What's your process for constructing the valve circuits?

[Tubajug]

I've never had to put a valve section completely together before. What's your process for doing that? I've got a 4th piston added and now it's time for the circuits. I remember seeing the elephant start with the second valve on his 345 rebuild. Any reasoning for that? Fire away folks! I appreciate your help.

[roweenie]

What I usually do is first construct the crook assembly (crook, ferrules, and inside legs). I lay the legs down on a true marble stone, line them up with a caliper so they are in parallel with each other, and then solder the legs, ferrules and crook together (I like to use a small sand bag over the legs to keep everything still while working). When it's all together, I check several times again with the calipers for parallel in several different places....and if off, adjust accordingly, while lying on the stone.

When I've got that all done (hopefully within .002), I add the outer tubes, and solder a brace between them, adding as little (no) stress as possible, making sure everything is still parallel with my calipers throughout the process.

I like to start with the 2nd valve circuit, too - it's the easiest, and since it's between 1 & 3, it becomes the "template" to line up the 1st and 3rd circuits in parallel.

I might add here I'm only an amateur, and that there may be better methods - but this seems to work for me, YMMV....

[Tubajug]

Great insights, I hadn't thought of doing the outer slides off the horn as well. I had planned to do the inner slides only. Thank you!

[roweenie]

If there are any other methods that work better than what I described (deduced by using my own bass-ackward logic) I'd be very receptive to learn it.....hint, hint, hint

[Tubajug]

So I started with my second valve circuit last night. I got it all paralleled and leveled, braced the outer tubing, soldered the crook and everything, then it's just marginally different from the ports.... enough to make it bind. Where do I go from here? I can't change the ports, so what's next? It slides easily on its own, off the horn, but like I said, binds when I even get it part way onto the ports.

It could be that I grabbed the wrong brace for between the outer tubes. Thanks for any help!

[Tubajug]

Thanks guys!

[Tubajug]

I cheated and took the easy way out. I unsoldered the brace and simply soldered the outer tubes on to the valve block while keeping it in place with the crook and inner tubes. I don't have a brace that fits perfectly though. The ones I have are either too wide and spread the tubes or not wide enough. But the slide moves easily! I call that a win for my first time trying to do a whole valveset.

[roweenie]

I cheated and took the easy way out. I unsoldered the brace and simply soldered the outer tubes on to the valve block while keeping it in place with the crook and inner tubes. I don't have a brace that fits perfectly though. The ones I have are either too wide and spread the tubes or not wide enough. But the slide moves easily! I call that a win for my first time trying to do a whole valveset.

Excellent!

Especially with the second valve circuit (or any other circuit with a similarly narrow crook) I think it's better to use a brace that is a little "undersized" and fill any gaps with solder, rather than use one that is too wide. If the brace is too wide, but pretty close, you could try filing off some of the underside of the brace foot to remove length, but this will only go so far - each maker used different gauge sheet brass to make their braces, and some are thicker than others (for example, King brace feet are much thicker than Holton).

You could make your own brace, but you must have a very good silver solder technique, a really good holding system, and a very carefully controlled flame.

If worse comes to worst and you don't have a smaller brace that will work, it would be better to leave it unbraced in between, and figure out ways to brace each leg to neighboring tubes. Actually, one of the tubes will be braced to its neighbors on both sides anyway.

btw...Don't try to "patch". Just get over it, and start over.  

Sage advice, indeed.

[Tubajug]

Thanks for the additional input. I did think of just leaving it un-braced since, like you said, one of them is going to be braced on either side anyway.

[roweenie]

Thanks for the additional input. I did think of just leaving it un-braced since, like you said, one of them is going to be braced on either side anyway.

Yes, but I didn't say that you should leave the other one just "hanging in mid-air", but that you should find another place to brace it onto.

I would judge that as unwise, as pressure (from two somewhat cantilevered larger structures) and distortion forces (from solder cooling) could - fairly easily - skew those two #2 outside slide tubes were they not braced.

I have to agree with you here, but I did make it clear that this was a "worst case scenario", with several different methods to achieve the correct result without resorting to this. (Personally, I would avoid this at all costs, but I won't assume that the OP has the same resources that I have).

roweenie "not meaning to lead anyone astray"

[Tubajug]

Thanks for clarifying (or reminding me to not do stupid things...). I'll keep looking for a way to brace it.