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Leather pads for older clarinets

3/29/2018

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For a few years now, I've been using tan, kidskin pads almost exclusively on my older horns. Folks ask why, from time to time, so I thought I'd take a moment and answer some of the implicit questions:

 I find that they last longer than bladder and can be oiled occasionally, further extending their useful life. As an experiment, I once oiled pads that had been in an early R-13 for 40 years and, after softening and adjustment, the instrument played fairly well! 

 I find that they take a better impression from aging toneholes. Slight warp-age, small nicks, uneven wear, can all be forgiven by a leather pad, which will take a better seat than the harder double skin felt pads in common use in modern horns. This often saves me having to reface a  tonehole made slightly uneven from wear or abuse, which is my preference when possible: the Hippocratic Law for clarinets being "First do no harm".

 I find that they give closed keys a feeling more consistent with bare fingers on open holes (especially on Albert/ simple system horns) versus hard felt. I am often distracted by the difference in feel between my fingers and hard felt or cork pads; its somewhat uneven.

 Finally, I find that the tan kidskin shows less wear and discoloration than white bladder, keeping the horn looking fresh longer.

 I hope that players and other techs will consider these pads and their advantages next time they undertake the overhaul of a vintage instrument of quality!

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    The Licorice Shtick Blog is the creation of the Vintage Clarinet Doctor, a Winston Salem, NC based woodwind instrument repair shop specializing in vintage and antique clarinets, saxophones, and the occasional flute.

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  • Home
    • About Us
    • Clarinet Donations
    • Why Vintage Clarinets?
  • Before and After
  • Contact Us
  • Learn
    • Blog
    • Clarinet Lengths
    • Clarinet Makers
    • Fingering Systems
    • Links
  • Shop
    • Clarinets >
      • Vintage Boosey and Hawkes 2-20 Bb Boehm Clarinet
      • Vintage Siour Chapelain Bb Boehm Clarinet
      • Vintage Conn 446N Bb Boehm Clarinet
      • Vintage Leblanc. Noblet Bb Boehm Clarinet
      • Vintage Leblanc Normandy Special Bb Boehm Clarinet
      • Vintage Paris Selmer A LP Boehm Clarinet
      • Vintage Selmer Model 55 Bb Boehm Clarinet
      • Vintage Thibouville Freres Bb Boehm Clarinet
    • Flutes
    • Mouthpieces
    • Saxophones >
      • Vintage P. Gerard Beaugnier Stencil Eb Alto Saxophone
      • Vintage Kohlert Eb Alto Saxophone
      • Vintage Martin Handcraft Alto Saxophone
  • Services
    • FAQ
    • Performance
    • Services II - Technical Info
  • Testimonials