Author: Loree BF51
Date: 2012-04-03 19:23
After coming back to reed making after a long layoff, I may be doing some things differently, than before. Right now, I'm tieing up two reeds at a time/day. I use a small, olive bottle filled with water that is, as hot as possible, from the tap, about 130. I even put this water in the cap and then turn the cap over on the top of the bottle, making sure I don't pin a cane end and as a result, there is little or no air bubble at the top. After about 20 minutes, soaking time, I tie up the first one and when that one is finished, then I tie up #2, before the water has cooled to the point where the cane may crack at the ends due to colder water, over-saturation. Then, I "slice" in a rough tip, not quite at where the final tip will be, of course. Slicing accomplishes several things: it is much faster and it is easier on the knife edge. Many thanks to Mr. S. for showing me this technique. Then, I lightly rough-in the back/windows/channels or whatever word you prefer, leaving a little trail of shiny bark down the middle of the back, which later will be removed. Also, I remove the "ears" on the sides of the unopened tip. Then, I use a plaque inserted from one side, near the tip, and as the tip of the plaque appears on the other side of the reed, I put a fingernail against it, edgewise, from the direction of the thread and then rotate the plaque, CCW, using the fingernail as a pivot point, cutting open, the end of the reed. I feel that this is much easier on the cane, than cutting it open with a knife. Now, it can be set aside to dry and the next time it's soaked, the water can get at it and in it, just like a real reed! Because some of the above may be difficult to visualize, I will take some pictures with my digital camera and post them here (I hope!).
Lastly, what exactly do mean by the word, "overlap"? To me, it could mean two, different things. Regards.
R. Still former student
Post Edited (2012-04-03 19:53)
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