 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2025-11-01 01:29
Remove the keys, clean the pad AND the tonehole with alcohol and beef up the spring on the pad cup so it's less likely to stick.
Far too many people set the articulated C#/G# pad cup spring way too light, but it can have more tension in it that will ensure it opens the key instead of just tickles it into moving and flapping about like a bit of wet lettuce.
Same with saxes. Put some life into articulated mechanisms as they always have to work.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
Independent Woodwind Repairer
Single and Double Reed Specialist
Oboes, Clarinets and Saxes
NOT A MEMBER OF N.A.M.I.R.
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2025-11-01 14:27
Another thing you can do which will help is to carefully coat the tonehole crown with graphite from a very soft pencil - either directly but gently or coating a piece of paper with a good scribbling's worth of graphite and transfer that to the tonehole by pressing it down and shifting it around. Or get some graphite powder and apply it with a cotton bud/Q-tip. Being graphite, it will make your C#/G# pad dirty though.
You can also use Yamaha powder paper which has some sort of fine powder embedded in it, but not an excessive amount that can get everywhere like talcum powder or that zinc powder Selmer (USA) used to supply in bottles with a blue lid. Place a strip of powder paper between the pad and tonehole, close the pad and s-l-o-w-l-y draw the paper out so it will leave some powder on both the pad and tonehole.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
Independent Woodwind Repairer
Single and Double Reed Specialist
Oboes, Clarinets and Saxes
NOT A MEMBER OF N.A.M.I.R.
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: m1964
Date: 2025-11-01 18:54
Chris,
Is there a specific reason not to use talcum powder?
I sprinkle tiny amount of talcum powder on a piece of soft cloth which I then place under the offending pad and cycle/tap the pad close/open a few times, then lift the pad and remove the cloth. Works well without creating a mess.
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