Tech/maintenance SHWoodwind Updates

[saxyjt]

There's all sorts of cultures...

Zen?

Looks like the Zen garden's concept applied to bacteriological cultures! 😎

Although it looks nice, I won't show it to my son as I already discovered some worrying bacteriological stuff in his room that I qualified as "weapons of mass destructions", so I don't want him to feel encouraged. 😱

 

[h4yn0nnym0u5e]

Although it looks nice, I won't show it to my son as I already discovered some worrying bacteriological stuff in his room that I qualified as "weapons of mass destructions", so I don't want him to feel encouraged. 😱

Be careful what you "tidy up" though:

Kryten: I've done a spot of tidying up.
Lister: But where is everything? Where's me coffee cup with the mould in it?
Kryten: I threw it away, sir.
Lister: But I was breeding that mould! His name was Albert! I was trying to get him two foot high!
Kryten: Why, sir?
Lister: Because it drives Rimmer nuts! And driving Rimmer nuts is what keeps me going

(Red Dwarf, Series 2, "Kryten")

 

[Stephen Howard]

On the Benchlife blog today - Broken bari brings bad bun briefing.

A rolling blog of everyday life on and around the workbench

 

[Jazzaferri]

and actuarialy asymptotic alliteration

 

[Targa]

and actuarialy asymptotic alliteration

appropriately applied always amuses anyone

 

[sdt99]

For the amusement of Americans on the forum you could have written "Disappointment as elderly baker retires and her delicious buns are no longer for sale".

 

[gladsaxisme]

@Stephen Howard
I've just been reading your blog about the three times repaired YTS 275 where you mention C being off to the side of the pads due to Yamaha not getting the length of the arm or the angle quite right,does this mean that on the tenor the Bb and B are central on the pad but the C is out.
I ask because I have noticed on my YAS 62 all the bell keys are off to the side and had put this down to the bell having sustained a knock in the past and was considering on the next service to have this corrected and new pads fitted, but now you have me thinking that this might not be as easy a fix as I thought, is this correct, you're thoughts would be much appreciated.
I would be very willing to send you some of our delectable northern Vanilla slices for you to sample but am not sure how they would stand up to the travelling

 

[Stephen Howard]

On that horn the B and Bb pads were off centre too - from front to back.
I would have said this indicates some previous damage to the bell - which, after repair, wasn't properly realigned. However, all the bell key pads were original factory pads...with their original seat marks, so it's highly likely this was how the horn was buillt.

If the pads are off centre in the side-to-side plane it's usually just a simple case of bending the key arms appropriately.
Much depends on how far 'out' the pads are. The C on that tenor was an extreme example - but the B/Bb keys had plenty of space left on the pad to accomodate an off centre seat without it going too near the edge of the pad or the edge of the reflector.

Northern custard slices sound very nice, but I'm willing to bet they travel even less well in the post than a horn does.
That said, I'd still eat 'em.

 

[Jeanette]

Northern custard slices sound very nice, but I'm willing to bet they travel even less well in the post than a horn does.
That said, I'd still eat 'em.

Perhaps we can tempt you up north then?

Jx

 

[Stephen Howard]

New on the Benchlife Blog - I get all hi-tech on a tablet.

A rolling blog of everyday life on and around the workbench

 

[Stephen Howard]

Today's update on the Benchlif Blog - Ten years on - the 'vintage' Ultra-Cheap alto.

A rolling blog of everyday life on and around the workbench

 

[Stephen Howard]

Latest Benchlife Blog update - Giving it a rest.

A rolling blog of everyday life on and around the workbench

 

[Ivan]

Latest Benchlife Blog update - Giving it a rest.

A rolling blog of everyday life on and around the workbench

In your forthcoming review of the Borgani will you comment on the odd-looking, and presumbably idiosyncratic, hex-nut-rod-screw pointing at the beautifully turned thumbrest?

 

[Stephen Howard]

I certainly will.

It's not an entirely uncommon feature - you'll often see it on King horns, and such nuts are still used on Eppelshiem's horns (Tubax etc.).
It's a lock nut, fitted to a shoulderless point screw as a means of securing the screw in position. Back in the day it was a reasonable solution - and certainly a more reliable one than Conn's dreadful grub screws - but these days you'd either use a nylon insert or a drop of threadlock.

 

[Nick Wyver]

Talking of thumb rests...
One of the reasons (there are a few) why I prefer to play my Yanag B900 rather than the Conn 12M Crossbar (1936) is the dreadful, designed to bruise your thumb, rest on the Conn. Folk must have had less namby pamby thumbs in the 30s.

 

[rhysonsax]

Talking of thumb rests...
One of the reasons (there are a few) why I prefer to play my Yanag B900 rather than the Conn 12M Crossbar (1936) is the dreadful, designed to bruise your thumb, rest on the Conn. Folk must have had less namby pamby thumbs in the 30s.

Steve Crowe did various modifications on my 12M, including constructing a front F and also replacing the thumb pearl with a Selmer-style black plastic disc that is much more comfortable. He has pictures on this webpage of a similar thumbrest modification (not mine): Projects | Steve Crow

The pearl was nearly as excruciating as the RH thumb ring on my Conn soprano - that seems to have been designed as a torture device.

But the sound of both Conn bari and soprano are wonderful (with someone decent attached at the small end).

Rhys

 

[Jazzaferri]

Talking of thumb rests...
One of the reasons (there are a few) why I prefer to play my Yanag B900 rather than the Conn 12M Crossbar (1936) is the dreadful, designed to bruise your thumb, rest on the Conn. Folk must have had less namby pamby thumbs in the 30s.

SUGRU to the rescue

 

[Stephen Howard]

Today's Benchlife Blog entry - The notch job.

A rolling blog of everyday life on and around the workbench

 

[davidk]

Today's Benchlife Blog entry - The notch job.

A rolling blog of everyday life on and around the workbench

Yes, always plastic sling hooks for me. No point in causing unnecessary wear to the instrument. I once heard someone say that metal hooks make the saxophone sound different than plastic hooks. I disagree with this, although I think that if someone believes it should make a difference, they'll either perceive a difference or play it differently.

 

[Stephen Howard]

There was a big kerfuffle about this in 'the other place' a few years ago - someone claimed a metal hook improved the tone.
There are many scientific and mechanical reason why this won't happen - but plain old commonsense should tell you that if such a small thing can have a noticeable impact on the tone, surely placing ten sweaty digits on a horn would have a dramatic impact. All that mass? All that dampening? It'd be a wonder that you got anything out of the horn at all by the time you hit low Bb.

As usual I did some tests, and what I found was that there's just half a fraction of a chance that metal hook on a taut thin strap could act like one of those 'magic bean can telephones' - and you'd get some sound transmission up the sling to the base of your neck.
So, no change in tone...but you might just hear things fractionally different.