 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: darby
Date: 2001-05-06 22:15
I have been looking at metal clarinets of late and am confused over which might be good. I realize that there have been numerous inquires into these but would like to ask an opinion on which might be best. Which are considered good ones.
I've found one that looks pretty good but needs an overhaul. It's an American Standard made by KING for the H.N. White company. It has "blue" springs and all seems to be in working order. What do you say? I am under the impression that KING is primarily a saxophone manufacturer. That leads to me think they may make a "good" metal clarinet. Is this a wrong assumption. Thank you.
Darby
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Author: Dee
Date: 2001-05-06 22:24
I don't know about this model but never assume that because a company was good at one thing that they were good at another. For example early Conn saxes are reputed to be very good but their clarinets were only adequate.
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Author: Fred
Date: 2001-05-07 02:13
The American Standard was a marching band-quality instrument, but it often sells for more than it is worth. If you are looking for the ones that are distinguished, the American Standard is not among them. Look for a Silva Bet, a Silver King (also by H.N. White but top grade), a Selmer (bring your money), a Conn, or a Noblet. The Noblet is less sought after and therefore available at lower prices; the other horns are each "famous" for something and the bidding goes higher. Don't forget - when you buy a metal clarinet, figure at least a repad unless you inspect it in advance. And NEVER buy one missing any parts.
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Author: Willie
Date: 2001-05-07 02:41
Fred has a good point here about missing parts on a metal clarinet. These parts are made out of a real rare alloy called unobtainium. The first thing to check for is the barrel to connect the mouthoiece. I see bunches of barreless metal clainets on eBay all the time. Without this or any other part thats missing, you have only a future lamp unless you can find another one for parts. Another good point he made is if you want a top grade, dig deep. For a lesser price you can find some medium grade models that aren't too bad if fitted with a good modern mouthpiece and lig. Fine tuning by pad hieght adjustment and such can do wonders too. Then there are a lot of real dogs. Even though we have some very gifted repair techs out there, there isn't much you can do for them other than nailing them to the corner of your roof with an 8 guage cable running down to the ground.
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Author: Dee
Date: 2001-05-07 10:59
Also stay away from the Pan American made by Conn.
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Author: Gordon (NZ)
Date: 2001-05-07 11:42
Stay away for the G-Clarinet made in, and common in Turkey. Extremely low standard of manufacture, much worse than anything from China.
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Author: Aravinda Bhatt
Date: 2001-05-08 21:39
I own a Gladiator made by the H.N. White Co. it badly needs an overhaul, the only problems are 2 screws missing, one dent and horrible pads, other wise i think its beautiful, and plays fairly well
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Author: Brenda Siewert
Date: 2001-05-08 22:16
I bought a Peddler and had it overhauled with all new corks, springs, pads, etc. It really sounded quite nice. However, I wouldn't count on one for a really nice orchestral tone. Outdoors for band, fine. I had about $200.00 in it by the time I had the overhaul done. But a friend of mine who owns a music store told me the King was a good brand for the metal clarinets. So,you might have a good thing there. You'll have to determine if it's worth spending the time and money in the overhaul. It's like a vintage car, you're not going to get your money out of it, but if you enjoy it--go for it!
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Author: Claude
Date: 2001-05-09 01:20
Hi,
I live in the province of Québec in Canada. I was given a metal clarinet a while ago the brand name of which is : A. fontaine Paris. I did not know much about metal clarinet. So, I have looked or informations which I found on a french web. Somebody named Pierre Smaggia seems to know a lot about metal clarinet. He is collectioner. He just bought one made in London made of brass (laiton in french) made by William Card between 1845-1862. In fact he is looking for information about the factory or the clarinet maker. the forum ( newsgroup)address is :
http://clarinet.free.fr/phorum/read.php3
I hope your can find what you are looking for at this address. Remember it is in french. You might try to write in english. He gave me the address of Ferre's tool in USA for parts.Good luck.
Claude
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Author: Gordon (NZ)
Date: 2001-05-09 12:33
Metal clarinets bend very easily indeed. Whewn they bend, even if they spring back to shape, there is a high chance of tone holes parting from the body where they are soldered on. This is a nasty problem to fix because so many items are soldered in close proximity; heating to resolder one tone hole may compromise the soldering of the next. The condition can also be difficult to detect. So any signs at all, such as hairline cracks should sound warning bells.
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