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Is there some special trick to unsoldering the bows of the much-stenciled B&S BBb tubas like this one: viewtopic.php?f=3&t=60482? (Not really *like* it; this is the one, but surely it's not unique.)

My local repair guy has been stumped by getting the bows unsoldered. The rest of the horn is apart just fine, but the big parts haven't budged. Any ideas?

Never had a problem. Your guy doesn't have enough heat to keep the entire joint hot enough. By the time he's gone all the way around... the other side has cooled. Also... if he is trying to unsolder both ends of the bottom bow at the same time... he's bound to be losing heat. Take the bell off first.

Interesting. I am confident you are right. I have been struck before when I've seen him work that he's been using what looks to me like a smaller than normal torch.

bloke wrote:(nope...not trying to get it sent here).

I told him I would ask you and Dan about it. In the end I decided to post it here for the wide world to see and look for whatever popped up. I called you about something else right after posting it, and even then decided to keep my mouth shut and see what would show up here. I think it's interesting that the two of you are the ones who responded first.

Larger, broad, hot flame, four hands, two feet. It'll pop off with little effort. Natural gas and compressed air have served me well.