Breaking in new valves: few places where the piston is shiny

[abundrefo]

Hello,

I just got (yesterday) a brand new, out of the box, flugelhorn with bauerfeind valves. I know the drill about how to break in valves, and specially with bauerfeind valves I've been keeping it really clean. I wiped the valves and valve casing yesterday, applied a lot of oil before, while I was playing and after I finished.

The oil the factory supplied was Hetman 1.

Today I repeated this procedure but I noticed a few places where the piston is getting shiny. I'm not sure if this is normal, even after one day of breaking the valves in, or if Hetman 1 if too thin...or if there is any other reason for that.

Here a picture.


Thank you!

[Andy Del]

Too much thinking, not enough playing. Just follow the wiping and lubricating routine and do more practice. All valves look like that... eventually

cheers

Andy
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so many horns, so few good notes...

[abundrefo]

[TrumpetMD]

[bagmangood]

[shofarguy]

Those lines are from tiny imperfections in the casing or piston wear surfaces touching each other as they stroke up and down. They show that those surfaces are "mating in." It's supposed to look like that.

It also is why you shouldn't twirl the pistons in their cases. This will booger up the mating and introduce wear that shouldn't be there. This is also why precision made valves need a break-in period. The clearances are tight and no machinist (human or machine) can produce a perfect set of parts, so mating happens post assembly.

I know, I know! What about automotive pistons? They don't need break-in periods like they did in the past. Why can't trumpet manufacturers produce the same precision??? Because you all think a $150.00 Olds Ambassador is just as good as a $3600.00 Wild Thing! Imagine the cost per horn, if the factory invested in the level of technology needed to produce automotive-level results. No one would ever sell a new trumpet!
_________________
Brian A. Douglas

Flip Oakes Wild Thing Bb Trumpet in copper
Flip Oakes Wild Thing Flugelhorn in copper


There is one reason that I practice: to be ready at the downbeat when the final trumpet sounds.

[trumpetmandan]

As others have said, those lines are totally normal, and are just a sign that your valves are breaking in.

[abundrefo]

Thanks for all the answers you guys sent me.

I've had new horns before (including my Xeno 8335IIS) but I was specifically concerned about the way Bauerfeind valves would/should behave.

[bagmangood]

[Brad361]

[VetPsychWars]

When your horn gets to be fifty years old, the entire piston will be shiny until you get it refit, and then it's not shiny any more.

Tom
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1950 Buescher Lightweight 400 Trumpet
1949 Buescher 400 Trumpet
1939 Buescher 400 Cornet
GR65M, GR65 Cor #1

[yourbrass]

You also might consider Hetman #2 as an experiment. If the pistons don't slow down, that would be a better barrier between piston and casing. If they do slow down, no harm done as it's easy to swab out the oil.
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Edwards X-13
ACB MV3C /ACB A1/26 backbore
https://yourbrass.com/

[abundrefo]

[lipshurt]

automotive pistons are WAAAAAAAY looser than a trumpet piston. That is why they have compression rings. A trumpet piston like that is ground to size with a grinding wheel as the piston spins. Then the casing is honed to fit the piston. The last stage is lapping, and that continues into the break in period after the lapping compound is cleaned out.

A nickel plated piston is plated to bigger than spec, and then honed down to spec leaving a very straight nice surface. Really smooth and hard. That is why some think nickel valves are still the best. The most time consuming, and argueably more prone to human error i guess. Any way, a valve block is way more more precision that anything on a car except maybe a high pressure injection pump.
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Mouthpiece Maker
vintage Trumpet design enthusiast
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