Saxophones Pork Tales: Saxophone Repair DIY Adventures.

Life around the barn.

Tales from a pig that likes to stick his nose into everything.

Paint that S. How difficult could it be ?

1) Search the net.
2) Find the color.
3) Order color.
4) Study task on University of YouTube, aka; For destruction by DYI presented by pro tech.

Do the cleaning & prep.

Paint and cleanup / detail the edges with hard cotton swabs. Sounds easy……

Yeah tha guy Matt makes it look easy.
Anyone remember your first experience cooking bacon crispy while still in the frying pan !

 

[PigSquealer]

I think I've seen it on-line with Fastenal and maybe McCarr.

McMaster Carr will call is :20 from here. About $8-$9 / 100. The local hardware store has them at $4 for 8 and same distance from here.

On restoration work I try to duplicate the hardware.
Besides there’s a math problem with the socket screws. How deep is the socket ?
.125 - .075, net .050 head height.

The mandrel is where most of the time went. Once that was made the process goes quickly.
Is threaded internally. There’s a shoulder cut on the exterior. Stick a screw down the inside run it in with a screwdriver. Stick the mandrel back in the chuck to the shoulder make two cuts.

 

[Ghr9204]

I think I found a source for the souvenir piglets when a repair cost exceeds the threshold:

Could be a hit if the saxist has a young daughter or granddaughter to treat. 😉

 

[PigSquealer]

Have a hole punch like this ?

No matter how hard you squeeze it doesn’t cut cleanly?
Your anvil probably looks like this.

The cardboard wrapper from a razor blade doubled up is a good fix.

 

[PigSquealer]

Servicing a Conn micro tuner.
I wanted a tool that fit well to unscrew the ring. I don’t have a mill. Tool needs to be precision made. I don’t care for a fork type.

 

[LostCircuits]

Servicing a Conn micro tuner.
I wanted a tool that fit well to unscrew the ring. I don’t have a mill. Tool needs to be precision made. I don’t care for a fork type.
View attachment 29421
View attachment 29422View attachment 29423

Take one letter of your post and change it to get the first word of the thread title. Hint, it's not file => pile.

 

[PigSquealer]

From hand shaping to lathe. I faced off the radius in small increments. All done turning the chuck by hand.

The forks by hand too. I used the cutting bit like a carving tool. In & out, right to left. Chipping away until very close. The last cuts by hand using a jeweler’s file.

 

[PigSquealer]

Remember to remove the set screw.

On reinstalling don’t count on the index mark being exact.

A little more hand fitting and this should last a long time.

 

[Ghr9204]

Nice job of cloning a special tool to coax that threaded ring off and on. I probably would have seen if I could use one of my putty knives to move that sucker.

By the way, I noticed that your banner has the words, "Connoisseur of applesauce". I guess by finishing this repair, now you'll be able to garner more apple sauce?

 

[Ghr9204]

And it appears that the Swiss are looking for new markets to garner some of that applesauce? 😉

 

[PigSquealer]

Nice job of cloning a special tool to coax that threaded ring off and on. I probably would have seen if I could use one of my putty knives to move that sucker.

By the way, I noticed that your banner has the words, "Connoisseur of applesauce". I guess by finishing this repair, now you'll be able to garner more apple sauce?

I had a nice cool unfiltered apple cider thank you !

Putty knife ?? Dunno how that would work ? The tool was also long enough to shield my hand from the jagged edge. That too will be repaired.

 

[Ghr9204]

I had a nice cool unfiltered apple cider thank you !

I had no idea, honestly. I vaguely remember now almost 40 years ago, there used to be an apple orchard where for a small fee, one could pick apples to take home, in one of California mountain villages. I took my wife up there, can't even remember the well known place. She enjoyed it.

Putty knife ?? Dunno how that would work ? The tool was also long enough to shield my hand from the jagged edge. That too will be repaired.

