Author: vboboe
Date: 2007-08-16 21:59
hey, helpful, interesting post, thanks!
... i gather from these posts that you folks measure the wood thickness somehow from surface to underside, presumably before tying on, or can it be measured after tying on while cutting a reed?
Please note i'm using ready-made standard G&S glotin cane pieces at the moment, and haven't a clue what thickness they are or what tool they were cut on. I'm still trying to figure out how to cut just one single reed that will enrich this oboe's thin 2nd octave,and be just light enough in low register (don't like too much treacle down there, need it 'bright enough') and of course ... be fully responsive, play in tune, be stable and have resonant voice
I'm working with a longer reed concept at the moment, 71-72 mm, in hopes of improving overall lower partials while leaving a bit more wood on over the entire reed (which normally increase higher partials). If I leave on too much heart wood, either it's much too stiff for me or the reed plays too sharp, so i've been thinking a slightly longer reed would bring in a lower tone, reed could be thinned a bit less overall and yet might be responsive enough and tuneful enough -- but so far, i've had trouble getting a crow so the reed's voice isn't vibrant enough
but, aha!
... thanks for the suggestion to thin ** the sides of the heart **
i've been working on the assumption rails should extend all the way up from the back, past the catches, and step off down to a narrow band (about 1.5 mm wide) at the sides of the tip
heart of my reeds extend from the catch at 62 to base of tip on sides starting at 65, with primary apex peaking around 68, so I guess this style of heart looks like a house.
Yes, i do double tip, although i call it high apex measured on diagonal 65 to fold (73+mm) and low apex measured on diagonals 64.5 to 70mm -- that's the blend in between -- i wonder what i'd get if high apex was measured 67 to fold instead, wider blend area for sure with improved mix higher and lower partials?
in the heart, I'd been taking all the bark off plus some middle wood as it's much too hard a reed for me to play otherwise - but, sad result, wimpy tone. Wood was thinned this much in 'heart windows' between rails and spine, catch and blend -- result, two u-shaped valleys between steep and narrow spine ridge and side rails, the spine ridge high, steep and narrow instead of broad and graded
So let me try (this weekend) grading a 'humped' heart instead, making a wider band of thicker wood down the midline (guesstimate about 5-6mm across), no heart windows, thinner sides, and let me see what a longer blend area can give me too
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