Mouthpiece Advice

[ASmith]

I currently play a pt-88 and I love it, but my acidic body chemistry is currently eating through the plating. Basically I've had it a year and I can see bare metal on the outside of the cup and rim. I know stainless is a good solution, but I don't now anything about what to choose. I know G&W and Loud are stainless but I want to retain the pt-88 style (not a carbon copy in stainless) and more weight doesn't bother me. I just need some advice so I can really prepare for college. Please help!!!!

[thezman]

Depending on where you are, there are either shops you an go to, horn guys in California, dillons in New Jersey, or also there are a bunch of conventions/conferences, Midwest in Chicago, US Army Band Conference in DC, And a couple other music educators conferences in several states. If you can get there try a bunch of stuff. Picking a mouthpiece can be sort of hit or miss, and each person has there own theory about how to select what for whom. Unfortunately, it can be sort of hit or miss. G&W and houser are good bets. Good luck!

[Heavy_Metal]

Add Baltimore Brass (Catonsville, MD, just west of Baltimore) to the list of go-to shops. This is the only one I've personally dealt with, but they carry a lot of different mouthpieces and will let you try them out to find something that works well for you. The same is probably true of other shops- doesn't hurt to ask. Let us know how you make out.

[jon112780]

During your current mouthpiece quest, you need to avoid brass poisoning. It happened to a friend of mine a few years ago, he went to the hospital from an allergic reaction from contact with the bare brass on his mouthpiece (very painful)...

Get some silver nail polish and touch up the rim and cup. I can't say how long it'll last, but it is only a temporary fix.

[Donn]

A good coat of nail polish will hang in there, and you might grow to like it. I actually use a rather dark blue, but if you are a sort of grey person who doesn't like colorful things, clear would probably be fine.

If it's a conspicuous color and you want it to look slick at all, application can be a little tricky. I recommend that you use the brush to paint out a rim-sized circle on a flat, solid surface, and then dip the mouthpiece in the circle. When I tried to apply directly to the rim, it was a mess. Maybe other people have steadier hands.

If it goes wrong, or you tire of the color or something, it will come right off with acetone.

[ASmith]

Depending on where you are, there are either shops you an go to, horn guys in California, dillons in New Jersey, or also there are a bunch of conventions/conferences, Midwest in Chicago, US Army Band Conference in DC, And a couple other music educators conferences in several states. If you can get there try a bunch of stuff. Picking a mouthpiece can be sort of hit or miss, and each person has there own theory about how to select what for whom. Unfortunately, it can be sort of hit or miss. G&W and houser are good bets. Good luck!

I'll look where can online. I'm from Jacksonville , Al so there isn't much that I can really get to. I will definitely look in to the housers and I really appreciate your help!

[Gilligan]

Check out the Houser MO-4 or Sellsmenberger Symphony both are super close to the PT-88 but are made in stainless steel. Sellsmanberger and Houser both have a trial program so won't have to worry about being stuck with something that won't work for you.

[csherman]

Depending on where you are, there are either shops you an go to, horn guys in California, dillons in New Jersey, or also there are a bunch of conventions/conferences, Midwest in Chicago, US Army Band Conference in DC, And a couple other music educators conferences in several states. If you can get there try a bunch of stuff. Picking a mouthpiece can be sort of hit or miss, and each person has there own theory about how to select what for whom. Unfortunately, it can be sort of hit or miss. G&W and houser are good bets. Good luck!

I'll look where can online. I'm from Jacksonville , Al so there isn't much that I can really get to. I will definitely look in to the housers and I really appreciate your help!

I in AL as well so I know your pain. G&W has a very good return policy, but they do have an 88 equivalent on their site. I've also been wondering about G&W, I was born and raised to be a PT lover
Let us know how it works for you!

[scottw]

Depending on where you are, there are either shops you an go to, horn guys in California, dillons in New Jersey, or also there are a bunch of conventions/conferences, Midwest in Chicago, US Army Band Conference in DC, And a couple other music educators conferences in several states. If you can get there try a bunch of stuff. Picking a mouthpiece can be sort of hit or miss, and each person has there own theory about how to select what for whom. Unfortunately, it can be sort of hit or miss. G&W and houser are good bets. Good luck!

I'll look where can online. I'm from Jacksonville , Al so there isn't much that I can really get to. I will definitely look in to the housers and I really appreciate your help!

You might want to try Joe {Bloke] at Mid-South Music, a sponsor here, south of Memphis. This is a lot closer to you than some of the others. His stainless mouthpieces are terrific and there are several to choose from. His are made by Dave Houser.

[ASmith]

So does anyone have any thoughts on the LM-10 versus a pt-88? From what I have read, the lm-10 is a little more shallow, but I also know that is defined by the compan.

[imperialbari]

Is the loss of plating that the OP reports on really a matter of chemically induced corrosion?

If the surface where the plating has gone is pitted, then probably yes.

However my teaching years taught me about carelessness in transporting mouthpieces that would rumble around in cases or in compartments of cases. So I tend to have a strong suspicion that the loss of plating rather is a matter of mechanically induced wear.

Klaus

[ASmith]

I tried one at the university and I liked the powerful sound, but it didn't feel right, and I also couldn't get the normal room rattling low I normally can. Overall I think it was just a little too shallow for me. Also my pt-88 is a couple of years old and has spent any travel in a Cavallaro mouthpiece bag. I think I'm going to order the Baer MMVI model from WWBW, because of their return policy, and try it for a week or so.

[Donn]

I tried one at the university

LM10?

[ASmith]

Yes, the older style not the new one, that looks a little odd, but in a good way.

[Jess Haney]

I have both a pt88 and a giddings bayamo. They are very similar in design with the giddings having a bigger backbore. The big loud LM3 has a very similar feel to a 88. Houser's big stainless steel mouthpiece is the MK7 or something like that and it is also comparable.

[GC]

Have you considered having the rim gold plated? It might be the cheapest solution. Gold does not tend to react to acidic perspiration as much as silver or brass, and a lot of jewelers and mouthpiece specialists can gold plate the entire piece or just the rim or rim/cup. There are probably custom services out there that could easily do it over Christmas break.