 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Adam
Date: 2007-01-12 21:46
Hi,
I'm having my clarinet serviced (1977 Buffet RC Bb) and as expected the pads need replacing. They have always been fish skin, but the repairer is saying he prefers to work in brown leather, and that almost no-one can tell the difference.
Only ever having had this clarinet (and its A brother) I don't even know what these differences are - both in terms of playablilty and sound.
Anybody got any hints or tips? Should I go for the leather or hold out for fish skin?
Cheers,
Adam.
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2007-01-12 22:36
Let's just settle this once and for all:
THERE'S NO SUCH THING AS FISH SKIN PADS!
The skin is the intestinal membrane from cattle - the same stuff used for making gut strings (therefore NOT made from cat gut).
Go with leather pads, they're much arder wearing than skin pads.
Better still, have cork pads for the speaker key, side F# key, both Eb keys, C#/G# key and the RH cross F# key and the rest done in leather.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: tictactux ★2017
Date: 2007-01-12 22:55
> THERE'S NO SUCH THING AS FISH SKIN PADS!
Your shift key is stuck, Chris. ![[wink]](http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/smileys/smilie3.gif)
The term has a historical background. In the beginning, there were fish bladder pads, leather pads and note pads.
--
Ben
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2007-01-12 23:06
I'll say it in TXTSPK if you're not careful!
Well, I'll try - I'm not a chav with an asbo, so if I do make spelling mistakes(!) then that's the reason why.
lyk OMG!!!! derz lyk no sch fing az fsh skn pdz u no!!!!!!!! lyk woteva!!!!!! cul8r an stuf lyk totly wkd u no!!!!! ENOUGH!
Goldbeater's skin (that's used for sealing oboe reeds) is the same stuff, as is sausage skin.
What fish did they get the bladders from?
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: tictactux ★2017
Date: 2007-01-12 23:15
Chris,
...you spend too much time in those silly chat rooms.
> What fish did they get the bladders from?
Codfish. Dried. That's why those pads crackle.
--
Ben
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Author: Escsrc
Date: 2007-01-12 23:43
Adam: I agree with Chris P, leather lasts well and theres no reason to have to wait out on skin pads. I've also yet to find a reason not to use leather, but I'm sure someone out there has something to say about it. (Some leather pads are more expensive, I know that much)
tictactux: hah, good to know. I never really thought about it.
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2007-01-12 23:43
Me? Chatrooms? At my age?
Nah, I used to take the mick out of people on the BBC messageboards that used TXTSPK 'cuz dey fink itz kwika 2 spel evryfing lyk dis', but takes at least three times as long trying to decipher what they're ranting on about.
I can't type quick enough to go on chatrooms - and I waste too much time on here!
With North Sea cod stocks dwindling, it's just as well they use cow innards. Though I rarely use skin pads - cork pads are my favourites followed by leather pads - and depending on what mood I'm in (or if I have the right sizes) I use either brown or white leather pads.
And on harp I prefer gut strings (made from cow guts) over nylon - gut make a much better (fuller) sound and don't take ages to settle down. But some harp players (and harpists) swear by nylon strings. Some like nickel plated wires and some prefer silver. And just like us clarinet enthusiasts, we all have our preferrences.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2007-01-13 00:29
My experience with leather is that when they get "sticky," they get stickier than other types. Like cork, if they are not seated with great care, they have a tendency to leak. And finally, if you do not regularly apply (once a month) funiture polish (Liquid Gold or something similar) to the surface of the pads, they dry out and crack.
Of course Germans swear by leather to the point they will look at you as if you had two heads if you even suggest cork might be used instead.
As long as you have a GOOD repairperson either of the three work well.
.............Paul Aviles
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Author: marvin
Date: 2007-01-13 23:56
Adam
Have you considered Gortex pads Valentino greenback pads. Francois Kloc of Buffet used to recommend the greenbacks. I am not sure how he feels about them at present.
