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I have just spent a pleasant half hour with a man who repairs instruments and he showed one of his projects which is an 1864 cornet, the interesting thing about it though, was that the original mouthpiece has a ceramic rim. I am familiar with ceramic bearings in joint replacements these days, but I have never heard of a ceramic mouthpiece, has anyonr else?

Conn made some rims which were Ivory, and some which were a white rubber. Never seen ceramic before, though...

J.c.S.

Playing around on the internet I found that ceramic is very popular in saxophone and other woodwind mouthpieces.

I didn't find much information about ceramic brass instrument mouthpieces, though, especially to the date of your cornet piece. I did found, however, a company (again who specializes in woodwind mouthpiece ceramics) who just introduced this year a ceramic rim for brass mouthpieces.

http://www.drakeceramicinstruments.com/ ... erlay.html" target="_blank

My only experience with ceramics was when I was little, finding out they can break VERY easily... Are there different types that can withstand being dropped?

They are doing a lot of ceramics research up here in NY (Alfred University I believe) for medical purposes. I am sure that research has proved beneficial for tensile strength if not for medicine.

Porcelain rims have been around for quite a while. I have no idea who currently makes them, though.

'must be for those oval baritones...

Rochester2013 wrote:They are doing a lot of ceramics research up here in NY (Alfred University I believe) for medical purposes. I am sure that research has proved beneficial for tensile strength if not for medicine.

I worked in orthopaedics, and the big advantage of ceramics was that it was completely bio-inert and did not produce the sort of micro-debris that came from metal on plastic bearings.

schlepporello wrote:So if we happened to buy a ceramic rimmed mouthpiece, then later in life we needed the ceramic for a replacement joint, we could.........................?

...just like you could with your surgical stainless steel or titanium mouthpieces..

What about the smoothness of the ceramic surface?

Klaus

imperialbari wrote:What about the smoothness of the ceramic surface?

Klaus

As smooth as your toilet

J.c.S.

Which I never touch with any part of my skin.

Klaus

killjoy...

J.c.

J.c. Sherman wrote:killjoy...

J.c.

You want me to share waterbowl with the dogs or bathtub with the servants?

K

schlepporello wrote:The Canadian Brass at one time used them.

FWIW, pretty sure they were Delrin rims rather than ceramic, (although I could be incorrect).

J.c. Sherman wrote:

imperialbari wrote:What about the smoothness of the ceramic surface?

Klaus

As smooth as your toilet

J.c.S.

so, is your toilet bowl shaped or funnel shaped?

schlepporello wrote:

JB wrote:

schlepporello wrote:The Canadian Brass at one time used them.

FWIW, pretty sure they were Delrin rims rather than ceramic, (although I could be incorrect).

You may very well be right.
All I know for sure is that the rims were white.

Yet this group cannot be called ethnocentric at all. They have had a black tuba bell.

Klaus

I have not seen ceramic rims, but I do know that early on instrument makers experimented with different materials, especially for cornet rims (not too different from today I guess). I had an early Conn rubber rim cornet mouthpiece, one of their "visible embouchure" red plastic mouthpieces, and even have one with mother of pearl on the top of the rim.