Reeds Rico Plasticover Reeds

[Woodpad]

Plasticover sounds much better than they taste.

Do they taste better with metal mouthpieces?

 

[birdtrane]

They go best with a nice Chianti.

 

[Woodpad]

It would take me a whole fiasco of Chianti.

 

[lydian]

Seriously though, plastics is tasteless. So the taste isn't coming from the plastic. It's coming from other chemicals used in the coating/curing process, my best guess is formaldehyde or something similar. Since it's clearly a chemical taste, it's not only unpleasant, but most likely unhealthy. It also literally interacts with your nervous system causing mild numbness. Is it going to kill you? Probably not. But of all the questionable things you could ingest, this is at least avoidable.

Even as an ignorant kid in the 70s, I recognized that whatever was coming from these reeds was not a good thing. I didn't play them for long. Since it's been over 50 years, and they still taste funny, I won't be playing them again.

 

[Woodpad]

Formaldehyde is too carcinogenic and reactive to use. It is probably a plasticizer necessary to keep the viscosity of the plastic low during plastification. There are around 50 different possibilities.

 

[Colin the Bear]

I tried a plasticover in the early eighties, primarily because I was told it would last longer. It didn't because I binned it.

When I adjust my reeds, the difference between an excellent reed and a poor one can be a small amount of dust or moisture.

A thick layer of plastic removes the possibility of any adjustment. Add to this the funky taste and the possibility of chemical toxicity and I really can't see the point.

 

[thomsax]

I like Plasticover reeds. Today I think it leans to V16. They last longer and I can work on a V16 reed. I play baritone reeds on tenor as as well. Same reed on tenor and baritone is practical. The cutting Plasticover on tenor is a little bit too much.

 

[Ballymenaboy]

I tried them for a time but found them to be quite loud with not a great warmth of tone.