 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: muppie
Date: 2014-02-08 16:11
Mine gets very wet, especially inside the barrel joints... is it saliva or condensation from my breath?
I have a microfibre cloth always handy to wipe the, uhmm... I can't call it moisture.. more like... flood
So I would need to take off the barrel, wipe the tip of the tenon of the upper joint, then the majority of the fluid would collect inside the barrell. I would have to repeat the same for the mouthpiece -> barrel connection.
There isn't much in between the upper and lower joint.
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Author: Tony F
Date: 2014-02-08 11:46
While you may get some saliva in the mouthpiece and possibly in the barrel, most of what you find in the instrument is just water that has condensed from your warm breath. Some time ago I read an article on this subject, the origins of which I cannot remember. Their conclusions were that below the barrel almost no biological elements were found. I use a microfibre cloth, and I also keep a small pack of tissues in the case for drying out the tenons. Remember not to keep the wet cloth in the case with the instrument, it will make the case smell.
Tony F.
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Author: muppie
Date: 2014-02-08 17:15
Thanks.. I put the swab cloth inside a zip lock bag whenever I carry the clarinet outside the house. I should put the microfibre cloth in it too.
I like my hard rubber clarinet because whilst it's so wet in there, I won't have to worry about it.
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Author: Joseph Brenner, Jr.
Date: 2014-02-08 15:54
I do hope that you both clean the cloth, from time to time, and allow it to dry after practice or performance. Placing a damp cloth inside a zip lock bag preserves the moisture and encourages bacterial growth.
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2014-02-08 21:14
I'm getting less enthusiastic about the "fiber" clothes, such as Vandoren and BG etc. As I use fiber clothes, the moisture just seems to collect around the surfaces that came in contact with the horn and the moisture then does not distribute through the material and hence dry easier. Also subsequent swipes through the horn in the same session are less effective.
I think I am now pretty much a silk swab advocate since it is much more absorbent and useful throughout a full performance or practice session. They are also MUCH less likely to go in 'folded' and get stuck.
It is a shame, the promise of microfiber seemed to be getting all the condensation in one sweep.
...................Paul Aviles
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Author: kdk
Date: 2014-02-09 03:03
muppie wrote:
> Thanks.. I put the swab cloth inside a zip lock bag whenever I
> carry the clarinet outside the house. I should put the
> microfibre cloth in it too.
>
I'm not sure how wet my clarinet would be after an hour's playing because I would never go that long without swabbing it out to prevent it from getting wet enough for water to start flowing into tone holes and some notes to gurgle. The gurgling happens anyway from time to time, but an occasional preventive pass through the instrument with a swab can avoid some of it.
I'd second Joseph's reaction to keeping your swab in a sealed ziploc bag. If you're using the swab away from home you usually won't have time to let it air dry before packing your equipment up to leave.
I roll my swab up into a ball, wrap the cord around it and store it in the bell of my clarinet. I've never had a moisture related problem with it (mildew, mold, rotting pads) in over 50 years of playing. I put it in with a laundry load to wash it every few weeks (I know, others would probably do that more often). I have three or four that I rotate, so when one goes into the wash, another replaces it and when it comes out of the laundry process, I put it away until I need it next time. I throw them away if they tear or the covering on the weight wears off to expose metal.
I haven't tried a microfiber swab (I use silk), but I'm not entirely sure why you'd need both. You can wipe out the sockets with the corner of a silk or cotton swab just as easily.
Karl
Post Edited (2014-02-09 03:04)
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Author: Caroline Smale
Date: 2014-02-09 03:07
How many times do you swab your instrument during that first hour?
Condensation builds up quite quickly in a cold instrument but the rate decreases once the instrument warms up.
Ambient temperature and humidity also come into play here and in warm summer months much less moisture is normally collected.
Some players (blowing style?) tend to create more condensation than others, I certainly create a fair bit myself.
It is best to swab out the clarinet as soon as it has warmed up and then at intervals of your choice depending on moisture build up.
There is really no need to dry out the moisture trapped between the tenon and socket at the swabbing times as some will be drawn out with the swab and the rest will stay trapped in the small tenon/socket gap. However this moisture should always be removed once you have finished your playing/practice session. I use a piece of absorbent paper kitchen towel for this.
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Author: BobD
Date: 2014-02-08 22:18
It depends upon whether it's raining or not.........
Bob Draznik
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Author: Garth Libre
Date: 2014-02-09 05:20
I'm too new on the board to make a sexual reference here. Can someone with more tenure please do it, and take the heat for me?
Garth, 305-981-4705. garthlibre@yahoo.com
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Author: pewd
Date: 2014-02-09 06:16
>I should put the microfibre cloth in it too
no, unless you are trying to cultivate mold. store the swab in an outside pocket, or outside the case, not inside next to the clarinet.
get a decent silk swab - 'gem' brand is one of the best. wwbw.com or weinermusic.com
swab out every 10 minutes or so. and use a cotton cloth (a handkerchief works well) to dry out the tenon sockets periodically when playing.
- Paul Dods
Dallas, Texas
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Author: Bruno
Date: 2014-02-09 01:31
I hope you guys with wooden clarinets are rubbing cork grease into the end grain of each joint tenon before assembling them.
bruno>
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Author: Garth Libre
Date: 2014-02-09 07:02
Cork grease on the wooden tenons. This is the first I'm hearing of this.
