Do you really give your instruments baths?

[hokkmike]

I attended an instrument "expo" last night and played several euphoniums. (Eastman, Jupiter, Accent, Yamaha) In the context of my question I asked the Yamaha rep (not a brass player) about the "bath" question. He said that his preferred method for cleaning them was to take the first valve & bottom out only, then flush the lead pipe with luke warm water and scrub it alone using a brush designed fopr the purpose. he had never heard of running water through the entire instrument.

[Dan Schultz]

I attended an instrument "expo" last night and played several euphoniums. (Eastman, Jupiter, Accent, Yamaha) In the context of my question I asked the Yamaha rep (not a brass player) about the "bath" question. He said that his preferred method for cleaning them was to take the first valve & bottom out only, then flush the lead pipe with luke warm water and scrub it alone using a brush designed fopr the purpose. he had never heard of running water through the entire instrument.

That's really not a bad approach when it's done fairly frequently between regular professional chem-cleanings. I rarely run water through an entire horn unless I suspect there is an obstruction or am checking for a leak. On my personal horns... I remove the main tuning slide and attach a hose to the mouthpiece receiver and 'let 'er rip'... also depressing the valves to circulate water through the tuning circuits. 99% of the time, there's really no need to clean the entire bugle consisting of the large branches.

Same way with chem-cleaning. I'm set up to fully submerge sousaphones and large tubas but have found that circulating my 'witches-brew' through the valve section is just as effective and less prone to damage the exterior finish of the horn. Not having to heft the bulk weight of a tuba full of liquid is a big plus.

A slick set-up is simply an aquarium pump submerged in a five gallon bucket of cleaning solution with a hose attached to the receiver and another hose from the leg off the last valve back into the bucket.

[Dan Schultz]

Keeping most of the capillary and cylindrical interior of a brass instrument oily (rather than just "wet") can be an effective strategy to deter the cause of the terminal cancer of brass instruments: lime build-up. $6 bottles 2-oz. of valve oil should not be wasted on this enterprise. Rather, a few quarts of this (cheapest that can be found, obviously) might be acquired...

I am very much in agreement. In fact... I've found that the biggest culprit of 'sluggish' valves and rotors to be a combination of heavy oils and just plain old dirt. Circulating lamp oil through a horn using an aquarium pump as I described above can be a quick cure for sluggish rotors and valves.

I've never been an advocate of three or four drops of one of those expensive synthetic oils. Hell..... pour on the lamp oil to wash all the crud off.

[hokkmike]

But I read the DANGER part on the label. Won't there always be residual parts of lamp oil in the horn?

[gilmored]

Would you recommend using straight lamp oil or diluting it?

[Dan Schultz]

Would you recommend using straight lamp oil or diluting it?

Straight. What would you consider diluting it with, anyway? Lamp oil is very thin.

[sloan]

Would you recommend using straight lamp oil or diluting it?

Straight. What would you consider diluting it with, anyway? Lamp oil is very thin.

lamp vinegar?

[SousaSaver]

Some clarification: Are you recommending coating the inner surfaces of the horn with oil to help prolong the life of the horn and to prevent dirt and other impurities from sticking?

[J.c. Sherman]

Doesn't lamp oil have parafin in it? Wouldn't Kerosene be better?

[Dan Schultz]

Doesn't lamp oil have parafin in it? Wouldn't Kerosene be better?

J. C. .... they are one in the same. Maybe you're thinking of the stuff grandma used to seal the top of jelly jars.... which is a sold form of paraffin.

Paraffin can be in gas, liquid, or solid form.

Basically... valve oils are just super-refined kerosene. With exception to some of the 100% synthetic lubricants.

[J.c. Sherman]

Got it!

[toobagrowl]

I gave my 100-year-old Holton Eb a bath a few months ago after polishing & buffing the crap outta it. I took EVERYTHING apart - all slides and valves. I have a thick rubber mat to place in the tub before I fill it with Dawn and warm water. As I am doing this the disassembled tuba & slides are placed into the plugged tub and left in for a good hour and a half or more. The valves and felts are carefully cleaned separately in the sink with the same Dawn + warm water. I then "snake" the tuba & slides real good and sponge them. Lastly, I drain the tub and thoroughly rinse the tuba and all parts several times, assemble and dry the tuba off. The results were at least as good, if not better, than the local music store' s job on my other horn. I saved roughly $200 doing it myself, BUT....it is back breaking work and takes me several hours to do it right.

[JCalkin]

Would you recommend using straight lamp oil or diluting it?

Straight. What would you consider diluting it with, anyway? Lamp oil is very thin.

I don't dilute lamp oil, but rather thicken it, using a little bit of 3-in-1. But only if I need a thicker oil for higher-tolerance valves.

Both the lamp oil and the 3-in-1 are harmless to the instrument, and inexpensive. Remember that kerosene/petroleum and derivatives make great solvents; they will keep a horn clean(ish); buy the cheap stuff and use a lot of it!