Marvin Western
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Author: David Spiegelthal ★2017
Date: 2007-01-14 02:38
I like leather pads, and use a stiff piece of paper (e.g. a business card) to clean them periodically so they don't stick. All it takes is to slide the card between pad and tonehole, press down lightly on the key cup, and pull the card out to remove accumulated gunk. Once a week (for an instrument played daily) is more than adequate.
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Author: Wes
Date: 2007-01-14 06:41
What kind of leather pads are you folks referring to? Like brown leather saxophone pads or like white bassoon kid pads? Leather has some small pores in it that result in minute leaks. The Fox Company at one time did tests on this and found that the bassoons sealed better when the white leather pads were given two coats of a special wax to seal the pores. I don't know if they are still doing that or not. Sealing bassoon pads with wax or paraffin has been done for many years, of course. Thanks for your input!
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2007-01-14 07:10
I like Glotin leather pads as they're treated to make them waterproof and airtight, and the brown ones work just as well as the white ones.
They're also very firm and definitely not squishy like those marshmallow bassoon pads so they're easy to work with and make regulating much easier.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2007-01-14 08:00
"I've also yet to find a reason not to use leather, but I'm sure someone out there has something to say about it."
I prefer bladder pads, mainly for two reasons - I prefer how they feel in the fingers (slightly harder than leather), and I prefer their sound (not the clarinet sound, but the clicking sound of the pads themselves).
"What kind of leather pads are you folks referring to? Like brown leather saxophone pads or like white bassoon kid pads?"
As far as I know, there is no difference other than colour between white, brown, black or any other colour of leather pads. I think the brown ones are simply white ones with brown colour.
"Of course Germans swear by leather to the point they will look at you as if you had two heads if you even suggest cork might be used instead."
I'm not saying this is not true, but I'm just wondering what experience you have that you can make such a genralization? I don't think any open minded and reasonable person (or clarinet player), regardless of their origin country, would dismiss any idea without atleast trying to understand the reasons for it.
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Author: donald
Date: 2007-01-14 08:46
i use a combination of Valentino Greenback and cork, though some players i respect feel that the Greenback don't sound as good, and i just might agree, i go with them as they require less maintanence and i'd prefer less frequent visits to the repair shop.
but i'd never thought about pads being made from annimal intestines! I'm a fairly serious vegetarian for moral reasons, and yes i'm sorry to wear leather shoes. I'm glad i don't have dead annimals on my clarinet, i have enough problems with the shoes.
keep playing the good tunes
donald
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Author: jane84
Date: 2007-01-14 14:11
Yeah, what about those "eternity" Gore-tex pads?
Mine seem to be working fine, at least..
-jane
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Author: Arnoldstang
Date: 2007-01-14 16:07
Let's throw in the Kangaroo pads.....do they make them for clarinet? On sax the big thing is they stick less than usual sax pad....good application on sax is the G# key. John
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Author: donald
Date: 2007-01-14 16:28
i imagine that they are not actually made of Kangaroo- but you'd need to ask an Australian
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2007-01-14 16:29
I think Music Medic does roo pads for clarinet, I'll have a look on there later.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2007-01-14 17:59
"i imagine that they are not actually made of Kangaroo"
I am pretty sure they are.
Just checked, they are made of kangaroo leather, that's why they are called kangaroo leather pads 
Post Edited (2007-01-14 18:06)
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Author: Mark Charette
Date: 2007-01-14 18:01
clarnibass wrote:
> "i imagine that they are not actually made of Kangaroo"
>
> I am pretty sure they are.
Yup ... They're kangaroo leather.
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Author: kenb
Date: 2007-01-14 19:11
I'm an Australian....
Yes, kangaroo leather makes fine pads; I'm gradually replacing the white kid leather pads on my Wurlitzers with them. One kangaroo hide can keep you in pads for a lifetime, and the meat is delicious too, so for the price of a .303 bullet you're set.
BTW, During summer, the famous Diz often drops in for a pad-making session. We sit at the kitchen table chugging ice-cold tinnies and chewing the fat as we labour away, often with an old Tony Pay vinyl on the turntable, the beauty of his playing in stark contrast to the metallic roar from the thousands of cicadas outside...
Such is life DownUnder.
PS. Hi Donald!
