Walter Sear Helleberg mouthpiece specs

[Uncle Markie]

Do any of the mouthpiece gurus posting here know the specs on the Sear Helleberg mouthpiece? Walter had these made in Germany in nickel-silver; they were not plated. I still use one and wondered - since they are no longer available - what this mouthpiece compares to. Walter always claimed he had measured Helleberg's personal mouthpiece and based his version on it, not the Conn.

Thanks!

Mark Heter

[bisontuba]

Hi Mark-
I believe(?) it was similar to the original Conn 'H' Helleberg. Those Sears were nice mouthpieces, but I remember playing those on humid, hot days and the 'nickel' would leave a nice dark spot on my face....
Mike Finn has copied an 'H' of mine-- Check his specs and see if it is similar to your Sear...
Good luck!!
Mark

[MikeW]

I seem to remember reading that the Denis Wick 1L was based on a vintage Helleberg mouthpiece given to John Fletcher by Arnold Jacobs, and known as the "Lucky Boy" mouthpiece.

I also read somewhere recently that current Denis Wick mouthpieces are made from Nickel Silver, and not plated.

If both of these snippets turn out to be true, then the Denis Wick 1L may be worth a look.

[Paul Scott]

I have a Sear Helleberg that supposedly had been owned by Oscar Lagasse. The Wick 1 is slightly larger in diameter and is also deeper than the Sear. A Wick 2L may be closer.

[jeopardymaster]

I have a Sear Helleberg. But I don't have a micrometer or anything like it to provide detailed measurements. Far less "bite" around the lip of the cup than I remember from a Conn Helleberg, and maybe not so deep (?). I never liked the Conn, never owned one, couldn't play worth a damn on one. (Not that I'm much better with anything else these days.) I have a Kellyberg, and it seems actually to be pretty close to the Sear, again without doing a careful measurement. Is the Kellyberg supposed to be a direct copy of the Conn, or does it emulate something else? From what I see, and feel with my chops, my Kellyberg is pretty close to my Sear. Maybe a slight difference in the shape of the cup - there seems to be just a tad more abruptness to the taper inside the Sear. Could be bad machining, I dunno.

[MikeW]

I seem to remember reading that the Denis Wick 1L was based on a vintage Helleberg mouthpiece given to John Fletcher by Arnold Jacobs, and known as the "Lucky Boy" mouthpiece.

The 2.5CC is based on John Fletcher's "Lucky Guy" Helleberg that was a gift from Arnold Jacobs. it's owned (at least at one time) by Steven Wick.

Thank you - I've corrected my trivia card

[Uncle Markie]

Thanks everyone for the posts and opinions. I now have a vague idea of what to look for in case I replace this mouthpiece.

For the record - Walter believed it shouldn't bankrupt a young musician getting started in music. He had these mouthpieces made in Germany by some old guy who machined them out of nickel silver - and sold them originally for a fast $6 out the door. This was long before CNC machining was widely available to mouthpiece makers. The last batch he made sold for $12 a piece back around 1991 - I picked a bunch for some of the Disney guys I was working with at the time. They do require frequent polishing with Noxon to keep you from getting a black ring on your mouth on hot days. Lew Waldeck (long time friend of Sear's and a great tuba player in his day - NY City Ballet, etc.) used an H.N. White 26 Equa-Tru (King) on his Donatelli BBb for years - always felt the Helleberg was great for opening up the sound, but also felt the Helleberg rim could be a chore on strenuous jobs where you played continuously. I have used a combination of Hellbergs and winecorks between the students upper and lower teeth to "open up" many young tuba players' core of sound!

Personally the Helleberg would have killed me on the Ringling job - I used the Zottola (see below) with my Martin - playing 13 shows a week that ran over 2 1/2 hours each of continuous blowing.

My other mouthpieces - King 26, Butterfield (shaved down King 26 - internally identical to the King BTW), Conn 2 (I use this on the EEb), Warburton Heter model (improved King 26), and Zottola Heter model (1.26 with inside chamfer matched to King 26 rim), Schilke Helleberg (66) - and the Sear Helleberg.

I use the Helleberg in the orchestra and the Zottola and the Warburton on everything else. Terry made my improved King 26 for me BEFORE the fire so I'm sure he'd have to start from scratch to make another one - and given his perfectionist tendencies I'm sure he would insist on doing just that. Improved how you ask? He started with a full 2" blank, matched the cup size and rim chamfer - and improved the entrance to the backbore, which on the King was a bit crude. Also, the shank is "Bach" American taper not the quasi-Morse taper that was "unique" to old the King 26. It fits in everything I own a lot better. He milled a scrap King 26 in half to get his CNC measurements precisely. Terry's the best.

If you can find it I did an album with Gary Lawrence and His Sizzling Syncopators on the Martin with the King 26 back in the 1970s on Columbia Masterworks - best recorded sound of my tuba playing of anything I ever did.

Thanks again to everyone for the input.

Mark

[EdFirth]

Hey Mark, I saw several of them the other day. They may have been among the ones you brought to town. If you want one I'll be happy to hook you up. I bought one from Bloke a while back but actually gave it to Tom Treece because it was different than the one I already had(a gift from Connie the Pearly Queen) that seems to have been opened up either by Lee Richardsen or Fred Pfaff. Shoot me a PM or call if you want one of these. Regards, Ed

[EdFirth]

P.S. I have a cassette of that Gary Lawrence album and it's one of my favorites. Ed