Tech/maintenance Grease the neck tenon?

[Dr G]

Cleaning the tenon and receiver does not require a tech. Just rub a scrap of cloth on each surface to remove buildup.

<sigh>

 

[PiccoloPirate]

If you need to put grease or whatever on the neck or sax, it might be out of round.
Have a tech make it right. 🎯

Have never put any lubricant on those parts of a Sax.
Surprised Yamaha advised to do that.

 

[MikeMorrell]

I have no knowledge of corks or grease. I use cork grease every now and then. But I still really have to screw my mpc to the utmost onto my cork to play in tune. I recently discussed this with my 'sax repairer' and she suggested that it would be no problem if I 'very lightly' sanded down my cork to give my 'tuning' a bit more flexibility.

FWIW, I sometimes watch 'The Repair Shop' on BBC 1. I note that 'Suzie' (a leather restorer) often begins her restorations by 'moisturizing' dried out leather. It occurs to me that since cork is a natural substance too, perhaps it too needs to be 'moisturized' from time to time.

Corrections/Comments welcome!

Mike

 

[Targa]

I have no knowledge of corks or grease. I use cork grease every now and then. But I still really have to screw my mpc to the utmost onto my cork to play in tune. I recently discussed this with my 'sax repairer' and she suggested that it would be no problem if I 'very lightly' sanded down my cork to give my 'tuning' a bit more flexibility.

FWIW, I sometimes watch 'The Repair Shop' on BBC 1. I note that 'Suzie' (a leather restorer) often begins her restorations by 'moisturizing' dried out leather. It occurs to me that since cork is a natural substance too, perhaps it too needs to be 'moisturized' from time to time.

Corrections/Comments welcome!

Mike

Steaming the cork to 'tighten' a mouthpiece does it no harm, so maybe does it some good as well.

 

[ghostler]

Have never put any lubricant on those parts of a Sax.
Surprised Yamaha advised to do that.

Others recommend it too.

Cork Grease for Saxophone 🎷 FAQs answered by an Expert

Should you use cork grease for Saxphone? Are there any substitutes for it? And how would you apply it? We answer different FAQs related to saxophone cork grease

bandtuning.com

Can You Put Cork Grease on the Neck of the Saxophone?​

If you have trouble fitting the neck into the body, an easy fix is to put cork grease on the receiver end of the neck where it connects to the body.

In contrast to the cork, you only have to use it a little bit. This will keep it working well for a long time.

It is also mentioned here:

The saxophone maintenance

The basics of saxophone maintenance: learn how to keep your instrument in good check! Syos explains the essentials of sax maintenance.

syos.co

The neck​

... Do not hesitate to grease the other end of the neck if you have trouble placing it on the body of the saxophone.

I think a bit of common sense is in order. If it is a touch stiff to insert into the receiver, use a mild touch of cork grease. If stiff even after a smidgeon of grease then have a tech fix it.

I don't seek a tech for every single nit picking issue. They cost good money for a good reason and have their place. This even goes for CO with A optional.

Early on I've done non-destructive cleaning and oiling of my saxes. With pipe cleaners, swab tips, rags, cloth in a gun cleaning rod end, and etc. and a mild cleaner. I just am careful around springs, felts and bumper corks to not disturb them. Restores a sax looking dirty to clean.

 

[Jeanette]

@jbtsax recommendation here
Tech/maintenance - Sticky Neck

 

[Vlad]

I just wipe a bit of spit on the neck tenon before assembling

 

[DeSaxo]

+1. With all the mentions of leaks when I started out on sax, i thought I would avoid a leak at the neck joint by applying saliva to it. I do not know if it makes any difference but I still do it years later.

 

[ghostler]

@jbtsax recommendation here
Tech/maintenance - Sticky Neck

An old trick I was taught is to rub your finger along the outside of your nose to pick up a small amount of "facial oil" and apply that to the neck tenon. You can also do this with the RH little finger on those rare occasions you need to slide between Eb and C on the clarinet.

An interesting concept although I haven't tried it. I suppose if one's skin is really oily they can rub the neck cork all over their nose 👃 to get by when lacking cork grease.

I just wipe a bit of spit on the neck tenon before assembling

I don't use saliva 🏥 to lubricate the neck tenon, but at times when out of cork grease or I forgot (took my tube from that case and put in another for use - recently bought a half dozen stash from Amazon so all cases now have it and tossed out the old / empties), I've inserted the neck cork into my mouth and wetted it with my lips. That made it slippery enough that the mouthpiece slid on easily without tearing up the cork, got me by in a rehearsal.

