Avoiding Sousaphone Schmutz?

[tofu]

I always end up with slide grease on my clothes from playing/marching with a Sousaphone. Is it just me or does anybody else have this problem? Any tips for avoiding it?

[Lee Stofer]

I have just a couple of recommendations, having played a lot of sousaphone jobs and currently play a Conn 30K helicon for most of my jazz jobs.

If slide grease is an issue, figure out the settings for your slides and then take a cloth and wipe off the excess slide grease before you go out and play.

By the way, "spit" does not come out of your valve casings. Playing a brass instrument introduces 98-degree F (about 37C) moist air into much-cooler brass instrument, so what comes out of your instrument is condensation, mixed with a little bit of valve oil. Since no company that I know of currently offers grime gutters for any instrument larger than a euphonium to cover the bottom caps, I found that I can stuff some cheesecloth into a vinyl, latex or nitrile glove, then fasten that over the bottom caps. The valves have to "breathe" to work properly, so you can't cover the bottom caps to the point of sealing them off completely. The cheesecloth (or even an old washcloth, etc.) absorbs the moisture, while allowing for air to move as the valve moves. If the bottom of the glove doesn't fit tightly enough over the bottoms of the valve casings, a rubber band will keep it in place. I got tired of mess all over the front of white shirts during/after jobs. The Hetman valve oil will wash out, but it's nicer to avoid a wet mess enirely.

[Kevin Hendrick]

Any tips for avoiding it?

No. Just "embrace the schmutz!"

"May the Schmutz be with you!"

[MartyNeilan]

I always end up with slide grease on my clothes from playing/marching with a Sousaphone. ...Any tips for avoiding it?

Stop playing/marching with a Sousaphone.

Just replace the piston valveset with rotors.