POLL: shorty/fatty (York-like) Holton B-flat tuba with 19-inch bell...

[bloke]

Honestly, I haven’t noticed much difference at all. I did notice a significant difference on my larger bore C tuba.

I do like the fact that the instrument is tighter, and I do sense that.
OK..
- Slurs are really no better.
- Response is a little bit more solid.

Nearly exclusively, I just use lamp oil, and it’s probably thinner than any valve oil, as most every petro-based valve oil is probably either lamp oil or mineral oil with something thicker added to it. It only lasts an hour or two, but it doesn’t matter - because it’s so cheap.
The valves now remind me of the pistons and casings that Dave Secrist rebuilt on my Buescher helicon - which I owned for quite a few years. They move absolutely reliably, but I can feel that the pistons and casings are very close. (The MAW valves on my larger bore C tuba tuba nearly dropped right into the instrument, and the sensation of “contact“ is not there, as it is with this Holton tuba’s King valveset. Again, the valves are fast, reliable, but just offer a certain type of very close-fitting feel.)

[Doc]

For some reason, I can't find the thread about the mouthpiece project you have going for this thing. Do you think this mouthpiece that you are considering producing would work on an EEb?

[bloke]

I haven't pulled down the E-flat and tried it out...
For the last three days, I've been pretty sick, and I have to play a show this weekend.
I've been trying to work, but I'm just not doing all that well.
I sit here and type stuff, to try to get my mind un-fogged.

[Doc]

I haven't pulled down the E-flat and tried it out...
For the last three days, I've been pretty sick, and I have to play a show this weekend.
I've been trying to work, but I'm just not doing all that well.
I sit here and type stuff, to try to get my mind un-fogged.

Do you usually use an Imperial?

There isn't a day that goes by that I don't think about acquiring and playing an Eb tuba. I've been considering Eb for years, but I never got one for serious use.**. Part of my pondering includes mouthpieces, hence my question.

**I'm not sure if that indicates anything necessarily, aside from being a tuba geek. Or maybe there's an Eb player inside that simply needs to come out. Maybe I should just scratch the itch already. Maybe not. If I had big-time money, I'd own a room full of tubas that I like. But since I don't have that kind of dough, I guess I need to get off my @$$ and trial a few more Eb tubas and decide exactly what I want and then decide if I should get one at all.

Of course, I just got square with Uncle Sam for 2020, so it would be in my best interest to continue pondering for a bit longer.

Hope you start feeling better!

[bloke]

Do you usually use an Imperial?

Because - nearly exclusively - I use my "big" E-flat as a "fake B-flat, I use that cup and a tall rim...and with a small shank, since I play a 63-year-old Besson.

[Doc]

Do you usually use an Imperial?

Because - nearly exclusively - I use my "big" E-flat as a "fake B-flat, I use that cup and a tall rim...and with a small shank, since I play a 63-year-old Besson.

I look forward to hearing how your new mp works with the Eb.

[York-aholic]

Get well soon.

[bloke]

Mrs. bloke went to the $-store, and got me some red jell pills that seem to put a weird veil over the symptoms...

[bloke]

OK… I’ve spent quite a few hours using this instrument in critical situations playing it in quite a few keys in all ranges from very soft to gas pedal all the way down.
So far, I’ve only been asked to play one “low E-flat“ - which (had it been longer than one triplet eighth note at a very fast tempo) requires pulling the #4 slide out about 3 inches (slide stop rod installed, to stop the slide at the low E-flat position)
The only thing I’m having to do is to push the #1 slide in from its default position (1 inch out) to a position about 1/4 of an inch out - to play C and B-natural inside the staff.
I’m liking this.
I’m also liking the tremendous available horsepower, the 32 inch height, and the 36 inch hard case - which slips easily in the back of my Toyota Matrix.

bloke “I can learn to reflexively play a C-sharp with second valve again, as well as G sharp with first valve, and soon I will never be writing a 1 or a 2 above either of those notes with a pencil.”

[LargeTuba]

I've played only BBb, and staff C# is still hard to hit.

Maybe I'm just bad

[bloke]

I'm just referring to regular ol' "second space" C-sharp.

...otherwise, the buttons to be mashed for C-sharp are:
1-2 (C instrument)
2-3 (F instrument)
1 (E-flat instrument)

Personally speaking, my "strongest reading" tuba is F, because that's the one that I use to play "wild/hard sh!t".

[bloke]

I’m actually hoping for a stack of mailed music or emailed PDFs that indicate any excuses/reasons to pull my C instrument back out, because I REALLY like it and it feels really weird seeing it collect dust.
I don't have PDFs - yet - for the next xmas job, but - for the one after that - the (symphony orchestra) charts are 85% flat-keys, and 85% of the sharp keys portions are RESTS.
…and there are only a handful of gigs (along with their rehearsals) left before the annual January gig desert.

