Valve problem, help wanted!

[dante jones]

Hey all,
I have a Thor that has issues with sticking valves, especially 2 and 3. There's plenty of oil, the guides are clean, and the springs are in place. However, these valves "catch" on the way up when i need to release them, especially after a long note. Thoughts?

[PMeuph]

Thoughts?

First thought: Clean them with lots of soap and hot water. Use stiff brushes and get in all the nooks and crannies of the valve and the casing.

Second thought: There could be tension in the horn causing the casing to bind slightly. This isn't a DIY repair, this isn't even a run of the mill music store repair. Take the horn to a good brass tech.


Has the horn been dropped? Is it a new horn, or have you hd this horn a while and this is a new problem?

[dante jones]

the horn has been dropped a couple years ago, but it has gone through good and bad periods of functioning. It has been an issue since i first bought it in 2011.

[Ken Crawford]

German quality is still catching up to the rest of the world. I only buy the best Chinese made tubas so I don't have to worry about functionality problems down the road.

[Sousaswag]

Check the valve stem alignment. Take the valve buttons off and see if the stems are catching on the valve cap. That happened with my horn because I knocked the stems into my leg picking it up. Easy fix was just to nudge them back into place with a fairly hard handle. I used the handle of a plastic sharpener. Blunt end, just a couple taps and the stem was back in place and no more catching.