 The Clarinet BBoard
|
Author: Windy Dreamer
Date: 2018-11-20 08:10
In my quest for both anything Selmer and an expendable clarinet that I can leave standing in our busy living room, I purchased a 1980 Bundy today for $ 16.00 at the thrift store. It is the roughest looking ex school rental clarinet I have ever purchased. It is therefore wholly expendable. Despite the crude engravings scratches and dents it was playable straight out of the case. The color is great and the responsiveness is excellent for my improvisational New Orleans style of play.
The challenge is that my third finger opens the two keys above and below the bottom open tone hole on the upper section.Both at the same time. My finger simply does not fit in the space alloted for it. I am trying to decide between several options.I have bent the lower key twice and it is still too tight. Should I continue bending, grind down the keys, agressively reset the needle springs, buy superstrong needle springs or is there another solution ?
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2018-11-20 08:20
Ok, the lower key is the "C#/G#" key? I usually bend that DOWN so that the lower edge sits at the seam where the joints come together.
If where on the same page, then the upper key you refer to is the "Eb/Bb" sliver key. I usually bend this key UP making sure it just clears my left middle finger.
DON'T tighten spring tensions beyond what is needed to hold the key down. It will only slow down your technique.
Hope that helps.
...............Paul Aviles
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Windy Dreamer
Date: 2018-11-20 09:53
Thanks Paul
The lower key is well out of the way, almost touching the highest key on the lower section. It was very plyable and easy to bend. The upper key is very resistant to bending and has not budged in the least. I think tomorrow I will have to remove it and use pliers to bend it. Hopefully the metal is comprised of a plyable metal. Despite the outer appearance the bores are immaculate without a single scratch . Ths clarinet should play to the best of the models ability.
The barrel has an unusual hourglass shape to it While looking at it closely I noticed A Boosey and Hawkes logo where I thought there was a large scuff mark.There is a music note with two upfacing flags on it that make it look like a stylized F. Might this barrel radically affect intonation and color ?It is 62.6 mm long.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Ursa
Date: 2018-11-20 12:27
A 62mm Boosey & Hawkes barrel is too short for a Bundy.
In fact, it's also too short for the Boosey & Hawkes 1-10 that it likely came from. I have a 1-10 and have actually used a 66mm Bundy barrel on it to bring the pitch down to A=440.
It's possible that whoever donated this clarinet to Goodwill kept the Bundy barrel and included an unusable B&H barrel just so the instrument would appear complete.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Windy Dreamer
Date: 2018-11-20 13:18
The barrel has the same elementary school and rental number etched on it as the other components. That makes me assume that it was in service that way. On the other hand the markings on the case look freshly painted.I know that local contractors hire very young high school students to service school rental equipment. A young trainee could have prepared it and the school involved may have refused it.
As an improvisational folk player I am obsessed with quality of sound and not concerned with concert pitch standards.When I wasnt fighting the bent keys I thoroughly enjoyed the sounds I heard. As someone that has experienced and witnessed abuse from academic critics , I would love to annoy neurotic critics while entertaing audiences that appreciate quality of tone.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Chris P
Date: 2018-11-20 20:10
If you're constantly catching the LH3 Eb/Bb sliver key and it's not a key you use, then remove the key, plug up the tonehole (eg. use a 7mm cork pad and push it right into the tonehole) and either leave the key off or replace it just for cosmetic purposes.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Windy Dreamer
Date: 2018-11-20 22:08
With the forceful aid of bullnose pliers the harder key is now restored to its original position. If this were a more valuable instrument I would have taken it to my tech rather than apply such crude force to the key.
I was tempted to try taping over the holes beneath the keys or cutting off their ends .While many people can easily curse , criticize or abuse their instruments I live in the opposite extreme. With a pantheistic world view I perceive all things as sacred. Musical instruments are more sacred than other objects because of their ability to impact the needs and moods of listeners. I regard my instruments as entrusted not owned. I thankfully appreciate the best intentions of designers, builders and donors. All of the above makes it impossible to do anything other than attempt to restore it to its original design.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Chris_C ★2017
Date: 2018-11-20 22:09
which was, I understand, what Artie Shaw did - and if it's good enough for Arie Shaw it's good enough for me. I've done that on all my clarinets (including Eb and alto). You can trial it just by putting cork under the sliver to prevent it moving.
Chris
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Chris P
Date: 2018-11-21 18:20
If you've ever played a B&H or Peter Eaton A clarinet, that LH3 Eb/Bb key is in the worst position I've encountered. The pillars are too low and the key itself can't be bent out the way as the bend on the touchpiece can't be moved making it easy to catch unless you play with your LH fingers very much perpendicular to the top joint.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Windy Dreamer
Date: 2018-11-21 18:59
Discreetly placed corks could be the answer to many problems. They don't hurt the clarinet and they could be almost invisible.With daily or hourly difficulties I often assume that pads distorted by heat or moisture are leaking just enough to corrupt play quality. I would love to have a keyless clarinet with Boehm geometry.
I never use any of the side tone holes other than the trill keys as though they were a separate instrument. .The dreadful color of other side tones is equivalent of turning your mouthpiece 30 degrees sideways.To achieve my quality of play the mouthpiece must be perfectly aligned with the center tone holes. Turning the mouthpiece to either side in any way is awful. How then can those side tone holes not corrupt quality of play when combined with center tones ? ( As a folk player I play the clarinet almost as though it were a recorder).
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Windy Dreamer
Date: 2018-11-22 05:00
Thanks Ursa
You were right about the barrel being problematic. After straightening the keys I still had problems that I would normally associate with leaky pads or corks. Bottom end notes were fuzzy or blown out altogether. After several attempts to improve seals I tried a 66 mm Jupiter barrel. The problems are now gone.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Ursa
Date: 2018-11-22 17:16
Glad to be of assistance!
Having owned a Bundy, I've don't consider them to be a "throwaway" clarinet as many folks do these days. A good Bundy can be a pretty dang good instrument.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Windy Dreamer
Date: 2018-11-22 18:17
In my world there is no such thing as a throwaway clarinet.I buy every dirty or broken clarinet that I find in a thrift store for $30.00 or less.After restoring them to a folk standard I add them to my clarinet family. Like children each has its own character. I thoroughly enjoy moving beteeen them .
The barrel problem has been an educational experience. My wood Jupiter barrel offered no improvement while the barrel from my plastic Jupiter did. Each of these barrels had radically different degrees of color on the notes they produced.In the past I did not notice much difference when I switched barrels between clarinets experimentally. I do not know how to interpret the differences on this Bundy.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
The Clarinet Pages
|
 |
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
