 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: vivelacors
Date: 2012-12-07 00:31
I have recently been given this grenadilla clarinet, which is a full Boehm (low Eb) and it is in good condition, having been re-padded etc. However, I find when playing it that after a few notes, notes above middle C will not play except in a much higher pitch or not at all. Have tried various reed positions but cannot cure this. Any ideas and interested in its current value.
d.pigot
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Author: Lelia Loban ★2017
Date: 2012-12-07 12:36
The title of your post calls this clarinet a "Semler." Is this just a typo or does the clarinet really have the brand name "Semler" on it? I ask because I've seen some cheap knockoff Chinese clarinets, clearly meant to be mistaken for Henri Selmer clarinets, with the brand name "Henri Semler" on them. (An even more common fake brand name is "Selner.") If that's what you've got, it will play like crap no matter what you do to it and it's pretty much worthless.
If the post title is just a typo and you've got a real, Selmer, though . . . (imitating the voice of SNL's Emily Littella) "Nev-ver mind!"
If it's a real Selmer, then the problem you describe is most likely due to a tiny pad leak. Often a new pad needs a bit more of an adjustment, probably on one of the keys you play with the right hand 5th finger ("pinkie finger keys") at the bottom of the clarinet. This type of leak can cause trouble above the break while the chalumeau notes on the same keys will still play properly.
Lelia
http://www.scoreexchange.com/profiles/Lelia_Loban
To hear the audio, click on the "Scorch Plug-In" box above the score.
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2012-12-07 12:49
I'd be surprised if any Chinese maker made full Boehms (and in wood instead of ebonite like most Chinese clarinets) as well as dread to think what they'd be like if they ever did!
What's the first part of the serial number (prefix and first two numbers)?
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: Tony F
Date: 2012-12-07 22:38
If you are in or near Melbourne email me direct if you like. I can get it working for you or advise you as to why it doesn't work. I'm up in Emerald.
Tony F.
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Author: vivelacors
Date: 2012-12-08 00:51
Many thanks Leila - it was a typo - it is a genuine Selmer "Centred Tone", I've also checked the serial number and checked its date of manufacturer.
I think you have solved it!
d.pigot
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2012-12-08 05:12
Attachment: selmerctfullboehm.jpg (330k)
My main clarinet is a CT full Boehm (R44xx). Attached is a photo of it after I rebuilt it - I had it all silver plated as well. It was a right mess when I got it due to neglect, but has transformed into a great instrument.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: Ken Shaw ★2017
Date: 2012-12-08 15:14
Chris -
Gorgeous restoration. Is the "long" Bb4 ![[Bb4]](http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/smileys/bb4.gif) with the low Eb key usable?
I worry about storing the horn with the barrel pushed all the way on. When I've tried it, the cork has gotten compressed and glazed and the joint has gotten stuck.
Ken Shaw
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Author: Ursa
Date: 2012-12-08 15:24
Chris--your CT looks simply fabulous. Great job on the restoration!
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2012-12-08 21:09
I'm not happy that the barrel remains on while in the case, but I do remove it to wipe the sockets dry after playing and keep the cork well greased. The tenon cork has compressed while I use it in this single case, but I mainly keep it in my double case where all the sections are separated.
This case was the original that came with it and was in far better condition than the clarinet - I bought it for the case if anything as I didn't think the clarinet would be salvageable, but I decided several years after I bought it to go ahead and rebuild it anyway.
I think it must have got damp or kept in damp conditions and then dried out as the wood was very pale with mineral deposits on the surface along the grain lines which I polished out and restored the colour with a good oiling. The original barrel was too short but I found a 67mm replacement on eBay for it. Here's a closeup photo of the keywork before I rebuilt it:
http://www.clarinetperfection.com/galleryclar/Keywork/FB/05.jpg
As for the mid stave A#/Bb with the low Eb key - it's an excellent alternative to the other throat Bb fingerings and keeps the same tonal colour when playing in the upper register. The 1st movement of the Schumann Fantasiestücke is one piece that benefits from the B-A# still kept in the upper register when played on a Bb clarinet.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: MarlboroughMan
Date: 2012-12-08 23:44
Really beautiful restoration job, and beautiful horn, Chris. My main horn is a Selmer CT too--I switched over this past summer when a virtually unplayed "new" CT practically fell into my lap. This is the first winter I've owned it, and the tenon between the joints is really drying out--starting the get gray. Since you've already brought back wood that was badly dried, can you suggest a type of bore oil? (My Wurlitzers have never needed oiling, so I don't even own any--I haven't oiled the bore of a clarinet since the 1990s).
