Mouthpieces mouthpiece modification

[Jules]

Have any of you folks ever got mouthpieces worked on (Il Padrino- I know you've had your V16 supercharged). A few queries for anyone who knows about this mysterious art-
Firstly- who would you recommend to do it?
Secondly- I'd always assumed you could widen but not narrow a 'piece. I've recently read on saxontheweb about a guy having his tip size reduced (oo er! ), Is this possible? :x
Third- the piece in question is bronze, would this be especially problematic?
I love my Berg Larsen's tone but it's feelling a bit too macho tip wise, and it's always been a prima donna when it comes to reeds.... I wonder if corrective surgery might be the way forward?

 

[Tenor Sax]

nachoman wrote:
I love my Berg Larsen's tone but it's feelling a bit too macho tip wise, and it's always been a prima donna when it comes to reeds.... I wonder if corrective surgery might be the way forward?

NO Don't say that, I have my next pay packet focused on the BL based on my tests last Friday. Your starting to make me twitch again. :erm: :S :erm: :S 😱

 

[Linky Lee]

to make the tip opening smaller you'd have to redo the whole piece including the table and lay etc. as you can't add to a mouthpiece.

What you could do is get it worked on to increase the lay length which would make it play as if it had a smaller tip opening, but doesn't still allowing you that increased flexibility. Having the rails worked on should help it out with reed accommodation too.

The only thing is, I don't know of the limitations with bronze. Maybe you can work on it enough, I'm not sure. It would need a re-lacquer afterwards too. Bound to be more expensive than ebonite.

 

[Pete Thomas]

Bronze is OK (better than steel anyway).

I recommend heartily Ed Pillinger (Google search will find) and Bill Wrathall (at Michael White in Ealing).

Closing a tip is not too difficult I believe.

 

[jonf]

Hi Jules

Bronze is a good metal to work on - my dad, who's an engineer with a lot of experience in the metals field reckons it's pretty much the ideal material for stuff like mouthpieces, as it's hard enough to be durable, but not so hard it's a pain to work on like stainless steel, and it doesn't corrode like brass.

If it turns out to be too difficult to close up the tip, you could always consider buying a bronze berg wih a narrower opening, and have it opened out. As it happens, I have one here, too narrow for me and looking for a new owner........

Someone buying it would also take way a rather worrying temptation - I'm having dark thoughts about chopping the end off it and making it into a C Mel screamer.

 

[Jules]

It's not the grained ebonite one- that's great- it's my bronze one i use on rock & roll gigs... sweet and Ben Webster-ish through to a sam butera growl that can cut through any ropey monitoring I'm suffering...

Chris Jones wrote:

nachoman wrote:
I love my Berg Larsen's tone but it's feelling a bit too macho tip wise, and it's always been a prima donna when it comes to reeds.... I wonder if corrective surgery might be the way forward?

NO Don't say that, I have my next pay packet focused on the BL based on my tests last Friday. Your starting to make me twitch again. :erm: :S :erm: :S 😱

 

[Bobby G]

Jules, Jules, why don't you buy a new mouthpiece, it must be a while now...

 

[griff136]

I would agree with Pete.

Ed's mouthpieces are great.

Ive heard some good reports about Anton Weinberg - he's at Dawkes.

 

[Jules]

Bobby G wrote:
Jules, Jules, why don't you buy a new mouthpiece, it must be a while now...

GET THEE BEHIND ME, OH SPIRIT OF TEMPTATION!!!

 

[Tenor Sax]

nachoman wrote:

Bobby G wrote:
Jules, Jules, why don't you buy a new mouthpiece, it must be a while now...

GET THEE BEHIND ME, OH SPIRIT OF TEMPTATION!!!

Bobbys right. The cost of a Bronze modification must come close to the price of buying a new mouth piece.