Bad low B

[Linky Lee]

I want to hijack this thread here a little.

I've had my Walstein tenor for a year now and have noticed that the bottom B and Bb has gone out of regulation. that is I can see a visual gap between the pad and tone hole.

I'm all up for doing minor repairs myself, so how do I go about adjusting the regulation here? any words of wisdom before I give it a go?

Edit:
Had a good look over and a small fiddle. Got the Bb working fine and improved the B but it's still leaky, can't quite get it right. I've also noticed leaks on the low C and the Bis Key, along with a few corks missing and some looking as if they're about to fall off/break etc.

I think I'm just going to pop it in for a check-up somewhere and maybe put my alto in as well.

 

[jools]

-another development.
My Yamaha was displaying this 'cardboard' low B (and Bflat!) until I changed the mouthpiece for my 'other' one, and got some new reeds (half strength stronger)! - it's still 'duller' but at least now it's not 'dead'. So many factors involved...

 

[Bobby G]

I think I will be adopting Stephen's extreme diagnosis test, starting of course at the less extreme end (fag-papers top to bottom, then maybe the fairy liquid test). The regulation screws all seem to be ok, keeping pads down when they should be etc. I can't really see it being the mouthpiece as I've been playing on the same one almost exclusively for some months, even going back to a couple of my tried and trusted old reeds to see if that made any difference, which it didn't.

I can only think I have an as-yet undetected leak in an unexpected place.

 

[Bobby G]

Right, the fag-paper test has revealed the following peculiarity; everything is fine down to the low C, which seems to be behaving in a markedly odd manner. Using Stephen's idea of checking 'north, south, east and west' I have found that north (where the connecting rod joins the cup) and south feel very similar when withdrawing the fag-paper with the cup closed, but both east and west have noticeably less resistance when pulling the fag-paper out, and both are about the same. Sounds almost like something may be a bit bent, although the tone-hole itself seems level. Even though this north/south and east/west difference isn't that great (and the C seems to sound ok), the main problem - and it's only really an intermittent one depending on how I'm blowing and my embouchure - is still with that darned low B.

Also, everything below the low C seems to be fine.

 

[griff136]

Bobby, to confirm this pad is the problem, wedge a cork inbetween the low C and the keyguard and have a blow - if it's fine then you will probably want to change that pad.

 

[mfox]

i would guess you have knocked the c pad at some point.. putting on a stand or just a slight knock