Post Edited (2007-01-14 19:15)
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Author: SVClarinet09
Date: 2007-01-14 19:26
Kangaroo leather makes mighty fine soccer cleats too ;] I have a pretty nifty pair of those
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2007-01-14 23:42
Well, they make novelty money pouches out of kangaroo ball-bags for tourists, so why not make sax and clarinet pads with the remainder of it's hide?
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2007-01-15 02:22
Dear Clarnibass,
Sorry to reply late. I refer to my experience trying to sell my 100c horns through one of the bigger firms in Berlin. This is NOT a generalization, they had me deduct the price of replacing the Brannenized corks with leather or it wouldn't sell.
................Paul Aviles
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Author: skygardener
Date: 2007-01-15 05:29
I have used just about all pads from the repair and performer's standpoint. The truth about leather pads is that the pores leak. If you use something to seal the pores, it's a different story, but as they come, they leak.
Skin pads that are double layered seal much better. The quality of the "suction" test is unquestionably higher in skin pads. This can also affect pitch. I had a German clarinet repaired in German with German leather pads (of course) and alhough all the pads had good contact all the way around each pad, the clarinet had almost no "suction". I replaced the pads with skin pads (and a few corks) and not only was the suction good and not only was the response better, but the pitch dropped so much that the longer barrel I used to use is now worthless. The long barrel that played good at 440 is now about 438. It causes that much of a difference.
The most airtight are synthetics, but a lot of people don't like the mental concept of artificiality on their musical toys (me too).
Cork is good and last a long time, but gets hard and has the most annoying clicking noise as you play (if anyone knows how to get cork pads to remain silent, please let us in on it).
my opinion...
-S
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2007-01-15 07:48
When my Yamaha Oehler gets a bit tired looking I might cork pad it. But at the moment it's still new (only about a couple of months old), so I'll give it a few years before I do any major work on it. If that brings the pitch down then it's welcome (I'm using a 2mm spacer between the barrel and the top joint).
One way to have silent cork pads is fit a cork gasket on the tonehole crown as well (having flattened out the countersink to fit the cork gaskets), so you have a cork pad closing against a cork gasket.
That's just an idea though, but I reckon it'll cause loads of problems in the real world - when it comes to repadding you'll have to replace the gaskets as well (and removal could damage the wood where they're glued), and if they leak then that's even more hassle.
Stick with tried and tested systems, they've stood the test of time.
Edited to add certain missing letters! I still haven't got used to this keyboard - there's too much key travel!
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
Post Edited (2007-01-15 18:10)
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2007-01-15 18:24
"I'm surprised no one's mentioned the foam rubber pads !!"
I'm not surprised. I have them on my clarinet for over two years (since I bought it, they were the original pads) and they are really just terrible, because they are very soft (they seal just fine). I guess the fact that I don't change them shows how much I really care about pads anyway.......
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Author: tictactux ★2017
Date: 2007-01-15 19:34
> I'm surprised no one's mentioned the foam rubber pads !!
Hmm. Mine are white and smoother (smaller bubbles). And probably not so soft. But probably just as noiseless.
My metal Army clarinet has them, and meanwhile I have replaced some crackling between-the-fingerholes pads on my wooden clarinet too (I had no suitable fish skin <waves in Chris' direction> pads available but needed a quick fix. Now that fix lasts nearly a year).
--
Ben
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Author: Vytas
Date: 2007-01-16 00:45
Leather pads will outlast any pad on the market. If you apply good quality moisturizer every 3-5 years they will outlast even YOU. Finally companies like Selmer Paris use them on their pro clarinets. Recently I've bought Signature, Odyssee and Omega (Paris). All of them had good quality leather pads. Cork pads are almost as good as leather pads. If you don't mind the noise they make then they are excellent. Nothing is wrong with skin pads they just don't last long.
I do not understand the reason why some repair professionals are trying to push Valentino Greenbacks to the pro market. These pads seal perfectly but they do have major drawbacks.
