 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: dlloyd1
Date: 2014-07-15 01:40
I'm considering getting one of these (Bb). How much could I reasonably expect to pay?
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2014-07-15 02:05
Anything from £150 to around £400 I reckon depending on condition.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: Caroline Smale
Date: 2014-07-15 03:40
There is quite a wide variabilty in condition of these second hand as many were used in military bands where some had a hard life.
For a civilian one that has been well looked after and is in really good condition then you may expect to pay £500-600 although you could strike lucky and get it cheaper.
Make sure that the mouthpiece with it is also 926 though.
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Author: Tony F
Date: 2014-07-15 04:12
I have 2 of these. One is an ex-military hard rubber example in worn condition which I bought from EBay for $A30, where it was advertised as an old Japanese clarinet. The other I bought from a music teacher for $A300, in mint condition. The hard rubber one plays best after restoration, but they're both good and play and tune very well with a Vandoren M30 mouthpiece. I have several of the original mouthpieces but they don't perform as well as the M30.
Tony F.
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2014-07-15 16:33
That will work fine - any French style mouthpiece will work on B&H clarinets from the Regent up to (and including) the Imperial 926 as they all have the same bore and tonehole layout.
The large bore 1010s require a different mouthpiece.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
Post Edited (2014-07-15 16:35)
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Author: chris moffatt
Date: 2014-07-15 17:51
what Chris P said about mps is right. However I'd give the 926 mp a wide berth personally - if it's the stock mp. They are good candidates for customisation by a mp tech who knows what he's doing.
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Author: dlloyd1
Date: 2014-07-16 12:51
Yes, completed listings on ebay suggest £250 to £350. There is one on there at the moment at £675 BIN, but it's ex-military, non original mp and non original case. The seller didn't jump at my £250 best offer.
Post Edited (2014-07-16 12:51)
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2014-07-16 14:41
I was having a rummage around the instrument cupboard in our bandroom to see what's what the other week and found an immaculate late Imperial 926 A clarinet in its single case that has hardly been played since it was bought new. Not sure why they have an A clarinet there, but it's a shame it'll never be played by anyone as there's no call for it in concert band music. It was once played by someone who used it by mistake, but that was probably the only time it has ever been played.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: Dibbs
Date: 2014-07-16 15:00
I'd love to have seen the guy's face when he started to play and it came out a semitone flat.
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2014-07-16 16:28
From what I heard as I wasn't at that rehearsal but got a good account, it was a woman in the band who had a strop at another player (she didn't want to be in the same section as the other player) and stormed off in a huff to play clarinet instead only to find out the one she got from the instrument cupboard was in A after she started playing, so it was rough justice.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: dlloyd1
Date: 2014-07-16 23:10
Shame it's not being played. I guess it's not for sale?
Looking through ebay, there are more B&H models than I thought... do I have these right (Buffet equivalents)?
R13-ish quality: 1010, 926, Imperial
E13-ish quality: Emperor, Stratford, 8-10
E11-ish quality: Edgeware, 4-20, 400
B12-ish quality: Regent, 2-20, Regent II
Somewhere below B12: "77" 1-10
Post Edited (2014-07-16 23:11)
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2014-07-16 23:35
I'd put the 2-20 with the Edgware as they're essentially the same instrument, likewise I'd put the 1-10 with the plastic Regent as they too are the same instrument.
I'd put the B&H 400 (Amati) along with the "77" and early wooden Regent.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: dlloyd1
Date: 2014-07-16 23:54
The 8-10 was apparently a little bit more expensive than the Emperor, but still a fair bit cheaper than the 926... what sets it apart from the Emperor?
I had an Emperor for a couple of days a few years ago...
http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/read.html?f=1&i=298854&t=298854
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Author: dlloyd1
Date: 2014-07-19 00:47
I'll report back in a couple of days as I've scored a B&H 8-10 for £100...
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2014-07-19 00:54
Good one! Alright if you're buying used B&H clarinets as you can get some bargains, but not so good if you're selling.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: Ursa
Date: 2014-07-20 19:21
Nice catch scoring a B&H 8-10 for £100!
