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Woodwind Overhauls

It is said that after approx 15 years your instrument should porobably be overhauled. Even though it doesn't always have to be the case. If you have a decent older instrument & you intend to put it to good use, an overhaul may very well be more cost effective or in many cases better than buying a new instrument.

 

Overhauls are by nature a complete rebuild of the instrument & takes over where a playing condition service ends. 

 

Overhauls of woodwind instruments involve primary inspections & note taking of all details that are relevant & sometimes crucial to understanding how a particular instrument has been put together. 

 

Here are some of the operations involved during an overhaul:

 

  • A complete tear down of the instrument. 

  • All dent work &/or straightening work is carried out.

  • All pads & corks removed & cleaned of any adhesives. 

  • Posts are examined for alignment & fit.  

  • Springs are typically removed for replacement especially if they show signs of corrosion. 

  • All key work re-fitted as necessary or "swedged". This operation is lengthy & the object here is to make sure all the mechanism is as snug fitting as possible, often better than it may have been manufactured.  These are the the metal parts that get worn away over the years through normal usage. Once the key work is snug, the ends of the keys faced & polished making sure that snug does not mean binding. 

  • All tone holes are checked levelled & faced.  

  • The instrument is then de-limed, cleaned washed, rinsed & dried. Silver or nickel plated bodies & keys are buffed/polished back to new.

  • Once all the parts of the instrument are cleaned & or polished up, the process of measuring, & floating in the pads takes place as well as the application of all new silencing materials available  such as cork, felt, ultrasuede, hycotex etc are chosen for the best response or requests. All pads used are of the highest quality & or specific types of pads & resonators can be used upon request.

  • New springs are measured & installed

  • Pads are floated in & adjusted until they are sealing correctly

  • All keywork is recorked

  • All keywork is regulated

  • Play tested & checked for nuances that make all the difference between an instrument that plays fine to one that really is great to feel & play.

  • Instrument pads will then be seated & left to rest until being checked again the following day  & until the results strived for have been met as complete customer satisfaction is paramount.

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