 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: LGS316217
Date: 2019-05-08 07:43
How significant do you think a tiny nick (smaller than the thickness of a fingernail, just about visible to the naked eye) is on: 1.) the tip rail of the mouthpiece; 2.) a side rail of the mouthpiece? Would you categorize such as having little to no negative effect, some effect, or major effect? What specific effect does minor mouthpiece damage produce, is it tone, something else, or does it have more than one undesirable effect? I have 2 mouthpieces I like very much, starting to get older and they've taken a lot of wear. One has a tiny nick on the tip rail, the other has a tiny one on a side rail. Replace sooner, later, or keep playing on them as long as I'm happy with my sound?
Amy Paul
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Author: Tony F
Date: 2019-05-08 08:01
It's a kind of "How long is a piece of string" question. Sometimes these nicks will cause problems and sometimes they won't. Some of my mouthpieces have minor nicks in them and still play as they should. If you're noticing a problem that you didn't have before then the answer is yes, but if they still play as they should then the answer is no. Personally, if they work OK I'd continue to play them. If you're a person who is handy with tools and fixing things these small nicks can be filled quite easily with a dab of superglue and then shaping carefully with something like a fine emery board, but probably best not to try if you're not confident.
Tony F.
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Author: jdbassplayer
Date: 2019-05-08 14:46
Have you tried the lighter trick? I fix old mouthpieces all the time with this method. In fact I just "saved" a Fobes 10K that I got for cheap because the owner thought it was ruined. Now the facing is perfect...
Jdbassplayer
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2019-05-08 14:59
Thank you for NOT posting a description of "the lighter trick." My heart was already in my mouth when I read about "shaping with an emery board."
When you talk about the critical aspect of a mouthpiece in terms of hundredths of a millimeter, there should be no "shaping" with an emery board........unless you're Clark Fobes, Walter Grabner, Brad Behn, etc.
The "lighter trick" should be keeping it away from your mouthpiece.
...................Paul Aviles
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Author: jdbassplayer
Date: 2019-05-08 15:23
>The "lighter trick" should be keeping it away from your mouthpiece.
I mean...yeah you don't want to burn the mouthpiece or anything. You just hold the mouthpiece on the side of the flame so that the nick is roughly 1/4" of an inch away. It should take about 5 seconds for the nick to pop back up. It's a legitimate method and I've only had success with it.
If you don't believe a chipped mouthpiece can be saved I'll be happy to take all of your damaged mouthpieces for "proper disposition" :D
-Jdbassplayer
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Author: Mojo
Date: 2019-05-08 17:18
Heat can pop out a dent. But not a chip or scratch.
MojoMP.com
Mojo Mouthpiece Work LLC
MojoMouthpieceWork@yahoo.com
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Author: Tony F
Date: 2019-05-08 17:30
I frequently use fine emery boards to tidy up mouthpieces after filling nicks. Never had a problem yet. I wouldn't suggest it for anybody who is not confident with handling tools, but I've been using tools all my life and I know them (and me) pretty well now. I wouldn't use them for anything more complex than very minor work.
Tony F.
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Author: LGS316217
Date: 2019-05-08 17:51
Interesting responses, thanks all! I had not heard of the lighter trick and it had not occurred to me to try superglue/emery board. With all respect due to those who are brave enough to take those on, I am not. Also, I have not been concerned about the nicks as much as I've been concerned about "should I be concerned?", if that makes sense! There are so so many things about my sound that could be improved upon that I don't know if I can confidently say whether the mouthpieces contribute or not. By way of background, they are both old Selmer HS**, not made anymore to my knowledge. They are 20-30 years old respectively and I can tell you that they've seen better days in general. Probably tons of issues with the bores etc. The problem is I just love these mouthpieces and feel like I've hit the sweet spot in terms of reed setup and embouchure and everything else. I've been looking into replacements that have similar specs for tip opening and facing, but scared to take the plunge.
Amy Paul
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Author: Ken Lagace
Date: 2019-05-08 18:04
A photo would ne helpful. And don't touch it until the pros can see it!
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Author: Ed
Date: 2019-05-08 20:40
If it is a mouthpiece I like and wish to play, I would send it to a pro to touch it up. Small changes that might occur in trying to fix it yourself may cause far more problems and in some cases make it unplayable.
It all depends on where it is and size etc. Sometimes they can play fine.
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2019-05-08 20:48
One last pass on the emery board:
When a re-facer makes a major change to the facing of a mouthpiece, usually one short swipe of the mouthpiece across 400 grit silicon carbide on a flat surface does the trick.
Also, if you have two DIFFERENT strengths of materials (such as, oh I don't know, maybe vulcanized rubber and hardened cyanoacrylate) undergo the same abrasive event, one will degrade faster than the other.
just sayin'
.................Paul Aviles
P.S. I wish you hadn't told me the "lighter trick."
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Author: Liquorice
Date: 2019-05-08 22:02
Nicks in mouthpieces are no problem whatsoever. I mean... didn't someone just sell thousands of "Play Nick" mouthpieces?
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Author: nellsonic
Date: 2019-05-08 22:58
I'm with Paul on this one. Once you've seen a master craftsperson do delicate (one VERY soft swipe with VERY fine sandpaper) work on a mouthpiece and then heard and felt the VERY specific change in how it plays, you treat these things with the respect they deserve if they are special to you. If you want to experiment go for it, but do it knowing that the results are likely to be something other than what you might hope, and that there's a fair chance of spoiling what you liked about that mouthpiece. Yes location on the piece matters quite a bit, and if you are not an accomplished player you might not notice some changes, but it's your call ultimately to chose wisely.
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Author: Tony Pay ★2017
Date: 2019-05-10 03:06
The point about minor damage to ebonite is that it can sometimes be reversed by warming.
Calling it 'the lighter trick' is a possibly misleading description.
When I've used it, I've made sure that I have a finger close to the damage, so that any effect of the flame is less than I find intolerable on my skin. You use a flame only because that's the most accessible heat source.
The idea is gradually to warm the ebonite so that you can see whether or not the damage is reversing. Quite often it is, which is why it's worthwhile trying.
I've never worked, or felt the need to work, with the 'master craftsmen' invoked in this thread. You get a very strange view of the profession by reading this BBoard.
On the other hand, perhaps that's where I've been going wrong all these years.
Tony
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2019-05-10 06:35
I'm heartened to know that is not just an urban legend. However, I believe that there are many less experienced that may inadvertently cause irreversible harm to a mouthpiece that may not have a debilitating scar.
If the mouthpiece is expendable or already thought of as "a goner," then it's worth a try I suppose.
................Paul Aviles
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Author: kdk
Date: 2019-05-10 19:06
I would think the result depends at least a little on the material the mouthpiece is made of?
Karl
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Author: Bob Bernardo
Date: 2019-05-12 10:27
Send it to me and I'll look at it for free. If I can fix it I'll call you with the cost. I don't think anyone has 10,000 grit sandpaper, which will be needed to do a fine finish.
It might actually sound better. I've had really great results with tuning the mouthpiece after the nick was gone.
If I can't do it your mouthpiece gets sent back the very next day.
I'm fighting some sort of muscle or joint condition, autoimmune something so give me a week or 2. Added I might need lower back surgery again. Maybe I can hit a golf ball like Tiger Woods who's had 4 back surgeries.
Designer of - Vintage 1940 Cicero Mouthpieces and the La Vecchia mouthpieces
Yamaha Artist 2015
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