1. Within 2-3 years they will get squashed.
2. In time they become "A"-shaped and this creates the unnecessary turbulence around the edge.
3. In hot temperature the glue between the pad and the backing material becomes unreliable.
4. If the tone holes are less than perfect these pads tend to develop micro leaks that are very hard to detect. Indication of the micro leaks would be the moisture in the tone holes during prolonged time of playing especially on the UJ. IMO these pads are not good enough to be installed on the professional clarinet.
Vytas Krass
Clarinet Repair
Professional clarinet technician
Custom clarinet mouthpiece maker
Former professional clarinet player
Post Edited (2007-01-16 20:18)
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Author: Fred
Date: 2007-01-17 00:43
It seems like the discussion of leather (also roo) pads always seem to end up with two camps - those that say they are a superior pad and those that say they are porous. Note that most people in the porous camp don't usually complain about their performance - simply that the pads are known to be porous.
If we accept (at least for argument) that both of these premises are true (and they are both supported by players and technicians that I highly respect), don't we then have to assume that a porous pad can perform quite well on a clarinet or saxophone despite its porosity? Is that a call for civil unrest, or does that sit OK with most player/technicians? (Of course, you might not agree that both are true. In that case, a second question is still relevant:
In the evaluation of the leather-padded clarinets - are there many instances of techs being asked to replace leather pads with bladder pads? It seems that leather is growing in popularity - certainly not shrinking. Have players complained that the pads were too porous, or listed complaints that were rightly attributable to pad porosity? I'm just trying to determine if there is a track record that would link porous pads with poorer performance.
Any comments - other than those already stated? Or has the deceased equine been sufficiently chastised?
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Author: David Spiegelthal ★2017
Date: 2007-01-17 02:07
Good questions, Fred! As a proponent of leather pads on all sizes of clarinets and saxes (I even put them on my personal oboe, heaven forbid!) I am not concerned about their porosity, because in my experience, the pads work very well, last a long time, and their failure modes are relatively benign compared to those of bladder pads. As we used to say in the US Navy, a device is good if it:
Works fine,
lasts a long time,
fails safe,
and drains to the bilge*
*maybe this last requirement is not so important for clarinet pads.........
If perhaps I could increase the porosity of my left eustachian tube (still somewhat plugged after three weeks), then MAYBE I could hear a difference between leather and bladder pads --- nah!
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Author: Mark Charette
Date: 2007-01-17 02:13
David Spiegelthal wrote:
Works fine,
> lasts a long time,
> fails safe,
is sailor proof **,
> and drains to the bilge*
** Nothing is sailor-proof if the sailor is armed with a BFH or cutting torch.
Mark C., USN 1972-1978
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Author: Adam
Date: 2007-01-17 06:15
Well thanks for all the advice everyone; after discussion with the repairer (who I understand has a very good reputation in clarinets over many decades) covering aspects of porosity - the leather pads he uses are not porous apparently - and sealing - the pads are pre-sealed by the manufacturer - I have gone with the (brown) leather pads.
I should be getting my clarinet back tomorrow, so I'll let you know if I can detect any differences after 20 years of playing on fish skin.
Thanks again - a very interesting and (for me at least) informative discussion.
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Author: tictactux ★2017
Date: 2007-01-17 06:47
...besides, your fingers are porous too. I've never seen someone wearing surgical gloves while playing.
--
Ben
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Author: David Spiegelthal ★2017
Date: 2007-01-17 13:54
Finally, the porosity in the pads leads to...where? I install my leather pads with non-porous silicone sealant/adhesive, so even if the pads are porous, they are backed and surrounded by non-porous sealant -- I would think this would prevent (or at least minimize) movement of air through the pad material.
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Author: frank
Date: 2007-01-18 17:52
I disagree about leather pads being superior to skin. I always hoped leather would work well and I was very optimistic about putting them on my clarinet. They can last a lifetime and wear well, but they lacked the performance I needed (ultimate goal of an instrument).
