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Re: Shaper/staples

Author: jhoyla
Date: 2015-03-08 16:56

Hmm.. (seriously jealous) I wonder how good a player I would be today if I had started learning on a Bulgheroni Opera, and not a plastic B&H regent .. but I digress.

I assume that you have a teacher? If not - in the interest of saving a whole lot of time I strongly recommend you find one. And in that case I would use his/her shaper to begin with. If it suits you, buy an identical one yourself, and if not, experiment ..

As a beginning reed-maker in the US, I would recommend you go for a standard middle-of-the-road shape such as a RDG 1, or similar, and standard 47mm staples from any of the reputable suppliers. Initially it is unlikely that the niceties of shape will be critical. Bob Hubbard of westwind double reed is a frequent contributor on this bulletin board and his shapes are probably the most accurate on the market today, but they don't come cheap! You can compare shaper-tip dimensions here.

A lot of players like the "covered" and more focused sound that they get from narrower shapes, but I find these shapes more difficult to scrape and the reeds always seem to have a shorter playing life. The RDG 1 is about as narrow as I would go.

Once you have got the hang of making mostly playable reeds from your standard setup you can change one variable (e.g., either narrower/shorter staples or a different shape) and start all over again