piston valve woes

[JayW]

Well, if you bought the horn second hand, or even if it was a floor model you may want to have it cleaned really good. First things first, inspect the valves to make sure there does not seem to be excessive wear, if not then you should check out the following. As much as I like Hetmans products (I use nothing else) I do know that some people seem to have issues with them.....so I have heard. Do becareful however using the light slide oil as I have found that it can creep its way down the slide and into the valves...which will definitely cause sluggish valves.
I suggest a good cleaning, and then trying perhaps the regular slide grease for time being to see if that was perhaps the culprit. OR you may want to give a shot to another valve oil/slide grease combo.
In either case I do not think it is anything worth freaking out about. Best of luck

[Henry Gertcher]

I have always had trouble getting my fingers around on the large bore MW2155's. For me the valve set is too big. Try to make sure that you are pushing the valve up and down instead of at a slight angle. Believe me when I changed from rotary valves to pistons I had this problem for a long time. I found holding the horn in playing position and fingering through my scales helped. Try looking at your self in a mirror or at least watch your fingers. After a short time this problem should resolve itself. However, if you are pushing the valves vertically and you are still getting this problem, have the horn looked at. You could start by taking back to where you got it from. If it was used the previous owner might have a trick that worked for them. If it was a store they should be able to tell you what the problem is. One thing though, don't let this stop your playing. Oh yeah, good luck.

Henry Gertcher

[Jonathan Fowler]

Are you within striking distance to Dillon's?

Matt told me "stuff" about my, and other I assume, 2155...something about bad valves on certain serial numbers and shearing of valve guides.
I'm not sure what he did to mine but he probably remembers. They tend to be finicky.


When I read the title of the thread I actually assumed you owned a 2155 before actually reading the post...

You are not alone.

[Tom]

They seem to have lost their initial quickness, and are feeling quite sluggish. I have been using Hetmans light piston oil on the valves, light slide oil on the top facing slides and hetmans grease on the down facing ones. I have cleaned them thoroughly and frequently.

First, if it's a new horn, the valves need to be broken in. This process can take a while depending on how often you play. During the break in period it is very important to keep your valves very clean and very well oiled.

Second, don't use Hetman's Light. I've found the oil to be too light for the big, heavy MW "big valves." I'd suggest using regular Hetman's Piston or perhaps the even heavier Hetman's Classic.

Third, I'd quit using light slide oil. It probably is running down into your valve section. I'd thin out regular slide grease with a little valve oil or try another type of grease to get a little quicker action instead.

Fourth, keep cleaning it and oiling it. Apply oil both before and after you play...every time.

For what it's worth, I use Hetman's Piston on my two MW big valve tubas and either Hetman's Slide grease or Schilke's lanolin stuff on the slides with no problems.

As for the problems with the valve sets themselves...if you have a "bad" valve set, your valve guides will be wearing narrower because the valve guide channel isn't smooth. Matt Walters at Dillon Music is the guy to talk to about this if you suspect such problems.

Hope that helps.

[tubagirl5]

Try Classic Hetmans...I have a 2145 and it seems to work great on them (although it is about 6 years old and is probably older than yours). The valves tend to be a little tricky with the MW's, but nothing that can't be fixed. Make sure you take off the bottom and top valve caps when you clean...tons of stuff gets collected on both ends depending on how you keep the horn when your not playing it. Cleanliness seems to be the key for mine, so brushing before playing will help as well. Good luck!

Cassi