I recently had to repair a student's horn, and I had no neoprene to use. I was looking around and found a different kind of a cork from a Vendange wine bottle. The cork is not natural cork, but more like a softer neoprene. I cut it and installed it, and it works well.
You guys should see some of the junk that the schools in my area are still using! The horns are totally worn out, valves totally shot, very large dents. Unfortunately, this situation will not change anytime soon. I have had opportunity to talk to some of the band directors about how poor their horns are, some of these guys just don't have the money in their budgets to buy any decent horns. But they will shell out for the dreaded mellophone for marching band (sorry, I don't want to get another thread started about those rotten things)
A hearty welcome to my student, Cecilia Kozlowski!
Walt Lewis
At 11:31 AM 1/19/04 -0500, you wrote:
In a message dated 1/18/2004 8:50:39 PM Eastern Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes:
> You should replace them with neoprene. Go to an industrial supply shop and > buy neoprene that is the correct size and then you don't have to trim them > once you install them. O-rings are readily available in > the correct size > and can be cut to length easily.
I agree with this advice. It is a good idea to take the holder with you when you shop. The easiest way to get the rubber into the holder is to stretch a length of it until it's thin enough to fit the holder. If that doesn't work, it may be too hard. There are lots of grades. Once it's in the holder, trim it top and bottom with a razor blade.
For an emergency, I've used silicone sealer, available most anywhere. Put the holder on a piece of wax paper, or at least a flat surface, and squeeze an oversize dab into the holder and let it harden. Trim it with a razor blade to align the valve.
In a really desperate emergency, I tore a quarter inch strip off a dollar bill, rolled it up, and fitted enough of it in to do the job. That was a couple of years ago. I should probably do it right one of these days.
A dollar with a quarter inch strip missing is still worth six bits.
_______________________________________________
post: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
set your options at http://music.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/welewis%40myexcel.com
--- Incoming mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.562 / Virus Database: 354 - Release Date: 1/16/04
--- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.562 / Virus Database: 354 - Release Date: 1/16/04
_______________________________________________ post: [EMAIL PROTECTED] set your options at http://music.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/archive%40jab.org
