 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Curinfinwe
Date: 2016-08-30 03:08
Hi!
Due in large part to everything I've learned on here over the years, I've been maintaining my own instruments (stripping, oiling, etc) for years, as well as minor repairs such as pads, and corks. I'm pretty comfortable with all of that stuff, but I haven't attempted a complete overhaul and neither do I have much experience with major key adjustments. I'm really good at making something work short term if there's a concert or immediate need, but I'm by no means an experienced repair person.
I have a coworker who's just asked me what I would charge to clean up an old plastic Yamaha clarinet that's been in a closet for years. It's very dusty, a few pads and corks need replacement, and I'd like to strip it down and clean and oil it nicely. There aren't any big adjustment issues, it's just dirty.
What do you think is a fair price for this? I really don't know, as this is my first time charging for it, but I'm confident I can rehabilitate it into a very reasonable student's clarinet.
Thanks so much!
Anna
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Author: Richie
Date: 2016-08-30 03:51
I actually use a family owned clarinet shop for most of my repairs, and I feel that their prices are just a bit under what an average music store charges for repairs.
If I were to make an estimate it would be somewhere from $100-180.
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Author: Bob Bernardo
Date: 2016-08-30 05:57
I avoid repairing but I'm good at it. To break down a horn and use a thick, heavy, oil, some new pads, probably $150 in labor. If it's that dusty, I'd clean the tone holes as well as the bore. It's probably a 3 to 4 hour job. $50 an hour for your first time?
Just an interesting topic. I'm working on 2 old Buffet clarinets. One is from 1966 and the other is from 1964. Both are in good shape, meaning no cracks, but really dry wood. They are both stripped done and I'm working on curing the wood a bit to prevent cracking. Then I have to check the tapered bore measurements and see if they are correct. They could be really fine horns, but they were in an attic for 24 years subjected to all sorts of weather conditions and you have to baby them when curing the wood. It can take a month to restore the wood and you have to hope that the wood doesn't crack! The sound, warmth, and freeness, of these horns is so nice compared to the newer Buffets.
Designer of - Vintage 1940 Cicero Mouthpieces and the La Vecchia mouthpieces
Yamaha Artist 2015
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Author: tictactux ★2017
Date: 2016-08-30 20:05
if it's a coworker I'd repair/clean the instrument in exchange for a dinner or bbq afternoon or somesuch.
Unless you want to go the professional route. For a "clean-oil-adjust" job (don't underestimate it, especially with nickel keys) I calculate about one hour just for cleaning, plus at least another one for reassembling and adjusting. (add an extra hour for wood clarinets that need oiling). So Richie's estimate seems about right.
--
Ben
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2016-08-31 09:57
Guesstimate how long it would take, cost of materials and how much you decide to charge per time. If it's a friend and you don't want to turn this into a small part time job, then I would consider Ben's idea of a barter.
Cleaning a clarinet can take anything from a few seconds to a few of hours. Oiling (the keys) only adds a few minutes at most if it is disassembled anyway. Oiling the body can take a long time but 99% of it is waiting. Some adjustments can take much longer than they seem at first.
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Author: gkern
Date: 2016-08-31 20:12
Is it a typical practice to oil a plastic clarinet body?
Gary K
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Author: fskelley
Date: 2016-08-31 21:09
I figured he just meant key oil. Neglected clarinets do likely need that, though everybody here has a different idea what kind and how much.
Stan in Orlando
EWI 4000S with modifications
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Author: Hank Lehrer
Date: 2016-08-31 22:25
Hi Anna,
Sorry but I must disagree with some of the advice given above particularly with the suggested hourly rate or approximate amount you must charge. While you have had success with your own instruments, doing repairs or adjustments on a customer's instruments is a totally different situation. Do you have the correct repair supplies like pads, the necessary tools, proper size cork and springs, and access to any of the other parts/items (screws, cement/glue, etc.) that might be needed in the course of your work on this instrument?
You mention that you "haven't attempted a complete overhaul and neither do I have much experience with major key adjustments" and that you are not a repair person. There could be some issues that you might encounter that could really be difficult and/or you have never seen before.
I got some great advice from my father who said "one must know what not to do." The idea above about a dinner or some other way for the clarinet owner to repay you for you efforts was a good thought.
HRL
Remember the line "fools rush in where wise men fear to tread..."
Post Edited (2016-09-01 04:49)
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Author: Tony F
Date: 2016-09-01 04:07
If I do fairly minor repairs for friends I generally suggest that a decent bottle of red wine would be a fair exchange. It seems to work well for both parties.
Tony F.
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2016-09-01 08:07
[rhet]What's the difference between giving someone a certain amount of money and giving them something else that you just spent the exact same amount of money on?[/rhet]
It's the same really... but it's not completely rhetorical, since a gift is actually better than money... as long as it's useful, or it comes with the good feeling of the thought behind it or time invested in it.
So a barter (vs. random gift) can be good. Maybe even do it for free, or just for cost of supplies, and consider it a learning experience, if that is something you could "use".
When I started repairing, I repaired my own and my friends' instruments for free for a while.
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Author: Curinfinwe
Date: 2016-09-02 02:49
Thanks for the input.
To clarify a bit, I have been doing small repairs for friends for years. Usually small magnitude stuff, like one pad or cork at a time when it needs doing, and friends have asked me to clean their clarinets before. I typically tell them that I will teach them how to do it instead of doing it for them. This has all been for free or for baked goods (definitely my weakness!). I also do know how to do some key adjustments and have done them to my back up horns before, but not for badly bent keys or anything seriously out of whack.
I also have a supply of pads, corks, glues, cement, that I've bought for myself.
Also, the clarinet was not for my coworker, but for his neighbour's kid. The neighbour knew my coworker was a musician, so asked his opinion, and he then brought it to me.
I ended up telling them that I would look at it, and if it was in the scope of my abilities I would do it. It was very dusty and I cleaned and oiled the keys (not the body haha!), replaced four pads, a few key corks and a tenon cork, and did a minor adjustment on the crow's foot. All very well within my experience!
Because I needed to use parts, I do have some experience with this, and it was for someone I didn't know, we agreed on $75. I also threw in a spare cork grease, swab and mouthpiece patch that I had lying around, so I think that was fair. Because a kid's going to be playing it in school and who knows how it'll be treated, I also said that if a cork or pad falls off in the next few months, bring it to me and I'll do it for free.
Thanks again for the input! It was a good learning experience and I'm pretty excited to start dipping my toes into some real repair work.
Post Edited (2016-09-02 02:54)
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Author: Jim22
Date: 2016-09-02 07:09
I may be undercharging! I work mostly on flutes, and my standard charge for a COA is $36. I figure it takes 3 hours. I charge extra for pads, head joint corks, and significant regulation like the thumb key and Bb.
I have done clarinets, which take more like 5 hours, and saxophones take me more like 8. Pads take me forever to get right.
Jim C.
CT, USA
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Author: Bob Bernardo
Date: 2016-09-02 13:01
I think you did the right thing. You made a kid very happy. I've been known to do free jobs for kids, the goals are to make music fun for kids. A smile is often worth a lot more than a few dollars.
Designer of - Vintage 1940 Cicero Mouthpieces and the La Vecchia mouthpieces
Yamaha Artist 2015
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Author: Brent
Date: 2016-09-02 18:16
Jim C., i can tell you that a Burkart repair tech here in Ohio charges $300 for a COA on a flute. Now, granted, he took a Haynes that had been overhauled at the Haynes factory 6 months prior and med it significantly better, so he really knows his stuff...
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