When getting a brand new instrument check the connections where cork is, as most of the time the cork on new instruments a too big and needs to be sanded down. Make sure you put on cork grease before you try to put it together ,if this is not done the student will force it together and bend the keys .Have your teacher or someone that plays the instrument PLAY it to insure it is playable as most new instruments out of the box need to be set up to make them playable.
These instruments MUST have VALVE oil put on the valves before you play it. The valves have numbers on them , one being the closest to the mouthpiece . All the slides should have slide grease put on them. When putting the mouthpiece on, press and give it a little twist. If it gets stuck take it to the Band Director and if he/she can not help go,the the music store BEFORE you take the Vise grips to it
as most of the time we pull them free.
These are the ones that are the most expensive and frustrating to get new when purchased at less than $200.00 as these are not set up , the pegs slip, the bridge is not fit , the fingerboard is not straight on the neck . These are very important to have the teacher look at because if the problems are not fixed the student thinks its them and not the instrument.
An Open Letter to Students, Parents and
Music Educators
Regarding Instrument Quality
|
Because
we have always considered our repair facility to be an integral part
of our
school service offerings, the purpose of this letter is to bring your
attention to a service issue we’re now facing.
Our repair
technicians
are receiving an increased number of poorly manufactured instruments.
In
general, these products are often sold by retailers who do not
specialize in
musical instruments. While the price tags on these instruments are
irresistible to parents at times, keeping them in proper playing
condition
(if possible) is a costly challenge.
Low quality
instruments
are commonly manufactured from “pot metal”, which is defined in the
American
Heritage Dictionary as:
1. A copper and lead alloy, formerly used in making plumbing fixtures
2. A cast iron used especially in making pots
3. An inexpensive alloy of poor quality, usually containing lead, used
especially in making castings: cheap jewelry is made from plated pot
metal
Due to the
comparatively
low melting temperature of “pot metal”, it is very difficult, often
impossible to perform repairs that include solder work. Further, the
craftsmanship of poor quality instruments do not respond to
adjustments for
any reasonable length of time.
The bitterness
of costly
repair bills & never-ending performance problems remains long
after the
sweetness of low price. With this in mind, you have a chance to become
a hero
to the parents of your music students by setting minimum performance
standards of the instruments in your classroom. While we will try to
meet the
service needs of every customer, we continue to stand behind the
brands and
models offered by our business as well as others that are repairable
by
normal practices.
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Band Instrument help
