Toothpaste Valve Lapping

[Just_Another_Hack]

Member is upset.
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Professional lower-split 3rd clarinet player.

[dstpt]

[dstpt]

duplicate post

[dstpt]

As I previously indicated, I've lapped valves and slides with toothpaste as well as with light lapping compound (2000 grit) and always with success. This was prior to the new brass tech at the H&H Music Store about 3 minutes from my house. He has a compression gauge, and I've watched him test some horns of mine after having him install Saturn water keys. I might take a couple of these other horns that I've lapped to him to test. At home tests of moving slides and "popping" the valves has seemed the same before and after, though, and I haven't noticed any change in the blow, so I don't know that his device will show much degraded compression. The main thing to me is playability and function, of course, so if my colleagues (who've played some of these horns) and I don't notice a change, then I don't think toothpaste is that severe, but you have to clean thoroughly, which can be a hassle.

I use a Swab-Its swab (for rifles) to go down the bell and through the connection tube from 1st to 2nd valve, and then down the lower 3rd slide to reach between the connection tube between 3rd and 2nd valves.

SWAB-ITS .22cal/5.56mm Pull-Thru Gun Cleaning Bore-Whips Pull Through Cleaning Swabs

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00SK4F2CY/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The title of the product says "Pull Through," but I push it through, so that only the swab end is touching the valve casing, when it reaches it. Also, I cut some inches off the end of each "whip" to make it more manageable; I don't need the full length...just enough to reach from end of bell flare to 1st/2nd valve connection tube. (Someone please tell me the most common term for the "connection tube.") I sometimes use these for swabbing leadpipes at the end of the day, but they usually can't get past the water key, like Tim Wendt's swab. which is excellent.

[kehaulani]

Guys, I just got my horn back from the shop and the 1st and 3rd valve slides hang. I have a hard time initially moving them. I called the shop and the person I talked with suggested a good cleaning in case maybe some old slide grease was accumulated at the closure point of the slide.

Well, I've done that to no avail. I don't want too send the horn back because the round trip shipping costs seem out of proportion to what needs doing. Do you think rubbing them with toothpaste would help? Thanks.
_________________
"If you don't live it, it won't come out of your horn." Bird

Yamaha 8310Z Bobby Shew trumpet
Benge 3X Trumpet
Benge 3X Cornet
Adams F-1 Flghn

[dstpt]

[JayKosta]

[kehaulani]

What do you mean by "Legs", Jay? "Slides"
_________________
"If you don't live it, it won't come out of your horn." Bird

Yamaha 8310Z Bobby Shew trumpet
Benge 3X Trumpet
Benge 3X Cornet
Adams F-1 Flghn

[etc-etc]

[etc-etc]

[kehaulani]

Thank you, folks. I'm getting it taken care of.
_________________
"If you don't live it, it won't come out of your horn." Bird

Yamaha 8310Z Bobby Shew trumpet
Benge 3X Trumpet
Benge 3X Cornet
Adams F-1 Flghn

[trickg]

[trickg]

[Riojazz]

I was intrigued enough the first time I read about using toothpaste that I wouldn't hesitate to try it gently if other normal methods failed. But I wouldn't know about the specific abrasiveness of brands of toothpastes. This link was given earlier in the thread:

• Toothpastes have a very broad range of abrasiveness. Here's a link to a fairly current chart ranking abrasiveness by RDA (Relative Dentin Abrasion) Value
— https://tinyurl.com/zhvych5z

But my browser is blocking that link! Would someone mind copying the text and placing it in a post here, so I (and likely others) can see it?

Thanks.

EDIT: Never mind, if it's this, I found it:

https://www.williamsonperio.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/Toothpaste-Abrasiveness-Ranked-by-RDA.pdf
_________________
Matt Finley https://mattfinley.bandcamp.com/releases
Kanstul 1525 flugel with French taper, Shires Bb Destino Med & C trumpets, Schilke XA1 cornet, Schagerl rotary, Schilke P5-4 picc, Yamaha soprano sax, Powell flute. Sanborn GR66MS & Touvron-D.

[trickg]

Toothpastes do have a broad range of abrasiveness, but again, people brush their teeth with these products every single day, and they scrub longer and harder than anything we're going to do with our valves and valve casings, which are equivalent in hardness to tooth enamel.

Looking up QUANTUM Fresh toothpaste, it's advertised as being an equivalent to Crest, but employing my strong Google-fu I've been able to determine that is advertised as "gentle stain removal" - for whatever that means.

Either way, doing this once or twice over the lifetime of a horn is not going to be detrimental to it in any way - it will give things a good cleaning, much like we get when we brush our teeth daily, but will fall far short of removing enough material to be harmful.
_________________
Patrick Gleason
- Jupiter 1600i, ACB 3C, Warburton 4SVW/Titmus RT2
- Brasspire Unicorn C
- ACB Doubler

"95% of the average 'weekend warrior's' problems will be solved by an additional 30 minutes of insightful practice." - PLP

[JayKosta]

[trickg]

[JayKosta]

Here's picture of my Tissot with the Acutron bracelet. Watch was a birthday gift to me back in the mid-60's.
Watch is manual wind, time only

http://users.hancock.net/jkosta/Jays_Tissot_small.jpg
_________________
Most Important Note ? - the next one !
KNOW (see) what the next note is BEFORE you have to play it.
PLAY the next note 'on time' and 'in rhythm'.
Oh ya, watch the conductor - they set what is 'on time'.

[Divitt Trumpets]

[LittleRusty]