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Any modified designs for attaching 2nd slide lever on 45slp. Mine broke off and several attempts at reattachment were futile;lever bracket detached from soldering point. Also, any new pull designs for 1st and 3rd valve slides?Thanks Dave in CharlotteNC

I've got an amazing 45-SLP that I wouldn't part with for anything.

I've seen a few newer 45-SLPs with the second valve slide kicker inside the top bow with the left thumb lever mounted basically directly across the bow from where your original was located. It's a much better design in my opinion since you no longer have that fragile lever sticking out of the side of the horn. You could have some kind of custom re-fabrication done to the slide kicker or you could order the new version from MW...they are pretty easy to deal with and are always willing to sell parts.

Regarding slide pulling for the first and third slides, I've had no trouble reaching through the wrap of the horn to pull these. Fortunately, the intonation for me on my 45-SLP is excellent and I do very little slide pulling. I do use the second valve slide kicker frequently, especially on E, which is why (despite the somewhat poor design) I have not removed it.

Tom, Thanks for your reply. Speaking of intonation, what mouthpiece do you use? I play virtually everything on the 45slp and use a laskey 28H in quintet and for traditional f things in orch. I use a bach 22 to create a faux CC and a bach 12 for a faux BBb. I also have a Bert Herrick rootyzooty (small cup/wide rim) for ultra high or cimbasso type stuff.Thanks for your time. DM

Regarding mouthpieces on the 45-SLP...

For about the first year and a half or so I had it I used a JK Exclusive 4B. It's a difficult mouthpiece to describe unless numbers mean a lot to you...it has a 8.2mm throat, has a 32.5mm cup width, and is pretty deep. The rim was a bit funky for my taste (too cushion like and rounded), so I moved on.

I went looking for something with a much "sharper" rim, and spent the next couple of months going between the Floyd Cooley Helleberg and the Schilke Helleberg II-F (ie, Laskey 30F). The Cooley Helleberg was a clear winner for me, so I used that up until some months ago and went to a custom mouthpiece Pete Link was selling that combined the rim of the Cooley Helleberg with the cup of a Yamaha Roger Bobo Solo.

The custom Cooley/Bobo was nice, but lacked what I had with an original Cooley Helleberg, so I went back to using that full time. I am one of those people that has several mouthpieces but generally only uses one per tuba.

Where did you get the Herrick piece? My primary teacher has one that has been his main mouthpiece of many years.

mel Culbertson ordered the herrick mouthpiece for me in - get this-1975.Of course Mel sounds phenominal on anything but at the time he was using this piece on his solo work. My plan has been to have copies made for a few friends, but that was 20years ago......DM

bloke wrote:Probably a plumbing nightmare to install on that particular F, but it always occurred to me that those #2 triggers (Alex, Rudy, SLP) are poor substitutes for a 6th valve.

Meinl Weston actually offers a 6 valve version of the 45-SLP called the "Titan," for Mel Culberton which, interestingly enough, still has the 2nd slide kicker on it located at the left hand thumb.

I've not been able to find a good picture of one to examine, but from what I can tell from the picture posted on the Meinl Weston website, the 5th and 6th valves are mounted after the piston valve block with the paddles mounted on the left. Correct me if I'm wrong...just seems like I see a second rotor under the lower 3rd valve slide.