It's happened to all of us: you get to the gig and suddenly
the horn that played great at the afternoon sound check doesn't
work, and it's thirty minutes until showtime! What are you going
to do? Now you begin to understand that the old saying " an
ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" has a lot of
truth to it! Here are a few things you can do which will help
keep your horn playing its best and avoid those nasty surprises
at important gigs!
First, take a look at your case with the horn inside. Does it
fit tightly? I mean REALLY tightly! If your horn moves around when
it's in the case, you are asking for trouble! If there's any
movement, add some foam rubber to the case to secure the horn, or
better yet, get a case that fits properly. There are lots of great
cases on the market today, and I am particularly fond of the Walt
Johnson and Pro Tec brands. Be sure that you are using an end plug
to protect the octave mechanism and secure the horn. It amazes me
how many people fail to replace a lost end plug (they're cheap!)
and later suffer serious damage to the octave key. Be sure that
your neck is placed in a padded bag to prevent dents and bending
of the mechanism. An unpadded bag is asking for a trip to the
repair shop. Your horn should ALWAYS be in key clamps when it's in
the case: even if the case holds the body of the horn tightly, the
mechanism must be prevented from moving if you want to have a
prayer of it retaining alignment. I simply don't understand people
who don't use key clamps!
Be sure that your instrument is well lubricated and that the
tone holes are free from corrosion. Sticking keys and pads can
result in more serious problems down the road and are quite easy
to avoid. Clean your pads regularly with Charlie A's Crud Patches
and treat dried out pads (feel them to see if they're dry and
hard) with Runyon Pad Dope, Neatsfoot Oil, or Steve's Voodoo Pad
Juice. Apply Charlie A's Gig Dust (the stuff is amazing!)
regularly to prevent sticking. This is the only product I've found
which really works. On a regular basis, remove the corrosion which
develops on your tone holes by cutting a strip of crocus cloth
about one inch wide and six inches long, and inserting it with the
abrasive side (usually red) toward the tone hole and the smooth
side (usually blue) toward the pad between the closed pad and tone
hole and drawing it out. All of that nasty green stuff you see on
the crocus cloth is oxidation which has developed and causes
sticking. Once a month, you should lubricate the entire mechanism
with a pin oiler, applying one drop of oil to each and every spot
where a key contacts a post or another key. Don't forget to also
apply a drop to the head of all screws! Your repair tech will
thanks you for this next time your horn is in the shop! I use a
pin oiler (available from Ferree Tool) and a high detergent
automatic transmission fluid for key oiling. The detergent in the
transmission fluid helps rinse out gunky build up in the
mechanism. Give all of the springs a light coat of oil, and apply
a drop to the cradle which holds the point of all needle springs.
This will help quiet down the mechanism. Clean the tenon of the
neck with 0000 steel wool, and do the same on the neck receiver.
If your neck is hard to insert due to corrosion, you may bend the
neck when you put your horn together. It's not a bad idea to put a
light coat of oil on the interior of the neck receiver.
I keep some emergency supplies in my gig bag at all times: a
leak light; small and large screwdrivers; a spring hook; a roll of
electrical tape; extra key felts and bumpers; a tube of glue for
replacing felts (I use Permatex Automotive Weatherstrip Adhesive,
there's nothing better under the sun); a stick of shellac for
reinstalling pads; needle nose pliers; flat faced parallel pliers;
some key bumper material in assorted thicknesses (I don't use cork
for key bumpers, it crumbles and compresses); fine sandpaper for
adjusting key bumpers; single edge razor blades; a small butane
torch; teflon plumbers tape (much better than paper for shimming
up compressed neck corks); a pad slick and fluffing tool; and
rubber bands in various lengths. The leak light that I take with
me to gigs is a cable light I bought for around $15 at Home Depot.
I rolls up and requires no transformer. It's not bright enough for
shop use, but it has enabled me to find trouble spots on many a
gig! Don't forget to keep an extra ligature in your case. The
screws seem to strip regularly, and I've had more than one break
on me at inappropriate times.
You can get just about all of these items in a kit (along with
assorted pads, springs, and other essential supplies) from my
friends at www.musicmedic.com.
The kit comes with just about everything you will need to do basic
maintenance and deal with emergencies. Another great source of
tools and repair supplies is the Ed Myers Company www.edmyersoftx.com.
The tools from Ed Myers are really of superior quality to anything
else I have found on the market.
The tenon is a source of constant trouble on saxophones. Get
out your digital caliper and measure yours at many different
points. It's not round, is it? Insert the tenon in the neck
receiver of the horn and rotate the neck with a light pressure.
Feel any high spots? The tenon must be round, and it must contact
the receiver evenly or it will leak. There are two primary methods
of expanding (or rounding) your neck: the traditional screw type
expander and the "can opener" tool, both available from
Ferree Tool and other supply houses. I use both in my neck work,
and can only advise you to go slowly and take repeated
measurements. If you need to expand the neck, the first expansion
should be in the middle of the tenon, the next near the top, and
the final one at the bottom. If the neck is badly out of round,
you may need to use a rounding die to bring it back into shape. I
have a set of rounding dies which I obtained from the Ed Myers
Company (800-228-9188) which are far superior to anything else I
have ever seen. Once you have the neck expanded to the point where
it fits snugly (not tightly) and is in even contact, you should
carefully lap the surface that contacts the receiver to be sure of
a perfectly smooth fit. I use Ultra Smooth brand lapping compound,
but you can get pretty good results using tooth paste. Insert the
neck into the receiver with a very small amount of lapping
compound (or toothpaste) and rotate it slowly. Take it out, wipe
it off with a clean cloth, and repeat. Keep doing this until you
feel no high spots. A light touch is essential. You'll be amazed
at how much better your horn plays after this process.
You can get just about all of these items in a kit (along with
assorted pads, springs, and other essential supplies) from my
friends at www.musicmedic.com. The kit comes with just about
everything you will need to do basic maintenance and deal with
emergencies. Another great source of tools and repair supplies is
the Ed Myers Company www.edmyersoftx.com. The tools from Ed Myers
are really of superior quality to anything else I have found on
the market.
Follow the old Boy Scout motto and Be Prepared! Let me know if
I can help you or answer any questions.
