What am I looking for?

[bububassboner]

So in my mouthpiece quest for my CC tuba I have narrowed down what I am looking for but don't know what mouthpiece this would be.

What I like,
The cup design of the Wick 2.5 CC. It's not too wide yet is deep.

What I don't like,
The bottom of the cup seems like it has been "scooped" out and the beginning of the back bore/throat is very large.

So what mouthpiece has a cup like the 2.5 CC but has a little tighter throat? Rim doesn't matter but I do like the flat and sharp rims better. Help me out tubenet.

Thanks in advance.

[bububassboner]

The 2.5CC is reputed to be a slightly modified copy of the "Lucky Guy" Helleberg.

Ok I'll bite, whats the "lucky Guy" Helleberg?

[imperialbari]

Why PM? I don’t know that term either.

K

[Matt G]

Schedule a lesson with Chris Olka if you can. He might be able to point you in the right direction.

However, you seem to be hinting towards these three pieces:

Conn Helleberg
Conn Helleberg 7B
Conn 2 (or w/e it is called now)

Three fairly cheap and easy to find mouthpieces. The Cooley Helleberg is pretty much a 7B with a larger throat, IIRC. The Conn 2 is often overlooked, mainly because it was shipped with so many horns and most look like **** because of wear, but it is a decent piece. Kind of like a Bach 18 in that respect.

[bububassboner]

However, you seem to be hinting towards these three pieces:

Conn Helleberg
Conn Helleberg 7B
Conn 2 (or w/e it is called now)

I have two of these and have played the third. The 7B was just too small for what I was looking for. My Conn Helleberg is wider than the 2.5CC (I don't want to go wider than the wick) I played a conn 2 for a little bit but it seemed really hard to blow. Like I couldn't get my air through. Thanks for all the comments and advice. Keep it coming.

[Matt G]

If you can find one, a Conn 1 might be interesting. Or maybe someone makes a copy? Also Marcinkiewicz has a few Helleberg models that might match up well. The H1 is pretty close to the Conn 120B (big Helleberg) and the H4 close to the 7B, IIRC. This should mean that the H2 and H3 might be viable options (???).

Anyhow, put together the specs to help narrow things down. Figure out the rim contour, the rim width, cup shape (you've done this), and the throat size. That should help get you pointed in the right direction.

[bill]

Matthew Gilchrest said:

If you can find one, a Conn 1 might be interesting.

I just received my newly plated Conn 1, from Dan Oberloh, for use in Miraphone 184 5 CU. It really did open up the bottom. I don't know if anyone has a pantographic lathe but, if anyone does, and you can find someone willing to lend a Conn 1 out, you could have one made. My guess is that this would be about $150-$200 but, since I am not in the business, I really am only guessing.

A cheaper way might be to look at a web site like Josef Klier http://www.jk-klier.de/ and look at his matrix of tuba mouthpieces and find on about the same dimension as a Conn 1 and order it. Remember, the "A" cups are deeper than the "B" cups and the "B" cups are deeper than the "C" cups and so on. The only dimensions I have for a Conn 1 is cup width= 32.7mm (1.287") and the bore is 9mm (.354"). A Klier T3-AA or T4-AA would be an approximation of the Conn 1 depth. Klier mouthpieces appear to be made by the same people making Miraphone mouthpieces so a glance at Miraphone mouthpieces might show similar sizes, like a TU41 or a TU25. Klier mouthpieces had a slightly larger shank than Miraphone mouthpieces, which have the same shank size as a Conn 1.

On the other hand, if you want to scoot up to Scappoose, you can try my Conn 1 but I ain't shippin' nowhere. Conn 1's are far too hard to find to risk shipping.

[bububassboner]

So here are the 2.5CC specs

Diameter:46.40 mm
Cup Diameter:32.00 mm
Rim Width:7.20 mm
Bore Size:8.60 mm
Back Bore:V-type

So I guess I'm looking for something that,
A) Doesn't have the "V-type" backbore
B)Has a little smaller bore size

So what am I looking for?

[iiipopes]

It's not just the throat. Having played several Wick models, it is a combination of the throat and backbore.

Curry has a little tighter throat and backbore. That's what was recommended to me by Matt @ Dillon's when the throat and backbore on my Wick 1 was too large for my breath support. I chose the D model, which is like a funnel with just a little bit of curve on the bottom as it transitions to the throat; this helps immensely with low range clarity of intonation. Curry also makes an H cup and a G cup.

I did have to have Matt and Vladimir recontour the rim to Bach Mt Veron 18 profile for me, as the rim is rather wide. I don't know about the rims on the H and G models.

You can get all of them in your choice of even cup diameters, from 1.26 on up. I use the 1.28.