 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: knotty
Date: 2015-11-16 20:39
What I've been doing is laying the mpc table down on a flat surface ie: sheet of 1/4" plate glass. Take a narrow tip (1/4") feeler gauge and keep adding gauges until it just takes up the space between the glass and mpc very tip.
Have any other possibly better ways?
~ Musical Progress: None ~
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Author: kdk ★2017
Date: 2015-11-16 21:17
There are gauges made for the purpose. The most popular ones are longish tapered rods that you gently slide into the opening between the mouthpiece tip and a piece of plate glass until the taper stops. Then you read the thickness of the taper at the top of the glass. More or less what you do but with a more continuous increment. I also have one that uses a dial gauge with a probe that projects up through a piece of plate glass. You put the mouthpiece tip against the probe and push it downward so that the mouthpiece table lies flat on the glass and read the opening on the dial.
These dedicated gauges aren't all that precise or accurate, but the same gauge used to measure different mouthpieces will at least give you reliable measurements and differences among mouthpieces. But my two taper gauges and one dial gauge may not read exactly the same opening for the same mouthpiece, and they may not exactly match the measurements given by the maker for a particular facing measured with his gauge.
Taper gauges are available inexpensively at Music Medic, Ferree's Tools, probably several of the online instrument suppliers (like WW&BW, Weiner, Muncy, etc.). My dial gauge, which I don't find especially reliable, was sold years ago by Eric Brand. One like it may be available at one of the repair tool outlets, but the taper is probably safer for the mouthpiece tip, cheaper than a good dial gauge tool, and at least as reliable.
Karl
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Author: knotty
Date: 2015-11-16 22:27
Thanks for the info Karl. I do have a taper gauge but it's calibrated in inches, 1/16" etc. But like you said I just want to see the differences between mpc's. so I can use that and note where each mpc measures compared to a known mpc. I have several Starrett dial gauges and depth gauges, perhaps I can make a jig to measure mpc's.
When I was getting clarinets for repair practice, they came with sometimes two, three mpc's so I have at least two dozen mpc's of various mfg. Luckily there were some fair ones like B45, B46, 5RV, M13, Hite's, Selmer's, and more.
Thanks!
~ Musical Progress: None ~
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Author: kdk ★2017
Date: 2015-11-17 01:46
Commercial mouthpiece tip openings are given in either thousandths of an inch or hundredths of a millimeter (.039" is about 1.00 mm or .040" equals about 1.02 mm). But for a rough comparison you can notice or physically mark the spot on the gauge no matter what the units are.
Make sure you have the glass against the facing so that the edge or some specific line is aligned with the tip rail.
Karl
Post Edited (2015-11-17 01:47)
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Author: knotty
Date: 2015-11-17 07:25
I want to play with a dial indicator also for seeing if I can tell any differences in reeds for instance from side to side to see if there's any variation.
Thanks Karl.
~ Musical Progress: None ~
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2015-11-17 10:24
You can take any inch measurement and simply multiply by 25.4 to get a mm measurement.
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Author: Wes
Date: 2015-11-17 11:23
This may not be as accurate or convenient, but it is what I do as I rarely need to make opening measurements. I have a small wedge of grenadilla wood with scratched and white-filled markings. Inserting the wedge between the glass and the mouthpiece tip, I note which scratch meets the tip. Then I measure the wedge at that point with a vernier caliper. While I've refaced a lot of mouthpieces, I do not do it for a business, although I studied it some with the late Glen Johnston.
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Author: Bob Bernardo
Date: 2015-11-17 11:35
The old ones were called Erik Brand. They, the glass were thicker than the present ones. I like those better.
Then Babbitt company bought them out several years ago. Babbitt sells a complete set, the very accurate ground glass with feeler gauges and the tip gauge, all in mm. Actually the feeler gauges are in inches. If you bend one or misplace a feeler gauge, go to an auto store and buy a package there for $4 or $5. You will save a lot of money. Babbitt sends about 5 gauges. The auto store sells you about 30 or so for the same price.
GROUND glass is very important. What it is is a piece of glass that may not be truly flat, although it looks flat, so they actually use a grinder and make it flat within about the thickness of 10 times thinner than a human hair. So it's wicked flat! You can't go to a hardware store and buy a piece of glass. It won't be grounded glass.
Also a good auto store will have sandpaper, wet/dry paper. The color of the paper is black. Buy the fine sandpaper. 1200, 1500, and 2000 grit. Use these to open up the tips.
Babbitt - (574) 293- 6514 Ask for Jim Green. Tell him Bob sends you. He will either hang up on you, triple the price, or give you valuable attention! Seriously, we've been friends since the early 1980's. Buy the kit. It's worth it, although I've made my own tooling through the years, such as diamond facing machines and special tip measurement tooling. His tooling is about the best place to get you started. I started with the Erik Brand setup before Babbitt bought it. I do have a spare set of Babbitt glass.
If you don't want the complete set just buy the tip gauge and the glass. Then buy the rest at an auto store. The tip gauge is not cheap. It's actually the most expensive part of this package.
Jim is a good guy, He's been with Babbitt for many years.
B
Designer of - Vintage 1940 Cicero Mouthpieces and the La Vecchia mouthpieces
Yamaha Artist 2015
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Author: knotty
Date: 2015-11-17 20:06
Thanks Wes, Bob, as a hobbyist, I like to see what makes things tick. Interesting info Bob, I put it in my "clarinet" folder. I have the ultra fine wet or dry sandpapers I use when finish polishing writing pen wooden barrels.
~ Musical Progress: None ~
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