My CT isn't full boehm, but enhanced--it's got the seventh ring and that's about it. I've also got a BT with the seventh ring and articulated G#, but that's not "full" either.
Eric
******************************
The Jazz Clarinet
http://thejazzclarinet.blogspot.com/
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2012-12-09 05:51
I'll probably get shot down in flames for saying this, but I use raw linseed oil to oil wooden instruments with.
I used 1200 grit glued to a wooden dowel to smooth th bore, then oiled it using an oiling rod. Get a thin wooden dowel or metal flute cleaning rod and wrap one end in cotton to use as an oiling rod for the bore so it can coat the bore evenly, then repeat when the oil has been absorbed and keep on oiling until the wood stops absorbing.
I did this over a course of a week or so instead of in one go, but then on its first playing the bore in the top joint was looking pale again, so I just use a light coating to darken it every now and then. I haven't had any problems so far, even though the bore looks pale after playing.
With the outside, I stropped the joints by hand with tripoli on a strip of mutton cloth to remove the crusty mineral deposits that leeched out from the wood, then rubbed in linseed oil and left it to get absorbed, then finished off by machine buffing the joints with increasingly softer mops, initially with tripoli, then a softer mop without and finally a swansdown mop to bring out the shine.
I found this method to work for me, others will have their own ideas.
Before I rebuilt this clarinet, my main instrument was a 1978 Series 9 full Boehm (paired with a 1962 Series 9 A). But as I always hankered after a full Boehm CT, I thought it was about time I did the decent thing and rebuilt this one I had sitting around since 2007 - I bought it for a reason and now I'm playing it for that very reason.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: BartHx
Date: 2012-12-09 16:10
My main instruments are a CT and a Series 9 (I'm in love with them). If I were playing them blindfolded, I would have a really hard time telling them apart. Others' experience may be different with those two models, but I do my own work and have set both up to my preferences. Getting back to the original question . . . . I have found a difference between them in setting them up. While no leak is acceptable, the CT seems to be more sensitive to even the slightest leak than does the 9. It also seems to be more sensitive to precise venting. With vivelacors' instrument, I would suggest finding a tech who is very good with leaks and venting and have him/her check it out. For those of us who do our own work, these things are pretty much automatic but, without that experience, they could be hard to notice.
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Author: Paula S
Date: 2012-12-09 19:06
Wow Chris, looks gorgeous! Come on Chris , Eric.... don't leave us in suspense, would love to know what one of these babies sounds like? ;-)
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Author: BartHx
Date: 2012-12-09 19:33
Chris:
Two questions:
1. When you got the keys plated, what did you do about the bell ring?
2. I have purchased Crayola crayons that are sold with the intent of renewing worn logos. While they do work, they don't produce the brilliant gold color that shows on your restoration and which I have seen on other restorations. What do you use and where do you get it?
Thanks. That instrument is gorgeous!
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2012-12-09 20:02
I left the bell ring unplated but polished it when I polished the bell on the buffing machine. Bell rings are rarely ever plated anyway unless the bell ring is a sheet metal one that's formed onto the bell in some kind of press (eg. Yamahas up to and including the CX and Leblancs) instead of a solid nickel silver one which is fitted to the bell before it gets its final turning.
I used gilt paste which is sold in jars (made by Liberon) which you can get from craft suppliers for restoring gilt picture frames. Clean out the logo with a scriber or needle spring to remove all the old gold and muck, then use a trimmed down reed with the end cut square as a palette knife and spread gold paste into the engraving.
Leave for a while to dry (a couple of hours will do), the scrape off the excess with the side of an old reed and finally use a dry cloth to buff it with. Any gold that gets into the surrounding grain can be removed with solvents or picked out with a sharp scalpel or sewing needle.
It works best on logos that have been stamped or engraved deeply - Buffet and the more recent Leblanc logos are too shallow for it to be successful as they're stamped on with self adhesive foil with a heated stamp.
I've tried to transfer recordings to my computer, but the level from my Minidisc recorder is way too high. Even using the inbuilt microphone to record wth sounds dreadful.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: MarlboroughMan
Date: 2012-12-11 17:01
Just saw this, Paula--
I'll see if I can put a demo up on SoundCloud soon. I've had trouble recently with recording/distortion on my digital recorder (the CT is blowing out my mic in the altissimo). If I can get a few choruses of something clean, I'll put it up.
Eric
******************************
The Jazz Clarinet
http://thejazzclarinet.blogspot.com/
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Author: Paula S
Date: 2012-12-11 18:47
Thank you Eric, would love that ! :-)
Have been preparing a very special verison of the Artie Shaw on my Eb LOL............... blasphemy or intrigue? ;-)
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