the Doctor and asked about the liquid insulation. He advised that would duplicate the original. I cleaned the weight with alcohol and put about three or four coats on it (including about 3 to 4 cm of the fabric lace) and have had no trouble since. I have now been using it two or three times longer than the original coating lasted. By allowing the coating to soak into the lace, it prevents moisture from getting under the coating on the weight. Just dip the weight in the can and hang it up to let it dry (put something under it to catch possible drips). Liquid insulation is inexpensive, available at most hardware stores, and useful for lots of things. I also use it to coat the whipping on the ends of small lines on my boat
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Author: Claire Annette
Date: 2013-04-08 13:53
Bart, thanks for the suggestion of dipping up to the lace.
An auto technician in our church choir has cans of this stuff and is letting me borrow one for my two swab weights that need coating.
Admittedly, one of my mistakes (probably) was washing my swabs with the laundry (but not with a fabric softener). Now, I wash my swabs out by hand.
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