I paid a lot more than that for my customised, overhauled 8-10 and it is worth every penny; the last wooden clarinet I'll ever need to buy.
The 1-10 I use for outdoors, just overhauled with cork and leather pads, comes tantalizingly close to matching the performance of the 8-10.
Post Edited (2014-07-20 19:24)
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Author: dlloyd1
Date: 2014-07-22 13:01
Well, I have it. Could do with some cleaning as it has accumulated some grime over the years... any tips on how to do this would be most welcome!
It dates to about 1961/62 according to the serial number. The mouthpiece that it came with has "G8" stamped on it... any significance to this?
I won't play it until it's had a bit of a clean.
Post Edited (2014-07-22 15:51)
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2014-07-22 14:49
The G8 mouthpiece sounds like it could be one supplied with Vito or Leblanc clarinets, so maybe a pretty good mouthpiece.
You're best removing all the keys and cleaning the body with strips of cotton cloth - the stockingette sold in Halfords is good for this. Cut a 2"-3" wide piece off the end and stretch it out to form a continuous band and strop the joints with it to remove the dirt and grime, then use a little bore oil and do the same to bring the wood up to a nice colour and shine.
You're best removing the springs to do this so you don't catch them and bend them acutely or break them when getting tight into the pillars. The pillars can be polished with 1" strips of silver cloth (stropping them with it in the same manner as you did with the joints) as can the keys to shine them up - silver plate will come back to a brilliant shine whereas nickel plate will clean up, but may remain dull grey.
Any stubborn spots of tarnish on silver plate can be removed with silver dip applied locally with a cotton bud, then polished up with a silver cloth. If you plan on using Duraglit or liquid silver polish, make sure you remove all traces and clean the key barrels out with pipe cleaners dipped in methylated spirits.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: Ursa
Date: 2014-07-22 17:50
If you can make out "The Woodwind Co." "Steel Ebonite" and "New York" on your G8 mouthpiece, it may be a real gem. Otherwise, it's more likely to be a dud.
Good luck with your 8-10--I hope it serves you well.
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Author: dlloyd1
Date: 2014-07-23 01:08
No, it doesn't say anything like that. The gap between the reed and beak tip is larger than on my 5RV, which will be interesting once I've properly sanitised it.
I tried it out earlier... it sounds really rich and mellow in comparison with my Regent II and is easier blowing than the Emperor I had for a short while.
It's an old clarinet and could do with an overhaul... There is a slight leak on one of the pads. Would the best option be to replace the lot with these: http://www.dawkes.co.uk/boosey+%26+hawkes+%281010%29+pad+set+-+deluxe+leather+nylon+pads+-+set.dm?catno=gps152
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Author: dlloyd1
Date: 2014-07-23 01:26
Is this something I can do myself? Or should I leave this to the pros?
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Author: Tony F
Date: 2014-07-23 01:29
I've had great results with kangaroo leather "Roo Pads" from MusicMedic.
Tony F.
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2014-07-23 01:47
If you're experienced at overhauling clarinets then it's worth doing yourself, but if not then have it done professionally by a well respected repairer if in doubt.
B&H used a lot of thick natural cork on the keys and linkages but there are better materials used for this now which are much harder wearing and don't compress as much as natural cork which can make things feel spongy.
I personally like to keep the amount of natural cork to a minimum on keywork in preference for better suited materials. But I still prefer natural cork on tenons over synthetic materials due to the properties it has.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: cyclopathic
Date: 2014-07-23 20:43
Tony F wrote:
> I've had great results with kangaroo leather "Roo Pads" from MusicMedic.
try kengaroo pads from InstrumetClinic.. they are better MusicMedic IMHO
Chris P wrote:
>I think so as leather pads are much harder wearing compared to skin pads,
> but fit a cork pad in the speaker key if you can.
+1 on cork on register key; less sticking
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Author: dlloyd1
Date: 2014-07-24 21:56
It's been packed up and is on its way to Dawkes tomorrow for a bit of a service.
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