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After reading some old posts about separating a mouthpiece from a bit, I succeeded in freeing my Conn #2 from its bit with boiling water, a Crescent wrench, and a claw hammer. (it's not quite as ugly as it sounds) Thank you to many of you who contributed to those old posts.

My question now is this: what can I do to prevent them from sticking together in the future? Slide grease? Valve oil? Petroleum jelly? Teflon tape? Moly & graphite?

Thanks for any help,

Perry

Any lubricant that you use will dry out eventually. (A wax crayon works pretty well, but the wax does not last forever.) I have not tried teflon tape, but I suspect that it will fall off before long. The only reliable solution is to remove the mouthpiece from the bit whenever you finish playing for the day. Also remove the bit from the receiver. If you use two bits then separate them before storage.

The problem with using any lubricant between the mouthpiece and the bits is that the lubricant is want to do its job and the mouthpiece fall out at the most inopportune moment.

Having played souzys on and off since the fall of 1976, many brands, models, and configurations, what Bloke says is the way it is.

Or, purchase your own separate mouthpiece and pair of bits and dedicate a particular mouthpiece to the souzy and don't care when the bit gets stuck to it, like I did.

reindeere wrote:After reading some old posts about separating a mouthpiece from a bit, I succeeded in freeing my Conn #2 from its bit with boiling water, a Crescent wrench, and a claw hammer. (it's not quite as ugly as it sounds) Thank you to many of you who contributed to those old posts.

My question now is this: what can I do to prevent them from sticking together in the future? Slide grease? Valve oil? Petroleum jelly? Teflon tape? Moly & graphite?

Thanks for any help,

Perry

I've never worried about stuck bits because I know how to easily get them apart. Putting grease or oil on them sort of defeats the purpose and you would probably eventually find yourself chasing a mouthpiece across the bandroom floor or worse... across the pavement where you rehearse for marching band drills. It a bit get stuck again... just turn to the drum section and snatch one of their drumsticks. Hold the stuck pieces loosely in the palm of your hand and give them a couple of sharp 'raps' on the outside of the stuck joint.

reindeere wrote:what can I do to prevent them from sticking together in the future?

Play bassoon.