I've tried leather several times and do not like these qualities:
1.) Do not seal as well as Valentino, cork or goldbeater skin
2.) Sound is more dead...uh leather is VERY POROUS
3.) Mushy mechanism
That said, I don't think skin pads are much better. Valentino is probably the best in regards to getting an airtight seal. Cork is not a good choice for the bigger pads due to noise. When I repad an instrument, I use all Valentino on the lower jooint EXCEPT the low E anf F keys. I find these two keys stay in adjustment longer and is more precise if I use skin pads. Skin pads are much more forgiving of key play and mis-alignment than a Valentino. I hand make my two skin pads and they last a long time (8 years on current clarinet without an adjustment). For the upper joint, I use either cork or Valentino. Let's see... Rossi, Bakun Ridenour, Chadash are using Valentino and not "Leather the Great". These guys probably know what they are doing. Hope this helps.
Post Edited (2007-01-18 17:53)
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Author: Vytas
Date: 2007-01-18 19:11
> *** Let's see... Rossi, Bakun Ridenour, Chadash are using Valentino and not "Leather the Great". These guys probably know what they are doing. Hope this helps. *** <
I personally benefited from Valentino pads since these guys started using them. My business increased by 10%-15% because I get plenty unhappy players who wants to replace their Valentino pads to leather or leather&cork pads. So please keep-up with a good work. At least you made someone happy and indeed "this helps". LOL
Vytas Krass
Clarinet Repair
Professional clarinet technician
Custom clarinet mouthpiece maker
Former professional clarinet player
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Author: mk
Date: 2007-01-19 04:33
Wearablity is not a major player if resonance is comprised...so do yourself a favor and trust your ear...if you like your instrument with "fish skin" (forgive me if i offend anyone) any changes in padding to leather will change the instrument and most likely not change it for the better....anyways...the oboists are saving all the good cork to make pads for themselves...don't let them fool you...lol ...by the way, I once spent 5 hours putting in one cork pad for a major player and he hated it so much we went back to fish skin....on the other hand i put in tons of cork pads of the years....they tend to wear great...and of course handle moisture better...but i will tell you that they are not 100 percent perfect sealing if depending on the quality of the tone holes...but that too can be fixed if your repairman is an expert in his field. Fish skin is more compromising, hence you find it used commonly on the larger tone holes. Its a combination of cork and fish skin that is well liked by most professionals. I could give you exact locations of where to put the cork pads but i am fearful of boring the rest.... Don't USE LEATHER and SAVE THE COWS!
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2007-01-19 06:27
"Don't USE LEATHER and SAVE THE COWS!"
Ermmm... leather pads are made from kid skin (NOT from human kids!) and skin pads are made from cow intestines - so if you want to save cows, don't use skin pads (not that it's going to save any cows as there are many other industries that eat up cows).
With ALL pads, you do need the perfect tonehole bedplaces in every instance to be sure you're getting the perfect seal - even skin pads won't seal any small imperfections.
So it's well worth the time and effort spent in sorting out all the tonehole bedplaces BEFORE padding, otherwise it's a pointless exercise seating pads on imperfect toneholes - no matter what pad type as there'll still be leaks.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: shmuelyosef
Date: 2007-01-21 22:11
Don't leather pads tend to get sticky on clarinets? ...worse than saxophones?? Is there anything one can do about this?
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Author: mk
Date: 2007-01-21 22:42
i thought that was the finisher's responsibilty
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Author: Vytas
Date: 2007-01-21 23:43
> *** Don't leather pads tend to get sticky on clarinets? ...worse than saxophones?? Is there anything one can do about this? *** <
Don't leather gloves tend to get sticky?
The short answer is NO but you can create many circumstances when leather (or any) pad might become sticky.
1. Oily/dirty tone holes.
2. Wrong type of dye used to color the leather.
3. Use of waterproofing agents on leather (unnecessary IMO)
Even being porous leather pads don't leak and seal better than bladder or cork pads. Leather pads easily pass vacuum test with better results than other pads. If the leather pads had a tendency to leak just because they are porous they would be completely unusable. There's is no way these pads were able to hold vacuum even for a second if they leaked. Of course the "seal better" part is not than important as any correctly installed pad is good enough for clarinet. A clarinet does not operate in these (vacuum) conditions and this test is used to detect leaks only. I don't think a clarinet that holds vacuum for 30 seconds will perform any better from the clarinet that holds vacuum for 5 seconds. It's irrelevant because any leak in the clarinet will definitely fail any vacuum test.
