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Re: Short Scrape Woes

Author: WoodwindOz
Date: 2014-10-04 15:22

I buy my cane already shaped from K.Ge, and they have their own shapers that suit my playing and reedmaking style well (I use their shaper D, which is a medium-width shape). In terms of shape, I would ask Marjorie what shaper she uses, and order cane using that shape to start.

The dimensions of the cane I use are:

*10.5mm diameter (I don't need to change diameter for the seasons here, and in Louisiana I guess you shouldn't need to either)
*0.58mm thickness (a little thinner than typical US cane I think - I used to use 0.56 but I prefer the richer sound of the extra 0.02mm.)
*K.Ge also measures the centre to side difference of their gouged cane - I use a CS ratio of '0.15' (so the side thickness is 0.43mm). '0.10' is what K.Ge uses for their US scrape reeds, so quite a difference there. A combination of the thickness and the ratio between centre and side may have been affecting the pitch of your reeds. The thicker the cane at the sides, the more open the reeds will be, making them harder to blow and likely lower in pitch. If the gouge is specifically designed for a short scrape, the sides of the gouge will be thinner.

I make very consistent reeds that are always at A440 with this combination plus a 47mm staple, tied at 73mm and cut to 71.5mm.

I hope that helps some and has not just made it more confusing!

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