TubeNet

Does this mean I should clean my valves?

ValveSlide wrote:Clean your valves....

This ia the most profound advise I've seen on TubeNet in a long, long time. Even as a repairman, I'm one of The Worlds worst at keeping my personal horns in shape. I play seven or eight tubas, sousas, and helicons semi-regularly. The WORST thing is to put my old 2341 back on its stand after a Saturday morning Dixieland session without at least doing a quick flush to clear out the donut residue.

is there a better way than running HW Brasssavers thru every single port?

chemical that dissolves lime/scale - probably vinegar, it busts any water kettle/showerhead buildup really fast.

I might sound like an ol' proctologist, but when the valves become a bit sluggish, the index finger in the valve casing can usually detect the scale that builds up on the walls. My technique for getting this out is a gentle polishing with something like 'Brasso" Just a tad on the piston and then insert it back in and work it back and for 10 or 20 times. (Sometimes even some Brasso on the finger tip can polish it down.) Swab it out and clean the piston with some valve oil, usually the Ultra Pure in the lamp oil bottle, until a clean soft rag comes out clean. The finger can feel the smooth polished surface. Works for me every time. When there is scale, so it seems, the valves will seize up every night and be stuck tight the next day as what ever mosiure that has kept them moving is evaporated and the scale reforms into a tight bond. When they are cleaned and descaled, they will stay free for quite a while (perhpas months) until the next build up. When there is scale in a tight tolerance valve, it does not take much for it to bind. Yes, when it is worked free, and only oiled and not a cleaning it will seize again when it dries. Frustration. The solution is to stay on top of it before it builds. But those of us with a room full of horns often get behind. Today I took out a piston tuba and all four valves were solid. I had not played it in a couple of weeks. Yes, out came the Brasso, and about 15 minutes of work and they are like new.
On rotars I find that often times there is build up on the spindle/bearings. Sometimes it is not even visible to the naked eye. I found this the case on a brand new tuba which left the factor with the usual internal crud. Valve hygienge is essential to smooth trouble free valves and as was mentioned in another post, expecially with new close tolerance valves. 'Clean' valves are 'happy' valves. Caveat: remember that anytime something like Brasso is used to an excess, a miniscule amount of metal can also be removed. If you can get to a tech for a chem clean, that would be best.