 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: DAVE
Date: 2018-08-05 20:03
So my new job will have me playing outside in the freezing cold and I've been given some really nice gloves that will supposedly cover the holes and allow for the clarinet to work. Problem is, my fingers are rather large and I'm thinking to remove the sliver keys to aid in playing. I'll be playing slow hymns and can easily manage without them.
Many years ago I remember hearing that people would routinely remove the LH sliver key and plug the tone hole. So my question is: what's the best way to plug the holes and with what material?
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Author: Tony F
Date: 2018-08-05 20:46
A friend has done this using the small plastic cap from the end of the body of a cheap ball pen.
Tony F.
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Author: GBK
Date: 2018-08-05 20:46
Before removing the sliver key and plugging the hole, try wedging a thin piece cork (the same width as the sliver key) underneath it, to prevent it from accidentally being opened.
I do that for my R13 Eb (97xxx), but strangely not for my Selmer Series 9 Eb (from 1966), since the key spacing seems a bit wider apart.
...GBK
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2018-08-05 21:46
I just had someone here with a problem of accidentally hitting one of those. He didn't want to have the spring there, but was afraid to lose parts, so removing the spring, post and/or screw wasn't a good option.
I ended up plugging the tone hole with a cork plug (which is what I'd suggest regardless), but under the tone hole rim, and left the key in place. In addition I put a too thick bumper under the touchpiece, like a wedge, but glued so it can't fall off.
If like him you also want a backup plug, but the key touchpiece itself is bothering you by rubbing against your finger, not just worried about opening it by accident, you can plug and put tape over it too.
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2018-08-05 22:13
For plugging the holes you may also use ....if I get this right.....artist's gum (?). The gray stuff used to CLEANLY erase pencil from art sketches. It makes a perfect seal and leaves no residue.
...........Paul Aviles
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Author: Chris_C ★2017
Date: 2018-08-05 22:32
I have fairly broad fingers, so accidentally brushing the sliver keys (result: squeak) has always been a problem. I understand Artie Shaw always had the LH sliver key removed, so I reckoned "if it's good enough for Artie Shaw it's good enough for me". On my Bb I had the key removed (and it lives in the case in case I sell it) and plugged with cork and wax. On my alto and my Eb I just did the "cork under the key" as suggested above - works fine.
On learning it was semi-respectable to disable this key several of my clarinet-playing friends have done likewise - especially since it's so easy.
Chris
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2018-08-06 01:57
I've only removed the LH3 sliver key on my bass and basset horn as it's not a nice shape and I keep clipping it. I plugged up the toneholes with cork pads - one right inside the tonehole so it seals it and another to sit slightly proud of the tonehole bedplace crown to protect it from damage and coloured them in with a black permanent marker to make them less conspicuous.
I also removed the springs and pillars and screwed blanking pillars in (old pillars filed down flat and with a slot cut across them) to prevent anything getting into the pillar holes and kept the key and pillars in the case compartment if I do need to refit them.
On other clarinets I plugged the tonehole up by pushing a cork pad right into it, but then refitted the key so it won't matter if it gets nudged as the tonehole is completely sealed. I've done this for other players who don't use that key and don't want it to cause any grief if they do catch it by accident. Especially on Eb clarinets where finger space is at a premium.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: DAVE
Date: 2018-08-06 04:25
Thanks everybody for the suggestions. I think I'll first try GBK's suggestion. Seems the least invasive and easiest.
:)
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Author: ving
Date: 2022-11-06 22:47
Follow up to this, I have had this key plugged with cork on my horn since I bought it (already installed) can anyone let me know if this could potentially adversely effect the response of the adjacent note? Specifically wondering about upper register A (first line above the staff). I seem to have a slight node or split on this if and happened to wonder if the cork filling in the tone hole of the sliver key would be enough to cause this.
Post Edited (2022-11-06 22:48)
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Author: kdk
Date: 2022-11-07 18:05
I don't really know if a plug in the hole would cause any kind of disturbance in the standing wave for ![[A5]](http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/smileys/a5.gif) , but I can say absolutely that wedging a piece of cork under the *sliver key itself* to keep it from opening has no effect on the tone or response at all. The bore sees the closed tonehole with a pad covering it as completely normal (because it is) - the way the clarinet is designed. If you ever want to use the sliver key for a specific passage one day, it's much easier to poke the little cork shim out from under the key than it to remove the plug from the hole.
I don't know what you mean by a "slight node or split" or how you know there is a node forming at , but if you mean the note is unstable, you might have a small leak under one of the pads above A (including the ones operated by the RH on the other side). Or it could be a register vent issue - especially on an A clarinet. I guess the only practical way to find out if the plug is causing the instability is to remove it and see if there's a difference.
Karl
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Author: donald
Date: 2022-11-08 16:03
Plugging the hole of the left hand sliver key, if it is done skillfully so that the plug is flush with the clarinet bore, actually makes high A MORE stable, and also improves the "standard" altissimo F# fingering. One of the reasons that these two notes are unstable (not the only reason of course, but a big contributing factor) is that there are 3 holes in the bore in more or less the same place. It's the 3 holes in the same place that cause acoustic disturbance, and plugging up ONE of them helps noticeably.
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2022-11-08 16:09
If anything, ALL toneholes are creating a disturbance in the bore, so plugging one up completely is only going to reduce the amount of disturbances and chances are you're not even going to notice it anyway.
There are three Eb/Bb toneholes all at the same distance (give or take around 1mm in both distance and in diameter) along the length of the bore, so that's a considerable disturbance at that point. Plugging one of them up is not going to adversely affect anything and if your upper register A is grunty, that's probably more to do with the speaker tube than the Eb/Bb toneholes.
And remember - upper register A issues from the LH3 tonehole and not the LH2 tonehole chimney which is the tonehole where long Bb (xoo|xoo) issues from.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: super20dan
Date: 2022-11-08 16:35
why not just use a beater clarinet for this gig? why risk your main horn in this kind of weather?
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Author: Clarineat
Date: 2022-11-22 01:52
Would circular waterproof bandages work? Or some sort of other non-residue, non-porous tape, or would it give out in the cold?
Interesting. When I was in marching band playing outside in winter we just used fingerless gloves. It was a horrible experience all round!
Sean Perrin
Host of the Clarineat Podcast
Listen FREE at www.clarineat.com
hello@clarineat.com
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2022-11-22 19:04
Tape will only leave sticky residue that will need to be cleaned off, so don't use tape or plasters or anything with adhesive on it.
Just plug the tonehole with a cork pad and it's a simple job done. Easy to do, easy to undo and with no lasting harm done, no having to clean anything up nor having to do any unnecessary extra and costly work to do when it has to be reversed.
Simplicity is best. Simplicity is ALWAYS best.
Stop overcomplicating things.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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