 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: fuzzystradjazz
Date: 2009-10-31 05:21
I'm trying to figure out how best to safely store and display my clarinets. (If there is a safe way).
The wall I would like to use for display is sunlight-free. I was thinking of knocking out a portion of the wall and creating an "inset" or "knocked out" display case. I live in the Wyoming "high desert" so humidity is pretty much non-existent year-round. I was thinking of turning my display case/cabinet into a glass-doored hubidore to keep the humidity steady. I would like to pull these clarinets out to play them though - this isn't just for storage - I would like them displayed when I'm not playing them. I practice off-and-on throughout the day, and would love to be able to reach in, grab one, play it, put it back, etc.
I thought that I would use tried/tested wooden clarinet pegs to stand the clarinets on, and leave the clarinets assembled and in a vertical orientation.
I would also have a constant humidity reading going so I could double-check the humidore performance. My goal wouldn't be to over humidify the instruments - it would simply be to maintain a playable humidity. (Right now the pill bottle/sponge in the clarinet case is my salvation year round).
Would this be safe for wooden clarinets?
I would love to hear any thoughts on the subject. Perhaps I'm hoping for too much, and will have to ditch the entire idea...but I thought I could ask all of you knowledgable folks before I went one way or the other.
As always, thanks the any information you might offer.
As,
Fuzzy (as ever)
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Author: Katrina
Date: 2009-10-31 05:58
My only recommendation would be to swab the clarinet when you're done playing, disassemble it and wipe the tenons, and make sure they're dry before you put it back in the humidified environment. You sure don't wanna rot any corks out even in the high desert!
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2009-10-31 15:10
The main concern with keeping clarinets assembled for long periods is compression of the tenon corks, or the tenon corks sticking to the socket walls.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: knotty
Date: 2009-10-31 15:16
My concern too is keeping them assembled for long periods of time.
~ Musical Progress: None ~
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Author: fuzzystradjazz
Date: 2009-10-31 19:06
Since this has come up as the primary concern: keeping the clarinets assembled for too long of a period...does anyone know of data on the topic, or have first-hand experience in having one of their own clarinets run into problems from having been assembled too long?
I have experienced the issue with non-used, ill-stored, non-played, clarinets, but I have (of course) never pushed my luck too far with my primary playing stock of clarinets.
Along the same line, though, I recall hearing that Benny Goodman left his clarinets assembled much of the time...and I've known folks who have left their clarinets together for weeks at a time when working through difficult steps of their learning.
I know the concerns are real, but I'm curious as to where to draw the line on how long I can keep them assembled without problems. I could possibly create a rotation where one clarinet of the rotation is always displayed in a disassembled manner.
I do play on a couple hard rubber clarinets, as well as a few metal clarinets. I leave these assembled and love the accessability - I surprised myself to see how much more I practiced once I began leaving a couple non-wood clarinets within arms reach throughout the day - fully assembled and ready to go. It would be really nice to provide this same type of access to my woodies - and to display them in between.
Corks don't bother me too much - I can replace them any time....(body) wood rot or compression, etc. on the other hand, is a BIG concern to me, and I'd definately not want to dabble too much and risk that!
Any additional thoughts would be greatly appreciated....has anyone on the board tried something like this before? I'd love to hear of any failures/success too.
I can't begin to express the appreciation and respect I have for everyone on this board...thanks for making it what it is, and thanks for sharing your valuable time with folks like me who have tons of silly questions!
Fuzzy
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Author: tictactux ★2017
Date: 2009-10-31 20:41
My main concern are the corks, and eventually a problem with disassembling the clarinet when things get sticky and gooey.
Another problem would be the tenon wood swelling because of condensation moisture. If you seal the tenon end grain with an impermeable substance (wax, grease, oil) there is little risk that stuff starts swelling.
If I were to display the clarinets in their "natural state", I'd probably bead the individual parts on a wooden rod through the bore, so that the joints aren't actually assembled but lined up like a string of pearls. Good enough for display, not bad enough to harm the individual parts.
If you always want to have a clarinet in ready-to-play state, invest some 20$ into a used Bundy or Vito. But I'd leave the more precious pieces disassembled in their cases.
--
Ben
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Author: DougR
Date: 2009-11-02 16:49
I don't know about display, but I stumbled on a good solution for keeping horns handy and available. My practice stand & chair are right next to a chest of drawers, and I discovered there's just enough room on top of the polo shirts & underwear to lay A and Bb and bass clarinet joints and mouthpieces. Instead of rummaging around in the closet extracting and unpacking cases, you just open a drawer and off you go. (Unfortunately the drawer isn't humidity-controlled, a definite drawback in the wintertime northeast, so everybody's going back in their cases for the cold weather.)
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Author: skygardener
Date: 2009-11-02 19:19
To Fuzzy,
The main problem of the sticky corks can be solved simply by moving the corks every day. Just give it a wiggle and a twist and put it back into place. If you do this on every cork, every day then there should never be any point in which the corks get totally stuck.
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Author: Ed Lowry
Date: 2009-11-04 23:55
I've always wondered why major clarinet manufacturers have sold their top of the line clarinets with cases that require the bell and the lower joint to be joined together in the case.
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Author: Joarkh
Date: 2009-11-05 07:10
Because it allows for smaller cases and easier transportation of clarinets, especially in the case of a double case. There is no problem if you take the clarinet apart and clean the tenon of the lower joint every now and then.
Joar
Clarinet and saxophone teacher, clarinet freelancer
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2009-11-05 14:28
A Buffet double case is larger than a Yamaha double case, though the Yamaha is the better case of the two (and better than a lot of other double cases on the market) as all the sections are seperated and there's still room for two mouthpieces, four barrels, a compartment for reeds and other bits, plus room behind the lid cushion for sheet music all within the one case.
There's a lot more room within the Buffet double case to have all the sections seperated and I can see no reason for their case maker to continue to make them as they do.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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