 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: dsadsa
Date: 2002-02-18 07:41
any recommendations? what should I look for?
what does double hollow ground mean? are there any other reed knife terms i should know of?
are there any substitutes for a good reed knife? they're so expensive! aren't there any other blades out there just as cheap and sharp?
also, what's a sharpening stone like? is it expensive? do i have to use a reed knife sharpening stone or can i just use a sharpening stone for like a barber shop or something. maybe a regular knife sharpening stone.
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Author: Gordon (NZ)
Date: 2002-02-18 10:06
Yes, stupidly expensive. And what is wrong with a cheap snap-off-blade system knife.
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Author: Bob
Date: 2002-02-18 12:01
I agree...with the snap-off blade knife idea. Or maybe you can find your grandfather's "straight edge" razor or even use single edge razor blades...or even double edge if you are not a klutz. Double hollow ground means that the sides of the blade are concave towards each other above the edge.
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Author: KevinS
Date: 2002-02-18 14:39
Another suggestion...
There are X-Acto knives that are the size of a ball point pen. If you can get one with a blade shape that is curved from the butt end to the tip end, they work well for scraping reeds. The cost quite a bit more reasonable than a reed knife, and easily fit inside most clarinet cases. No worries about breaking the expensive blade of a reed knife!. If you damage the blade, you can buy a box of 20 for less than $5.
Good luck.
KevinS
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Author: ron b
Date: 2002-02-18 15:31
Speaking from personal experience, Dsadsa:
The last time I bought a box of industrial single edge razor blades, a couple of years ago, they were around ten (US) dollars a hundred. Got them at a local home improvement (hardware) store. I use them for - whatever... often. Still haven't used up half the box :] Like Gordon, I also admire the cheap (plastic handle) 'all-purpose' snap-off blades.
I guess if you want to impress someone, whoever that may be, then buy an expensive 'reed knife'. Although, most clarinet players I know wouldn't know what you're talking about.
Most hardware stores, sporting goods (hunting/fishing) or machinist's supply houses have a variety of sharpening stones. I'm sure they'd be happy to help you choose one to suit your need(s) and demonstrate for you how to use it.
Ferrees's sells a bench knife, cork knife and a nice sharpening stone (oil-saturated, I think). I don't know the prices or catalog numbers right off but they're not outrageous.
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Author: Don Berger
Date: 2002-02-18 16:56
I bought my OBOE reed knife years ago, as I recall, it and other reed-making accessories were expensive also, but an oboe knife must be strong[thick] and of very hard steel [Ni-Cr ?] to be satisfactory. Mine, I'm sure, is a one-per-lifetime purchase, and works on any reeds. I do like sanding the backs of single reeds, tho! Don
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Author: Wes
Date: 2002-02-18 17:33
Ditto to the above comments. Since I play the oboe, I think a reed knife is essential in making oboe reeds. For the clarinet, single edged razor blades work fine plus a little piece of silicon carbide abrasive paper, 400 grit, for thinning the tip.
If you really want a reed knife, the Vitry double hollow ground knife at about $20 is a good tool. It is sharpened by laying it flat on a dry flat sharpening stone with about 30 strokes on each side. Then the tip is curled by pushing it on the stone for about 3 strokes at 30 degrees on the side next to you when you are using it. Good luck!
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Author: beejay
Date: 2002-02-18 21:47
I get throwaway surgical scalpels from my local pharmacy. They cost about $1.50 a piece and last for months. You can buy exactly the same things, unsterilized, in stationery stores, where for some reason they cost double.
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Author: Sandra F. H.
Date: 2002-02-19 13:32
I've used an oboe knife on my reeds for years. It's inexpensive, and more exact, than other reed-making items (like sandpaper and reed rush). Mine fits in my case and with a small, reed size piece of glass, I can do a "quick fix" whenever I feel the need to do so.
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Author: Ken Shaw
Date: 2002-02-19 18:11
dsadsa -
Hollow ground means the side of the blade is curved inward from top to bottom. If you lay it flat on a table, only the edge and the upper end will touch. Double hollow ground means it's curved on both sides. I've used a Vitry knife for many years that's hollow ground on one side and flat on the other. A hollow ground blade can be used for cutting or scraping.
A beveled blade is flat on both sides, with the sides parallel until the last 1/4" or so, and then one side angles away sharply. These are used only for scraping.
I think there's no substitute for a good knife. I've tried Exacto knives and razor blades, but almost all my reed work is done by scraping, for which you need a thick blade. Frankly, you should forget about the price, since it's a lifetime purchase.
Any decent (i.e., >$20) reed knife has good steel. I've kept the Vitry because the handle is a perfect fit for my particular hand. For me, a tapered round handle is more comfortable than a rectangular or cylindrical one, and I like wood better than plastic, but that's a completely individual choice.
For sharpening, I use a large (about 3-1/2" x 8") double-grit Carborundum stone with WD-40 as a lubricant. I use only the fine side and press fairly gently. This will give a razor edge. I prefer to finish up on a Hard Arkansas stone and then with a leather razor strop, but it's not necessary. I touch up the edge whenever the part I use most doesn't work as well as the other parts of the blade -- maybe once a month.
Hollow ground blades are easy to sharpen, since you can lay them flat on the stone. With a beveled knive, it's not easy to keep the narrow beveled part flat on the stone.
Best regards.
Ken Shaw
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Author: Bob
Date: 2002-02-19 21:28
I have never used a reed knife of any style or make but from their descriptions I have assumed that the double hollow ground variety are essentially straight edge razors i.e. the folding kind that barbers use (or used to use!). A blade like that almost never needs to be "stoned" if it is stropped regularly. Using a stone on a straight razor blade is a good way to ruin it. I say this having used my father's straight razor early in my shaving career.
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Author: John Scorgie
Date: 2002-02-19 22:45
dsadsa --
IMHO all of the above posters have something worthwhile to say on the subject of reed knives. As you can see, there are many different approaches to the problem.
The purists all use special reed knives for their work, and would not dream of using something so mundane as a utility knife. If you are in that camp, nothing I say will change your mind, nor should it. But if you are just beginning to learn reed fixing, you might wish to consider the following as a starting point. This is part of a posting I did for a saxophone web site:
Altho wet or dry paper (220/320/400, take your choice) is very nice stuff, cheap and easy to use for reed fixing, I have gotten real lazy in my old age and now generally use a "utility knife" for scraping both sax and clarinet reeds which are too stiff. I am talking about the knives you buy in a hardware or Home Depot type store which use special razor blades which retract into the metal handle for safety. Easy and safe to carry in your sax case so you can use it on the job.
Use the blade perpendicular and crossways to the cut surface of the reed and sort of follow the countour of the cut with your knife. Stay over toward the left and right sides unless the reed is way too stiff, in which case you MUST scrape in the middle or heart. Scrape a little, play a little. Don't try to do everything at once unless you are on the job and have no choice. Scrape down to ~ 1/2" from the tip then ease up for another ~1/4" or so. Scrape, don't cut. Make dust not shavings. The truly proficient can speed things up by cutting shavings with a reed knife or reed plane, but most of us stay with scraping which although slower is less risky to the integrity of the reed.
Since learning the above tricks from players on this and other websites, I no longer fix reeds my old way, with expensive reed knives, white and black Arkansas honing stones, Swiss pattern files, imported reed rush, 4 leaf clovers, crosses, garlic etc.
If you will just practice a little bit with the knife, chances are you will become a convert to reed fixing and will begin buying ALL of your reeds on the stiff side and then working them down to your exact personal preference.
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