If I were sitting there in your shop to see exactly what you were up against, would have commented differently. This is one of the problems of solutions by Internet. Photos don't have the look and feel of handling something. It is like selecting mouthpieces based on reader comments.

 

[PigSquealer]

I had no idea, honestly. I vaguely remember now almost 40 years ago, there used to be an apple orchard where for a small fee, one could pick apples to take home, in one of California mountain villages. I took my wife up there, can't even remember the well known place. She enjoyed it.

If I were sitting there in your shop to see exactly what you were up against, would have commented differently. This is one of the problems of solutions by Internet. Photos don't have the look and feel of handling something. It is like selecting mouthpieces based on reader comments.

Almost anything is available year round in the Los Angeles area. Apple season local depending on variety is September/October. There’s Twenty orchards within a two hour drive like you describe. 20lbs at Costco is affordable and close by. Pigs love apples and corn😉
The Micro Tuner on Conn product is common in my environment. My bad. I just assumed everyone knew what I was working on. You are mechanically inclined and have a diverse ability. Yeah, a flat blade / putty knife makes sense until you see the whole assembly

 

[PigSquealer]

Where does all the time go? Well it’s all the little things that nobody ever sees.
Like a month ago this sax came in. I’ve soaked everything with Kroil & PB for weeks. Still this roller didn’t come off. Heat-soak (& submerged ) repeated for another week. Total time was probably an hour +.
Was that worth saving the part ? IMHO yes. It takes more than a hour to order / source a new roller and make a new hinge rod.

 

[PigSquealer]

Pad work is the easy part of restoration. Just heat the cup. Pull the pad out. Then wipe the cup clean

After 102 years the goo no longer melts.

Gentle heat and scraped out with a sharpened chopstick.

Not easily coming off.

Gently heat the cup and soak with alcohol. (Do have good fire safety precautions in place). Wood doesn’t melt. A good helper to hold the cup level to soak :10

 

[PigSquealer]

Only 22 more to go…

Next step. Burnish the inside of each cup….another 22 to go.

 

[PigSquealer]

Start to finish this was six hours on just the inside of cups.

Time to degrease / clean out the barrels and send to the spa.

 

[Ghr9204]

That is quite a bit of work, @PigSquealer . Given the amount of work required, it looks like the work has exceeded a threshold where customer may be deserved a souvenir piglet, no? 😉

I gather the extra cleanliness is necessary to provide a clean metallic surface for modern adhesives to adhere to and remain adhered to for a long time.

It appears that any moisture or oil left in the old shellac that made it pliable and respond to heat had already departed and started to crystalise. Any older and it may fossilise? You basically became an archeologist by removing the pad, glue and corrosion without harming the specimen.

It sort of reminds me of cleaning and restoring 70 year old model aircraft engines. Plus, The Castor oil residue from the lubricant in methanol based fuel no longer responds to softening in heat, requiring considerable patience and alternate methods to clean.

At least it is not a historic renovation project like in buildings. There, one may have to leave one pad in its crystalised holder to remind them that is the way it was done 100 years ago, along with the tarnish to remind folk that it is historic (BTDT).

 

[PigSquealer]

I gather the extra cleanliness is necessary to provide a clean metallic surface for modern adhesives to adhere to and remain adhered to for a long time.

It appears that any moisture or oil left in the old shellac that made it pliable and respond to heat had already departed and started to crystalise.

This goo sometimes reacts to natural de-waxed shellac. I’ve had reactions like a volcano where it spit the pad back out of cup. The corrosion was like chalk. Not the best surface for bonding. Also look at the rim of each cup. These were die cut circles and then formed ? The metal edges are not real clean cut. They needed to be hand cleaned / burnished. This is gold plated. Any harsh chemicals with the pitted surfaces could blow off the gold in flakes.

 

[PigSquealer]

Gently polished by hand.

Seven parts done. Time for a good playlist.

 

[PigSquealer]

Took a few minutes longer than usual. I’ve never had an Aristocrat on my bench.