 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Michael_Alb
Date: 2015-11-24 00:26
Attachment: 144831032940853467732.jpg (814k)
I'm currently having a problem with my clarinet. Every time I swab my instrument, Brown streaks appear on the swab. Background information: I've had my E13 for 3 days. I'm using the silk swab from buffet. Question: Is this common or is there an issue with the clarinet that happened during production? Extra: When I wiped the outside of the instrument with the swab (I did this to test the stain) , nothing happened? Thanks for your time!
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Author: Caroline Smale
Date: 2015-11-24 00:52
Absolutely normal, no problem it's just some of the natural wood colour (not manmade stain) leeching out of the bore - this is the first time that that wood surface has ever been exposed to human breath and condensation and will gradually diminish over early weeks/months.
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2015-11-24 00:52
This is common on all grenadilla instruments - the natural grenadilla colour will leech out from the wood when it gets wet. That's why you see pads discolour as they absorb the natural pigment in the wood, especially the side keys which get a lot of water on them.
As for the outside of the joints on Buffets, they're stained with alcohol based dye to make the joints look uniform (as opposed to the variations natural grenadilla exhibits) which will come off if wiped with an alcohol swab or a cloth dipped in alcohol. It's a dark purple dye they use, so that's the colour you'll see when you wipe the inside of the bell with an alcohol soaked rag.
Schreiber instruments made for Buffet have their grenadilla bodies painted black to give them a uniform appearance. This is a long tradition with German instruments and others where the bells are made from timber which is much lighter in colour than the rest of the instrument. You'll see a lot of old simple/Albert systems with bells where the lacquer has been chipped off to reveal the lighter brown colour of the wood beneath.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: Ursa
Date: 2015-11-24 01:38
Were I you, I'd just get a black silk swab--that's what I use and recommend. No worries about staining those.
Save your stained Buffet swab for bore oiling operations. If you think it looks bad now, wait 'til after the first oiling...
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