Author: jhoyla
Date: 2009-10-27 09:49
Nice diatribe, Mike :-)
I clip one blade fractionally shorter than the other, but only because it lets me clip twice as many times. The difference in length is probably less than a hair's breadth.
The way you clip one edge longer than the other has nothing to do with the type of knife you use, but with how you set the reed on the block. If you raise the staple a fraction it pushes the upper blade forward, so the vertical clip will make this blade a tiny bit shorter. As I am "Clipping back to C, then refining the tip" I will flip the reed over each time, and so clip only one blade of the reed (the longer one, each time). IMHO cutting down at any angle other than 90 degrees to the block is a safety hazard, to be attempted only when wearing thick leather gloves.
And yes - I play my reeds both sides and it makes next to no difference to my playing, although arguably this could be because my playing has not reached the rarefied heights of refinement necessary to be able to tell the difference ... :-)
J.
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