Garth, 305-981-4705. garthlibre@yahoo.com
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Author: Bruno
Date: 2014-02-09 07:18
The end grain of the joints of a clarinet will absorb moisture better and faster than any other part of the wood, so then you've got the ends of each joint more saturated with moisture than the rest of the joint. To make it worse, that's where water droplets seem to settle. You can verify this when you disassemble your clarinet.
When I assemble my R13 I always rub a little Micro Cork Grease (the best - it's nice and waxy) into the end-grain of each joint, with special attention to the thin one down where the bell attaches. After some time some of it transfers to the end grain inside the socket - even better.
B>
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Author: muppie
Date: 2014-02-09 08:46
Wow, there are so many little things to do / know!
Thanks for the tip about not using a ziplock bag, and for greasing the ends of the tenon on a wooden clarinet.
Clarinet is such a 'weird' instrument that you have to swab every 10 - 15 minutes of playing. What happens to the people who are doing a performance?
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2014-02-09 15:40
You swab in between movements for solos, or whenever there is a long enough break in your part for ensemble music. Many people around me don't swab to the degree I do. I think they are weird.
The cork grease suggestion upon the tenon idea is new to me as well. I think if anything I'd be more inclined to put some bore oil on these spots, but regular bore oiling (once a month or so) kinda eliminates the need for this.
..............Paul Aviles
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Author: Jerry
Date: 2014-02-09 22:17
OK, we've established that **most** of the moisture (dripping down the bell onto the floor) is allegedly from condensation. But what about the other 5 to 49%?
Do you avoid certain foods or drinks or breath mints, etc. to minimizing salivating into the mouthpiece? I know that many may shudder at the thought of occasionally drinking coffee during practice sessions, but I'm wondering if this or other food or drink creates more mouth-watering tendencies.
What do you either take or avoid taking to minimize this source of moisture while at the same time recognizing that "dry mouth" is the other extreme to avoid.
Jerry
The Villages, FL
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Author: Garth Libre
Date: 2014-02-09 22:33
I would imagine that bore oil, especially oils like sweet almond oil would be even better than cork grease for the tenons. Oil is easier to apply to socktets, and almond oil has the additional benefit of being anti fungal and anti bacterial. This property would tend to fight the degradation that digestive juices in saliva would wreak on the wood. Waxy substances would tend to seal the wood not allowing the natural flow of moisture in and out of the wood. Almond oil tends to get drawn into the wood displacing excess moisture and protects against the wood drying out.
Garth, 305-981-4705. garthlibre@yahoo.com
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Author: BartHx
Date: 2014-02-09 23:36
Why throw out a perfectly good swab just because some of the covering on the weight starts to come off. Peel the rest of the covering off and clean the metal with something like alcohol to make sure the surface is not contaminated. Then get a can of liquid electrical insulation at any hardware store and dip the weight into it. Be sure to dip it far enough to seal the string where it goes into the weight. If you do two or three coats, it will last for a long time (I don't really know how long because I have yet to have one fail). In addition, you will have enough insulation material left to do a whole bunch more and it has lots of other places you can use it around the house.
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Author: Garth Libre
Date: 2014-02-09 23:45
I use shrink electrical splicing material. You pick a size which is slightly bigger than the weight and than hit it with a hair dryer. Instantly it shrinks to the weight and even to the string.
Garth, 305-981-4705. garthlibre@yahoo.com
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Author: kdk
Date: 2014-02-09 19:05
I hadn't really thought about dipping insulation. I've never liked tape because it tends to bleed adhesive at the edges. But the liquid electrical insulation sounds like it might work very well and be useful for other things around the house.
Karl
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Author: kdk
Date: 2014-02-10 00:08
Garth, this and BartHx's liquid insulation are worth trying. I've never really thought much about just discarding a $10 swab when anything about it wears out, but both of these products would have other uses around the house and would be good to keep handy.
Karl
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2014-02-10 04:05
>> I think I am now pretty much a silk swab advocate since it is much more absorbent <<
My experience is more or less the opposite. I have to say I've tried only two silk swabs, GEM and Black Legend (Doctor's), so maybe there are better ones I'm not aware of? To me they seemed significantly less absorbent than the Vandoren microfiber swab I use i.e. I need to swab significantly less times with it.
I agree with you that the silk swabs are less likely to get stuck.
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Author: Wes
Date: 2014-02-10 11:26
I used to use a standard commercial silk swab on a rod for swabbing my flute. However, on looking in the instrument, I saw that there were some kind of deposits in the tube. The microfiber swab I now use cleans that flute thoroughly with no deposits left on the tube walls. The swab must be bulky enough to do the job and my silk swab was not bulky enough.
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Author: Lelia Loban ★2017
Date: 2014-02-10 19:04
I swab often and haven't had any crud buildup inside instruments with silk swabs, although I agree that the silk doesn't dry out the inside of an instrument as thoroughly as thicker products do. I prefer silk swabs because I find them easy to use. They don't get stuck in the instrument, they're easy to wash and they dry quickly.
After practice, I hang my damp swab over the back of my music stand to dry. I have swabs for several sizes of clarinets and saxophones. Every now and then I hand-wash all my swabs in the sink with cold water and Woolite, then line-dry them.
Dating myself here, but does anyone else remember those thick, felt swabs, common in the 1950s and 1960s? Hated them! Now and then I find one in a case with a used clarinet. Usually those "vintage" felt swabs are stiff with dried guck and the case smells as if something died in there.
Lelia
http://www.scoreexchange.com/profiles/Lelia_Loban
To hear the audio, click on the "Scorch Plug-In" box above the score.
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