But, times and advice changes. Searching further I found this newer Yamaha saxophone instruction booklet:

http://www.playintimeadvantage.com/instrument_care/instrument_care_saxophone.pdf

This is a later edition. It is missing the cover page, so I could not find a date copyrighted or printed, but was more recent as it now cites a Yamaha Internet URL on the accessories page. Here is a screen capture from Page 3:

It goes to show that opinions in companies and knowledgeable sources can vary. Bottom line is that your sax is your "baby" and unless borrowed or rented, you are free to care for it as you see fit. No one can force you to do it their way.

If you abuse your sax or purchase an abused one, a reasonable tech will repair it for you restoring it's playability, but the additional work work to fix it will cost you. It's your time, it's your play, it's your money.

Thus, a bit of common sense goes a long way.

 

[Dr G]

An interesting concept although I haven't tried it. I suppose if one's skin is really oily they can rub the neck cork all over their nose 👃 to get by when lacking cork grease.

I don't use saliva 🏥 to lubricate the neck tenon, but at times when out of cork grease or I forgot (took my tube from that case and put in another for use - recently bought a half dozen stash from Amazon so all cases now have it and tossed out the old / empties), I've inserted the neck cork into my mouth and wetted it with my lips. That made it slippery enough that the mouthpiece slid on easily without tearing up the cork, got me by in a rehearsal.

But, times and advice changes. Searching further I found this newer Yamaha saxophone instruction booklet:

http://www.playintimeadvantage.com/instrument_care/instrument_care_saxophone.pdf

This is a later edition. It is missing the cover page, so I could not find a date copyrighted or printed, but was more recent as it now cites a Yamaha Internet URL on the accessories page. Here is a screen capture from Page 3:

View attachment 30838

It goes to show that opinions in companies and knowledgeable sources can vary. Bottom line is that your sax is your "baby" and unless borrowed or rented, you are free to care for it as you see fit. No one can force you to do it their way.

If you abuse your sax or purchase an abused one, a reasonable tech will repair it for you restoring it's playability, but the additional work work to fix it will cost you. It's your time, it's your play, it's your money.

Thus, a bit of common sense goes a long way.

Good to see that you have one foot firmly on either side of the fence.

 

[MikeMorrell]

@jbtsax recommendation here
Tech/maintenance - Sticky Neck

Thanks for this!

Very OT: I'm currently re-reading the novel 'Cloud Cuckoo Land' by Anthony Doerr. A (for me 🙂) complex but enjoyable novel that continually skips between different 'protagonists' and storylines widely separated by many centuries (past and future). The 'future' protagonist (Konstance) finds herself in an interstellar spaceship community, fleeing a future dystopian earth towards a distant earth-like planet. Their guide on this journey is 'Sybil', an unimaginably sophisticated 'AI entity' who is also the repository of all human history and learning up until the point of departure.

As far as the cafe is concerned, you sometimes remind me of 'Sybil'😉!

 

[thomsax]

I just polish/clean the neck joint with a strip of coarse linen fabric.

 

[Vlad]

As far as the cafe is concerned, you sometimes remind me of 'Sybil'😉!

I immediately then think of Fawlty Towers

 

[Dr G]

I have no knowledge of corks or grease. I use cork grease every now and then. But I still really have to screw my mpc to the utmost onto my cork to play in tune. I recently discussed this with my 'sax repairer' and she suggested that it would be no problem if I 'very lightly' sanded down my cork to give my 'tuning' a bit more flexibility.

FWIW, I sometimes watch 'The Repair Shop' on BBC 1. I note that 'Suzie' (a leather restorer) often begins her restorations by 'moisturizing' dried out leather. It occurs to me that since cork is a natural substance too, perhaps it too needs to be 'moisturized' from time to time.

Corrections/Comments welcome!

Mike

This thread was originally about the joint at the neck tenon - the end of the neck opposite the cork.

That aside, if you have to apply excessive force to put your mouthpiece in the correct position, it is appropriate to sand the cork. The find shape should approximate a cylinder rather than a cone, such that it is not increasingly difficult to move the mouthpiece as you move it along the length of the cork.

Protect the neck finish by applying tape before sanding the cork.