Author: Chris P
Date: 2008-05-03 14:01
All pads will get wet to some degree, some pads in certain positions are more likely to get more water due to their relative tonehole positioning.
But pads don't attract water, water finds it's way into toneholes and this has nothing to do with the type of pad used or the condition of the pads.
Condensation is always going to be an issue with any wind instrument, and pads aren't to blame for it, and don't contribute to or exacerbate condensation problems. Condensation will affect pads, not the other way round.
I've heard people complain about cork pads, saying things like "but cork pads are meant to reduce water". Absolute nonsense. If water can find its way into a tonehole, it will do so regardless of the type of pad used, and the age and condition of the pad.
Sure, porous pads (which are usually punctured skin pads) will soak up water through the torn skin and into the felt, but this is only down to them being porous due to them being damaged.
Most pads in good condition (new or old) will inevitably get wet, but the water won't soak into them but will collect on the surface, though it will stain them (the staining comes from the wood). And they can usually be cleaned to look like new, though still function in the same way and be just as impervious to water as they always have been.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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