Question for Repair Guys

Dan Castillo · Post by **Dan Castillo** » Sun Jun 17, 2007 9:58 pm

All right tubenet repair gurus: I have an old B&S Symphonie F tuba that has really slow, noisy valves. Next week it's going to be getting a chem clean, but it was given a "non chem" clean recently so don't think gunk in the valves is the problem. Most of the noise seems to be coming from linkage mechanism anyway.

Someone suggested I upgrade to "Uniball" linkage. If I sound ignorant right now, it's because I don't really know what any of this stuff means. Those of you that have worked on these old horns, would this be something you recommend? How much should I expect to spend on such an endeavor?

Thanks in advance!

iiipopes · Post by **iiipopes** » Sun Jun 17, 2007 10:32 pm

It's basically replacing the old worn lever action with worn out links that really can't be fixed inexpensively or reliably with a miniature version of a ball and socket joint that can be adjusted ongoing for wear and set better for reliability and quiet operation.

Even then, I still like the S arms better than the mini-erector set now standard on most rotary tubas.

Dan Schultz · Post by **Dan Schultz** » Mon Jun 18, 2007 12:15 am

Sometimes those old 'S' linkages can be made less noisy without much problem. There are lots of things to took at... the end play in the rotor is also often a source for noise. Missing or hard bumpers are another issue. Simply loose rotor stop plates can be very annoying as well as loose rotor stop arms. A little heavy oil can often do wonders for worn linkages, too.

iiipopes · Post by **iiipopes** » Mon Jun 18, 2007 8:41 am

Dan knows. What he said.