Leather pads are unsuitable on the old design wrap-around register key.
Vytas Krass
Clarinet Repair
Professional clarinet technician
Custom clarinet mouthpiece maker
Former professional clarinet player
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Author: David Spiegelthal ★2017
Date: 2007-01-22 00:57
Vytas wrote: "Leather pads are unsuitable on the old design wrap-around register key. "
Why is that? They work perfectly fine on saxophone register keys (the ones on the neck) which are similar from a mechanical standpoint in being at the end of a fairly long, somewhat flexible arm, and having to slide sideways a tiny amount while lifting.
Although I've only overhauled two or three clarinets with wraparound register keys, I used leather pads on those and didn't see any problems.
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Author: Vytas
Date: 2007-01-22 02:06
> *** Why is that? *** <
The old fashion Buffet chimney for the wrap-around register key has completely flat top and that is the problem. Leather pad tend to stick to it especially the first time you open it. I usually set about 2mm opening on this key and had experienced weird things. Leather would stick to this key after I open it and would pop open after 1-2 seconds only. I don't know if ALL wrap-around register keys have this "flat top" design but the leather pad didn't work on Buffets. I did find a solution for this by reshaping the chimney from the top (hole edge) down at the 30 degree angle. The problem disappeared but I think to use a cork pad in this place is a lot faster and easier solution.
Vytas Krass
Clarinet Repair
Professional clarinet technician
Custom clarinet mouthpiece maker
Former professional clarinet player
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2007-01-22 09:12
German clarinets have a domed speaker bush top with a leather pad.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: David Spiegelthal ★2017
Date: 2007-01-22 12:19
Thanks, Vytas. The clarinets I worked on were not Buffets and had domed chimneys like Chris P describes, so I didn't experience any sticking problems.
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Author: skygardener
Date: 2007-01-22 13:49
I have a german clarinet and the register vent is domed, but it still sticks a lot. I used Glotin's white leather pads. I had tried cleaning it with everything I could think of and changed the pad many times. They still were just as sticky.
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Author: SEH
Date: 2015-05-23 23:51
Best skins were sturgeon bladder
harriswoodwinds
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2015-05-24 01:42
Are you serious?
After that whole thread from beyond the grave, fish-skin pads were actually made of........FISH SKIN ???!!!!?????
...........Paul Aviles
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Author: Wes
Date: 2015-05-24 05:59
On this ancient thread, I'd like to point out that cork pads can have problems with tiny particles of sand getting on the pad seat. I've often seen this on oboes and it results in a tiny, unacceptable leak. The tiny rock, perhaps from the oboe case, sits on the cork, making a tiny indentation. As the pad wears, it loses a bit of it's seal, because the particle is hard against the tone hole seat. I've never tried leather on an oboe, but it would have to be treated to seal the pores.
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Author: Clarineteer
Date: 2015-05-24 15:26
When cork pads stick I use a small amount of pure talc that i got from a pharmacy.
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2015-05-24 16:33
Leather pads are used on oboes - usually in the largest pad cups and some may even leather pad the low C# and Eb pads too. I prefer to cork pad oboes throughout as that makes for a very positive feel.
I've recently found that cork pads installed in sax lower 8ve vents don't work so well in practice. While they initially seal and work well, the heavy spring tension on the LH3 key puts far too much pressure on the lower 8ve vent pad and compresses it against the 8ve bush, so they can stick after a while. They're fine on the crook key as the spring tension is much lower, but on the lower vent it's best installing a leather pad which is made from leather without the plastic coating, such as a kangaroo leather pad.
On the side and trill keys on clarinets, it helps on instruments like Buffets that have really strong spring tension to reduce that if you're installing cork pads as they don't need excessive spring tension to make sure they close.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: BartHx
Date: 2015-05-25 03:13
According to the information on their site, the Music Medic kangaroo pads have a layer of bladder skin under the leather. If kangaroo leather has a problem with pores, it seems to me that should help address the issue.
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The Clarinet Pages
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