Tech/maintenance SHWoodwind Updates

[PigSquealer]

This unit has amazing craftsmanship from hopefully a bygone era.

That’s white glue

Scotch tape

I find it impressive that the previous tech actually got it to play. The regulation wasn’t bad. Considering only five pads sealed.

 

[PigSquealer]

Trick question of the day. How much glue do you put on a back bar?

 

[Stephen Howard]

It's review time - and in this update I take a look at a couple of 'Boutweaqed' horns.

First up is the Nexus Select.

Nexus Select tenor saxophone review

A workbench review of the Nexus Select tenor sax

www.shwoodwind.co.uk

And then there's the Remy.

Remy tenor saxophone review

A workbench review of the Remy tenor saxophone

www.shwoodwind.co.uk

 

[Stephen Howard]

I am also interested have you seen the new Rampone Performance?

No, not yet. If and when one comes in I'd be keen to run up a review on it.

 

[thomsax]

When I bought/buy "swish" oversized reflectors the guy who is making them is very clear about the there should be minimum 5 mm between the I.D. of the tone hole and the reflector. I can't see if the there is 5 mm?

The are some reasons why a key cup/pad can be out of position. Knocks, bad or no QC .... or just that the key did'n't fit when they installed the key. Here is a sample of a palm key on an uc PRC tenor. My guess is that the palm keys was not made in the house. To change reflector is an easy operation.

 

[turf3]

At least with a palm key and misaligned tone hole to pad cup you've got a chance of being able to bend it back to correct alignment. My old Mexi-Conn tenor had a stack key with its arm a good 3-5 mm too long. You could look at it and see that the cup was not up against the step in the arm. The only cure would be to cut the arm, remove a few mm, and silver-solder it back together. Considering the size of the parts, the fixturing challenges and the chance of getting the thing silver-soldered together wrong, and the market value of the horn (close to $0.00), I just made the tone hole into a slight D shape by bending the rim of it, to give a wee bit of clearance between the edge of the cup and the tone hole. It worked. Sometimes you have to put yourself in the place of the guy with two wrecked Spitfires made to different specs that needs one flying plane (I used this example out of deference to our British colleagues - the American example is the DC2 1/2).

CNAC's Famous DC-2 1/2

 

[PigSquealer]

More Dark Arts….
No cork, no problem. Just add a glob of silicone sealer.

 

[mizmar]

I get so many useful DIY tips, here

 

[greenstripe]

More Dark Arts….
No cork, no problem. Just add a glob of silicone sealer.
View attachment 26398
View attachment 26399

Interesting. Any problems relating to the acid formed while curing?

 

[PigSquealer]

Interesting. Any problems relating to the acid formed while curing?

No. The horn cleaned up nicely. Fwiw the position didn’t need anything. That’s upper stack C key with backbar.

 

[Stephen Howard]

A new review just posted on the site - TJ's new (2024) Evo alto sax.
I think this horn might cause a few ripples in the marketplace...

TJ Evo II (2024) alto saxophone review

A workbench review of the TJ Evo II (2024) alto saxophone

www.shwoodwind.co.uk

 

[wakyct]

Always enjoy reading your reviews Stephen, I feel like you have a good ear for mixing technical info and 'what does that mean' for the average player.

 

[greenstripe]

So my question is how does this compare to the SR and Signature Custom ranges? It seems likely to render the former somewhat obsolete

 

[mizmar]

So my question is how does this compare to the SR and Signature Custom ranges? It seems likely to render the former somewhat obsolete

Sax.co report it'll replace most the intermediate range.

View: https://youtu.be/8qEsr7M8MTA

 

[Stephen Howard]

Always enjoy reading your reviews Stephen, I feel like you have a good ear for mixing technical info and 'what does that mean' for the average player.

Thank you. It's something I try to achieve...not always successfully 😀

 

[Stephen Howard]

So my question is how does this compare to the SR and Signature Custom ranges? It seems likely to render the former somewhat obsolete

That's a tricky one. I think it somewhat treads on the SR's toes - but the RAW series is an entirely different beast
But then again the SR is/was closer to the RAW than the Evo is.
My personal feeling is that the Evo sort of stands on its own merits.
But hey, you know I'm all about the build quality; it scores well on that front so it really boils down to your budget...and whether you actually like the horn.

 

[SaxBoss]

What's the tone like?
For example, compared to a current model Yamaha YAS-62 ?

 

[Stephen Howard]

What's the tone like?
For example, compared to a current model Yamaha YAS-62 ?

Very much darker.
I compared it with my Purple Logo 62 and it's chalk and cheese. But that said, while the Evo doesn't have the cut and brilliance of the 62, neither does the 62 have the depth of tone. The comparision will stand (to a very slightly lesser degree) to the current 62 models.
It's odd because it stands on its own merits; it doesn't have the stuffiness typically associated with warm altos but neither does it have the brashness of a cheap horn.
You will only know for sure if you try one. Might suit you, might not.

 

[Stephen Howard]

Another update on the ol' site - and this time it's a review of something a little bit unusual.
It's a modern Chinese C Melody. This one's sold by Thomann, but it's available under a variety of brand names.

It sort of did OK. Sort of...

Thomann CMS-600S C Melody saxophone review

A workbench review of the Thomann CMS-600S C Melody saxophone

www.shwoodwind.co.uk

 

[PigSquealer]

View attachment 28308
Another update on the ol' site - and this time it's a review of something a little bit unusual.
It's a modern Chinese C Melody. This one's sold by Thomann, but it's available under a variety of brand names.

It sort of did OK. Sort of...

Thomann CMS-600S C Melody saxophone review

A workbench review of the Thomann CMS-600S C Melody saxophone

www.shwoodwind.co.uk

Thanks for sharing the review. I’ve yet to have my hands on one of these. Is the keywork actually brass and not pot metal ?