[York-aholic]

I’m actually hoping for a stack of mailed music or emailed PDFs that indicate any excuses/reasons to pull my C instrument back out, because I REALLY like it and it feels really weird seeing it collect dust.
I don't have PDFs - yet - for the next xmas job, but - for the one after that - the (symphony orchestra) charts are 85% flat-keys, and 85% of the sharp keys portions are RESTS.
…and there are only a handful of gigs (along with their rehearsals) left before the annual January gig desert.

Welcome to the dark side!

[bloke]

Someone just “thanked“ me for a post which was halfway through this thread, which made me look back at some of the early posts.
I started laughing my ass off at how I totally bullshitted my way through building this thing - with absolutely no planning whatsoever.

[bloke]

I feel really stupid that I didn't realize this immediately...but

1-2-5 (with this 5th circuit length) offers a DEAD-ON IN TUNE low G-flat...rather than the typical b.s. with the 2nd partial 2-3 combination being sucky-sharp.

(All higher 2-3 combo pitches are just fine - given the slides in their regular "set" positions.)

[cjk]

I feel really stupid that I didn't realize this immediately...but

1-2-5 (with this 5th circuit length) offers a DEAD-ON IN TUNE low G-flat...rather than the typical b.s. with the 2nd partial 2-3 combination being sucky-sharp.

(All higher 2-3 combo pitches are just fine - given the slides in their regular "set" positions.)

Start referring to it as the 6th valve rather than the 5th valve and the alternate uses may come more quickly to mind. :)

[bloke]

I feel really stupid that I didn't realize this immediately...but

1-2-5 (with this 5th circuit length) offers a DEAD-ON IN TUNE low G-flat...rather than the typical b.s. with the 2nd partial 2-3 combination being sucky-sharp.

(All higher 2-3 combo pitches are just fine - given the slides in their regular "set" positions.)

Start referring to it as the 6th valve rather than the 5th valve and the alternate uses may come more quickly to mind. :)

That’s a very good mental trick, and thank-you.
I use the same combination (6-1-2) quite often when playing my F tuba when a lower D-flat/C-sharp is either the 3rd-in-the-bass of an A-major chord, or is asked to be produced quite loudly, as this combination keeps the pitch down.

btw…
Though quietly dwelling in the background @cjk is one of the off-the-charts-IQ people who subscribe to this site, and – when they rarely post – it’s probably worth reading.

(When I often make errors or post wrong information here, this uber-nice/smart person will politely send me messages which allow me to correct my posts.)

[bloke]

OK...
Here's some "dumb stuff" (some of which probably matters, and some of which just "bothers" me) which I'm going to address BEFORE (if I ever do...??) I clean up this instrument and put some sort of "finish" on it.

1.
These two tubes (which are NOT slide tubes...but just "tubes") are not coplanar. It doesn't matter, but I don't like it...not at all.
I'll have to soften FOUR solder joints at once, in order to tap it down with a rawhide mallet...and - additionally, I'll need to wire down both the water key saddle and nipple, or (likely) they'll fall off.



2.
I did more work than necessary - with this #5 thumb lever...I stepped a nickel bar from 5mm down to 4mm, when all that was needed was to drill a 3mm (1/8") hole, braze a 3mm (1/8") steel rod in that hole (up into the bottom of that lever-bar), and then put an M3 x .5 thread on to the end of that steel rod (to which I would attached the same friggin' Minibal link which is currently there.
As it is, the 4mm nickel bar barely has clearance (on the pivot) between those (same) two close #1 circuit tubes, and - stepped down to 3mm steel - it would EASILY clear both sides. It's usually best to NOT think in terms of DEUTSCH-STARK!!! and - rather - just think in terms of "plenty strong/durable ENOUGH".


It had occurred to me to totally eliminate this lower loop, but (check out past pictures of the entire instrument)
that would have meant that the upward-oriented #1 slide would have been longer, and it wouldn't have fit
*under the bell on this (VERY) compact instrument.
*

ALL OF THAT HAVING BEEN SAID...
I continue to LOVE the way this thing plays...seemingly self-instinctual intonation (stupid-good, and no pitches ask for any "lipping") and tremendous sound for only a little bit of puffing into the mouthpiece (that is, if I can concentrate, and mash the B-FLAT TUBA correct buttons.

[Yorkboy]

.

[bloke]

Yeah… I like the bar to be lower, and that 3 mm rod won’t come anywhere close to hitting on either side.