 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Classical Saxophonist
Date: 2017-07-29 10:16
I'm going to be removing every key off of my clarinet and cleaning the keys and the wood. How do I sanitize and clean the wood without murdering it? Lemon-scented wood polish?
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Author: jdbassplayer
Date: 2017-07-29 15:52
What makes you want to do this? Has the clarinet not been played for a few years? Are you planning on repadding it?
There is really no way to sanitize wood. You can clean off dust and debris with a large paintbrush. Toneholes can be cleaned with cotton swabs and old cork grease can be scraped off with toothpicks or the back of an old reed. I would not recommend any cleaner but you can give the wood a light coat of almond or olive oil.
-Jdbassplayer
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Author: Tony F
Date: 2017-07-29 17:28
I routinely restore instruments that have sat unloved for years, accumulating grime and crud after years of use. Having removed all the metalwork I give the wood joints a scrub with a soft toothbrush in a plastic bowl of warm water and ordinary dishwashing detergent. I clean the bores with a soft bristle bottle brush and clean up the cork joints with a stiff toothbrush. I then shake them dry, roll up in kitchen roll to remove most of the liquid, swab dry the bores and then allow them to air-dry for several days. Then I clean the holes with a Q-tip damped in alcohol.
I've done perhaps 2-300 instruments this way and have never had a problem, although it has enabled me to spot a few potential ones. I do rubber and plastic instruments the same way, but with cold water and no alcohol.
When all parts are dry I oil the bores. I used the doctors bore oil a few times, but haven't found a supplier for it in Oz, and it can't be shipped here. I now use sweet almond oil with 5% alcohol to aid penetration on the bore and also lightly on the outside. Don't use olive oil, it rancifies and smells bad.
Tony F.
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2017-07-29 17:33
If you have used oil or any kind of polish on the joints, degrease all the toneholes with alcohol as well as gently cleaning the pads to be sure they're not contaminated.
Use denatured alcohol (isopropyl or methylated spirits) on a cotton bud (Q-tip). You can use lighter fluid (naphtha) as that too won't harm the pads nor wood. Alcohol is safe for use on plastics, but don't use loads.
Do not use solvents (acetone, toluene or trichloroethane) on plastic clarinets.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
Post Edited (2017-07-29 17:36)
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