 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: ruben
Date: 2021-07-16 14:41
When I was even poorer than I am today, I used to cut the tips down on old reeds or burn them down, which was taught to me by an old jazz musician. I would get maybe a few more playing hours out of the reed, but not many. When the fibers are worn out, they're worn out. I still hang on to old reeds in the hope that they will later come back to life. They seldom do. A few other suggestions:
: put them on your compost heap.
: recycle them into paper pulp. Thus a good reed may become a good read.
: kindle your fire with them.
: use them as toothpicks.
: use them as seeds in order to grow new reeds.
Do you have any secrets for breathing new life into an old reed? What do you do with your old reed? Old reeds never die; they just fade away.
rubengreenbergparisfrance@gmail.com
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Author: Philip Caron
Date: 2021-07-16 15:29
In high school I maintained a rogue's gallery of bad reeds. I executed them in various macabre ways (hanging, knifing, boiling in oil etc.) and put the remains on the same shelf with my new reeds, as a warning. Sadly, such punishments failed to deter.
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Author: rmk54
Date: 2021-07-16 16:51
Wow, Phil, you were even more deranged than I thought!
:>)
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Author: LFabian
Date: 2021-07-16 19:40
I soaked in hipped I split reeds in hydrogen peroxide to kill bacteria and use a Vandoren resurfacer on the back side of thicker reeds to remove loose fiber. Haven’t tossed a reed in over 2 years. However I am using LeGere more.
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2021-07-16 20:27
I use them as glue spreaders and as spatulas for applying gold paste when restoring logos. Also used as scrapers for cleaning caked grease and gunk off tenons and sockets as well as glue or shellac from joint surfaces without scratching the wood or plastic. Spatulas for filling grease pots with cork grease and using the edge to level them. Similarly used to scrape and level wax used to seal the end grain on tenons and in sockets. They can also be used as wedges.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: ruben
Date: 2021-07-17 01:06
Chris P: very resourceful! bravo!
rubengreenbergparisfrance@gmail.com
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Author: Tom H
Date: 2021-07-20 01:32
I throw them in the recycling bin.
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Author: ruben
Date: 2021-07-20 12:23
PS: Nobody seems to have any ideas about bringing old reeds partially back to life. I do: oiling them.
rubengreenbergparisfrance@gmail.com
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Author: bmcgar ★2017
Date: 2021-07-21 00:47
Mine sit in a box awaiting the resurrection.
None of the many ideas that I've tried for getting them playing again has ever worked well enough to make it worthwhile.
However, I might try crystals someday in a fit of whimsy.
B.
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Author: Robert N.
Date: 2021-07-21 00:56
Ruben, can you explain your technique as well as the type of oil used?
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Author: ruben
Date: 2021-07-21 09:22
Robert: I use Ho essential oil, which I just rub a tiny drop of into the reed.
rubengreenbergparisfrance@gmail.com
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Author: Robert N.
Date: 2021-07-21 09:42
Thank you Ruben!
ruben wrote:
> Robert: I use Ho essential oil, which I just rub a tiny drop of
> into the reed.
>
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Author: ruben
Date: 2021-07-21 12:55
Dear Robert: my theory -right or wrong- is that reeds wear out basically because vibrations, saliva, rubbing against your lips wear out the fibers. But, also because the cane loses what little oil it originally contained. Dried though the cane has been, I reckon it still has a little oil left in it. The condensation from your breath and your saliva wash this oil completely away. So I replenish it a bit. When this no longer works, I'll try snake oil or holy water!
rubengreenbergparisfrance@gmail.com
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Author: donald
Date: 2021-07-21 15:59
My sister used to make them into earings, but that was the '80s....
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Author: davidjsc
Date: 2021-07-30 08:06
The good reeds I burn them in the glorious Viking funeral pyre they deserve to take them onwards to their afterlife in Music Valhalla.
Meanwhile, the bad reeds end up in the green bin with the dinner scraps.
DSC
~~ Alto Clarinet; Bass Clarinet; B-flat and C Boehm Clarinets; Albert C Clarinet; Oboe ~~
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