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I have been repairing instruments for 31 years, the last 21 as an independent repairman. I do brass and woodwind repairs including soldering, dents removal, replacing corks, pads, tenons and receivers on clarinets and oboes, and other parts, and polishing on flutes, clarinets, piccolos and oboes.
Flute repair includes all new corks and bladder type flute pads, remove dents from the flute body, foot joint and the flute head joint, polishing of the flute body and keys. No pitting will be removed, no plating will be done. Springs are replaced on an as needed basis unless otherwise requested. After polishing, the flute is assembled and the keys are leveled, The head joint is adjusted to fit the body and the lower tenon joint is adjusted for proper fit of the foot joint. The pads are seated and completely adjusted. A new head cork is installed. The flute is then oiled and play tested. The cost for this is $95.00. The cost and procedure for restoring a piccolo are the same as for flute. This is a flute in the process of restoration. The polishing is done. The new pads and corks are in and clamps are put on to develope a seat in the new pads prior to adjustment.
This involves the replacement all key corks, pads, and all tenon corks. I use double skin clarinet pads, other types can be used on request. The clarinet keys are removed from the body and cleaned. New corks and clarinet pads are then put on the keys and the clarinet is reassembled. I then level the keys seat the pads, and completely adjust the clarinet, oil the keys and play test the clarinet. The cost is $85.00 If desired I can also polish the keys and posts For an additional charge of $10.00.
For Sale -- Holton single French horn serial number 357479. Probably built in 1962. The dents have been removed from the bell flare to the little finger hook. Some minor dents remain beyond the finger hook and in the leadpipe. It has new valve corks and the strings are good. Included is an Eb tuning slide, a Marcinkiewicz mouthpiece and a molded case. Asking $350.00
Find french horn playing tips.
The flute is a non-transposing instrument, meaning it sounds the note that is written for it. It is designed to play an A-440 with the head joint pulled about 1/8th of an inch from the pushed in all the way position. This allows the tuning to be raised if it is necessary for the player to play slightly sharp. If the instrument plays flat with the head pushed all the way in, or if it still plays sharp with the head pulled out more than 1/4 inch, the problem lies with embouchure formation, not with the flute. If the head is pulled more than 3/8 inch to bring the instrument into proper pitch, the intonation will suffer and it will be very difficult to play the instrument in tune with itself.
The head cork is there to close up the end of the head joint and is not a tuning adjustment. The position of the head cork is critical to tuning properly and must be set exactly 17mm from the center of the embouchure hole. This can be checked with the cleaning rod. The cleaning rod has a line in the end opposite from the end that has a slot in it to hold a rag. The line goes all the way around the rod. Some of the plastic cleaning rods also have a dot near the line. The dot is not to be used for checking the head cork, it is just part of the process used to make the rod. The line should be in the center of the embouchure hole when the rod is palced inside the head joint with the end of the rod up against the head cork. The head cork can be moved if necessary to make this adjustment. Turning the cap tighter will move the cork farther from the embouchure hole. To move the cork closer to the embouchure hole, loosen the cap and push it in. The cork must fit tightly for it to be air tight. A loose headcork will leak and the flute will not play properly. It must be replaced by a repair technician.
Step 1. Oiling Bore. Wooden instruments such as clarinets are known to crack, even though the clarinets are made of hard wood. Being sure to dry the clarinet after each time you play will help avoid cracking. Specialists also recommend oiling of the bore of a wood instrument with special oil for bores. Oil any new instruments once a week for 3 months. This can be reduced to 5 or 6 times a year after the instrument is a year old. This needs to be done with care so that no oil is left on the pads, that would dry out and harden the clarinet pads and they would then no longer would cover the holes without leaking. One could use a commercial oiler or a swab for this oiling. Oil the swab lightly, so that it is damp but not saturated. Swab can be drawn through some of the parts of the instrument once or twice so as to coat the inside lightly. As a rule the outside of the instrument is not oiled. However, when temperature and humidity extremes are common, they may be allowed a small light coat of oil occasionally.
Step 2. Dusting Clarinet. Dust collects under the key mechanism over time, when the instrument has been in use for awhile. Use a small soft brush to remove dust.
Step 3. Oiling Mechanism. The mechanism should be oiled regularly, 4 or 5 times a year, to remain in the proper playing condition. Special key oil may be obtained for this purpose. Put a drop of oil on the end of a toothpick. The drop of oil should be put at each pivot point of each key. Be sure to do this very carefully so that the oil does not get on the clarinet pads.
Step 4. Key Shining. Use a clean soft cloth to wipe the keys regularly to remove dirt or moisture. Silver polish should not be used on the keys. If the keys are dull, they then would need to be polished by an instrument repair technician who will remove the keys from the instrument to polish them.. Keys are never polished while on they are still on the instrument. Use of silver polish while the keys are on the instrument will gum the pivot pionts and cause sluggish key action. If it gets on the pads, it can damage pads causing them to leak. This sould not be attempted by the average player.
Step 5. Bent Keys. If a key becomes bent, do not try yourself to straighten the keys at least not on the instrument. Even with the best type of care, keys get bent sometimes. Trying to straighten them on the instrument will put excessive strain on the keys and posts and may damage them even more. Keys should only be removed from the instrument by an experienced repair technician, who has the proper tools to straighten and align them. Bent keys cause unevenness in technique since some keys will stick or become out of alignment, and then the fingers will not fall on them correctly.
Is my clarinet resonite or wood? Read more.
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Thank you for visiting Whispering Winds Repair. Doing quality flute, clarinet, oboe, piccolo and tenon restoration.