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Re: Selmer Repair Question

Author: Chris P
Date: 2014-09-24 19:26

The plating wear was exactly where I expected it to be - it's most likely due to having been buffed at the plating company as they often do, but that thins down the plating at the edges. As for the LH1 fingerplate, any polishing compound that wasn't removed during degreasing will cause the plating no to adhere to the perforation in the middle of the LH1 fingerplate and this is all too common - I see the same on oboe keys with holes through their centres too. But this can easily be rectified by having them replated and refitted.

The playing in time is critical on any brand new wooden instrument - start off at 30 mins maximum for the first week and increase the playing time by 5 minutes a day thereafter and always mop out the bore at any opportunity and dry the sockets with paper towel so no water remains sitting anywhere. If you have access to a plastic bass clarinet for band use, then use that one as well as your wooden low C bass for a limited time, then put your wooden one away and use the plastic one for the remainder until your wooden one is played in.

A new top joint will need to be played in like a new instrument, so take your time to get it acclimatised to avoid it cracking (which may or may not happen - it's the luck of the draw), but any preventative measures should be adhered to.

Cracks aren't the end of the world and they can usually be pinned or banded to stabilise the joint - when done well they shouldn't be visible under normal lighting conditions.

Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.

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