 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: RefacerMan
Date: 2025-03-23 19:05
A friend of mine just bought a Selmer E flat clarinet with a Y serial number. The Selmer serial number website lists Y clarinets as being manufactured in 1974 or 1975. Would that also apply to E flat clarinets? If the instrument was made in 1974 or 1975 would that make it a Series 10 E flat clarinet or does that not apply to E flat clarinets? Lastly, the clarinet came with a Selmer E flat barrel that is 48 mm long, which is a really, really long E flat barrel. I sent my friend a good Vandoren M30 E flat mouthpiece to try, but with the 48 mm barrel everything is flat. That M30 mouthpiece tuned well on my RC E flat with a 41.5 mm barrel. I'm hoping a shorter barrel will help the pitch problem with the Selmer E flat clarinet. Any information or suggestions would be appreciated.
Post Edited (2025-03-24 04:35)
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2025-03-23 19:24
Attachment: series9eb.jpg (263k)
If its got the hexagonal speaker bush, that would make it a Series 9 era Eb which I reckon it is because of its age. My full Boehm Eb is a Z series and has a 47mm barrel (which works well with a Pomarico crystal) - Buffet and Yamaha Ebs use much shorter barrels because of the different proportions.
Series 10S Ebs had different keywork to these Series 9 era ones - the keywork on the Series 9 era ones being not that far removed from CT era Ebs for most part.
If a shorter barrel works better, then go with that instead of having the existing one shortened.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2025-03-23 19:33
Attachment: bseriesseries9eb.jpg (500k)
I recently overhauled a B series Eb clarinet which is still very much like a Series 9 - that one had two different length barrels with it.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
Post Edited (2025-03-23 19:35)
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2025-03-23 21:03
Attachment: selmerseries9clarinets.jpg (702k)
I saw it listed on eBay in Hungary and got it for £980 which was an absolute steal. I had to shorten the LH Ab/Eb lever as its touchpiece was directly over the LH F#/C# touch which made it near impossible to use LH F#/C# and added an adjusting screw to the articulated C#/G# link for easier regulation.
As I use the articulated C#/G# and LH forked Eb/Bb a lot, those two features alone were well worth it for me as my previous 1962 Buffet Eb didn't have any extras. The LH Ab/Eb is also a bonus as is the low Eb (which can also be used for an extra mid stave Bb).
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: John Peacock
Date: 2025-03-24 02:25
Attachment: 2xselmer_eb.jpg (1412k)
I have owned two Selmer Eb's, both bought on eBay for very reasonable prices (though not quite as good a bargain as the example Chris P mentions). The reason I got a second one was that the first one came with a single 47mm barrel, and I found it too flat with my preferred mouthpiece (Selmer C* - I have several of these and all play very well). So when another example came up with two barrels, I bought this. The shorter barrel is 45mm, and the tuning is now as I would want it - i.e. up to 440 even on a quick change after a period of not playing it. Of course, I could have had the first barrel shortened, but I sold the first Eb back on eBay and recovered my money, so this was cheaper and easier. Also, the plating on the 2nd one was silver whereas the first was nickel, which I really don't like: slippery, and just not as pretty - as the attached picture shows.
The other differences between them were interesting. Both were C series (1983/84), but they looked of different generations. The older nickel one had the "depose" mark, which its slightly more recent silver brother lacked. The later keywork was also slightly more chunky, which I preferred. Both had a hexagonal speaker bush. So are we looking at the series 9 vs series 10 Eb here?
In any case, both played superbly. Powerful sound and well in tune in the top two registers - and not too bad in the lowest, where many Eb's can be way out. I much preferred them to Buffets I tried - both tonally and in terms of the keywork being a bit less cramped. And all for about 1/5 of the price of a new Selmer.
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Author: super20dan
Date: 2025-03-24 03:27
wow chris thats a real treasure. i would never expect to see a full bohem eb and a selmer at that!
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Author: crazyclari
Date: 2025-03-24 10:23
There was a pair D&Eb that were sold recently from clarinets direct. Very funky. I had a custom made Leblanc made in the mid 90s with full Boehm and no low Eb. 3.5 years to get, it was a test to see if I really wanted it, a story unto itself.😬
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2025-03-24 19:57
Attachment: selmerebclarinet.jpg (596k)
I saw that Eb/D set - they'd also had an extra Couesnon Monopole-style RH1 throat A trill key added to them. Even Selmer's own site has a full Boehm D clarinet pictured in the lineup of clarinets from Ab sopranino to BBb contra.
https://www.clarinetsdirect.net/store/p1461/Selmer-D-and-Eb-Clarinets.html#/
Why have one or two barrels when you can just have seventeen!
I forgot to measure the barrels on the B series Selmer Eb I overhauled last year (attachment of the before photo) as the new one was considerably shorter than the original.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
Post Edited (2025-03-24 20:05)
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Author: fieldofcows
Date: 2025-03-24 20:57
The B series Selmer Eb that Chris overhauled is mine. The two barrels are 47mm and 45mm.
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2025-03-24 22:19
Cheers for that - I was going to ask you, but it's been a bit hectic today and I never got round to it.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: crazyclari
Date: 2025-03-25 10:25
Selmer was a bit renowned for running out parts. I have a mark VI soprano made 2 years after they stopped making them. From what I remember the same happened with the mkVI baritone
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2025-03-25 16:06
There's a lot of crossover Selmers - I've recently rebuilt a W series Series 9 full Boehm Bb which has a mix of early and late Series 9 parts on it. Same with my S series Series 9 full Boehm A clarinet which has some CT parts on it, also an N series CT Bb which has some BT parts on it.
SA80 baris were pretty much MkVI baris (and then the SA80II happened and things went downhill from there onwards).
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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