 The Oboe BBoard
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Author: DrewSorensenMusic
Date: 2013-03-12 15:33
Hello Everyone,
So a consistent problem I am having is my tied on reeds, once I scrape and clip the tip, flare apart instead of staying closed together. It happens very consistently, on 95% of my reeds. Would you consider this a gouge problem? Or is it my tying? My tubes are 46mm and in general I stop wrapping between 45mm to 46mm. I am now experimenting with using plumbers tape wrapped around the reed to close it, but I would like to find the solution that stops the cane from spreading apart in the first place.
I purchase shaped cane.
Thanks
Drew S.
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Author: ptarmiganfeather
Date: 2013-03-12 17:54
Hi Drew. I am no expert at all but noticed that my reeds were doing the exact same thing. I also noticed that the warped part would go away after soaking. So I started tying on with a little bit less tension. Not too loose, but that helped. Have you tried that? You can take an already made reed off, first wrapping the scraped part with some plumbers tape to keep the blades in place and then re-tying with less tension on the thread towards the top of the reed and making it tighter towards the cork end.
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Author: JRC
Date: 2013-03-12 19:55
I mostly use bought reeds. Some of them do that when dried. Once soaked, they go back to the shape we are all used to. It does not seem to affect the performance of the reeds. I am no longer bothered by it.
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Author: DrewSorensenMusic
Date: 2013-03-12 20:49
Just to be clear, the problem is slightly reduced by soaking, but the blades still flare. It is a chronic and frustrating problem.
I will try adjusting my tie on tension.
Drew S.
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Author: Wes
Date: 2013-03-13 05:14
Try closing them with a paper clip, leaving it on overnight.
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Author: jhoyla
Date: 2013-03-13 09:03
If the flare is only a couple of millimeters at the tip I wouldn't worry overmuch. The paperclip trick should sort this out for you. However if the flare begins significantly further down you may have more of a problem.
Here are a couple of things to check. Obvious things first.
If you put your gouged cane shiny-side down on a flat surface, does it arch up in the middle? If you buy it gouged, I would recommend returning cane that looks like this to the seller.
What shape do you use? If the shape you use has a broad base and then parallel sides it can contribute to flare. If you use a shape that broadens continuously from binding to tip it is more likely to seal all the way to the top.
How sharp is your knife? If you are pressing down on the cane while scraping due to a blunt knife you can encourage a flare like this.
Make sure you maintain a thicker "spine" down the center of the reed, as you scrape. This helps maintain the integrity of the reed structure. If the reed is too hard to play because of this, compensate at the tip by scraping the corners and sides thinner, in the back by scraping in the channels, in the blend either by making the "roof" shape steeper or by extending the blend - a fraction at a time - back into the heart causing a shallower incline.
Hope this helps,
J.
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Author: oboi
Date: 2013-03-13 09:07
Welcome to my world. I mentioned my reed flaring problem in some older thread. I've alleviated the problem by tying on longer and tying on WAY looser than I thought I had to. I'm also pinching them a bit on the tip after tie-on but before I clip the tip. Less leaks now.
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Author: DrewSorensenMusic
Date: 2013-03-13 10:46
Very good advice here.
I agree, I was scraping the spine too much. I just adjusted my scrape to focus more outwardly, and the problem was lessened. I will continue with this style.
I will sharpen my knives, find some paperclips, and vary my tie on tension.
I purchase shaped cane currently, so I have no way to check the gouged cane beforehand. I have been varying my shape between Brannon X, Ruth, and Samson +3. Shape does not seem to have an effect on the problem, they all seem to be afflicted.
Drew S.
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Author: heckelmaniac
Date: 2013-03-14 21:00
When you have finished tying the cane on to the tube, looking at the blank with a intense back lighting, make sure the the top of the thread is nearly exactly even with the very end of the metal tube. I like to see about .3mm - .5 mm of the metal tube.
In my experience, more of less that this amount will invariably cause difficulties with the blades of the reed splaying open.
Oboes.us
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Author: mschmidt
Date: 2013-03-16 09:54
I used to have lots of this problem until I switched to Guercio d12 staples. They are more closed at the tip, giving more of an inward slope where the cane is tied on to the staple.
Mike
Still an Amateur, but not really middle-aged anymore
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