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This may be a better angle of what I am working with.

bloke wrote: Mon Jun 01, 2026 10:03 am sorry...didn't see that question.
With near certainty, the threads are M3x.5
Your local hobby shop should have this in stainless steel all-thread, whereby you can cut it to the needed length and (if you manage to move all that stuff yourself) use the all-thread temporarily.

Hey no sweat! Only use the all-thread temporarily? Wasn't that what @Rick Denney used as part of his permanent solution (blog) from 1870 (kidding)?

It will last longer than you will...
Yeah...It's not very visible...no reason to not use it permanently...

I'm also wondering if the 5450 stroke is longer (higher) to keep the thumb out of the way of that #1 circuit tubing.

What I've been trying to express is that a setup like this (with the saddle oriented the other way) is going to define the most comfortable thumb stroke as well as the shortest thumb stroke (shortest: as long as the link is attached directly underneath the bar).



As can be seen, I never really finished cleaning up this installation.
(It works, and no one is here to pay me to do it better.)

tubatodd wrote: Mon Jun 01, 2026 10:37 am

bloke wrote: Mon Jun 01, 2026 10:03 am sorry...didn't see that question.
With near certainty, the threads are M3x.5
Your local hobby shop should have this in stainless steel all-thread, whereby you can cut it to the needed length and (if you manage to move all that stuff yourself) use the all-thread temporarily.

Hey no sweat! Only use the all-thread temporarily? Wasn't that what @Rick Denney used as part of his permanent solution (blog) from 1870 (kidding)?

Not temporarily for me. The Du-Bro links are effective, but not exactly original-looking. I make the threaded rod look better by running it through 1/8" brass tubing.

If I did it now, I'd probably spin the pushrods in the lathe and use Miniballs.

Rick "didn't have a lathe in those days" Denney

Rick Denney wrote: Mon Jun 01, 2026 1:56 pm

tubatodd wrote: Mon Jun 01, 2026 10:37 am

bloke wrote: Mon Jun 01, 2026 10:03 am sorry...didn't see that question.
With near certainty, the threads are M3x.5
Your local hobby shop should have this in stainless steel all-thread, whereby you can cut it to the needed length and (if you manage to move all that stuff yourself) use the all-thread temporarily.

Hey no sweat! Only use the all-thread temporarily? Wasn't that what @Rick Denney used as part of his permanent solution (blog) from 1870 (kidding)?

Not temporarily for me. The Du-Bro links are effective, but not exactly original-looking. I make the threaded rod look better by running it through 1/8" brass tubing.

If I did it now, I'd probably spin the pushrods in the lathe and use Miniballs.

Rick "didn't have a lathe in those days" Denney

I still have the adjustable type of Dubro links on my F tuba.
If I had put expensive European metal links on it back when I put these on, they would be worn out by now and making a bunch of clicking noises. That said, they're what people want, because they are more expensive. I put mineral oil on my metal links on my tube is with factory linkage (probably weekly) to discourage them from wearing.

Anyway, as far as the comfort of the stroke and the shortness of the stroke, you can see from my picture that I'm right about it, yes?

bloke wrote: Mon Jun 01, 2026 11:08 am What I've been trying to express is that a setup like this (with the saddle oriented the other way) is going to define the most comfortable thumb stroke as well as the shortest thumb stroke (shortest: as long as the link is attached directly underneath the bar).

I understand. My Besson 995 has a thumb trigger that presses that way. Yes, that's the better method for sure. Right now, I'm just wanting to get most comfort out of the fewest/easiest changes. @Eric Murphy 2145 with the Willson trigger would be ideal, but I'm not going that far.

Finally got around to posting these...

[
The lever on mine - We bent it a little bit to try and make it more comfortable. It's just too short. The Baer thumb ring - it's ALMOST in the right place for me. Just not quite. FWIW... this was a $70 part when I purchased it. I'd imagine it's double that nowadays.

[
Same story over here on the 2141. I don't like the thumb ring placement on any of these original 21xx horns.

[
Baer/Thor linkage - Notice how much longer it is. It will mount right to that ferrule, a little bit above where the old one is. If I were you, and were keeping the horn, I'd have one of these made. I can measure it for you, if you'd like. It would require an extension of the linkage, and probably a new thumb ring, but that's fairly easy.

Silver brazing is a semi-advanced skill, but would solve you folks problems...and it's only SEMI-advanced (and not advanced)...It's just REALLY hot.

Today (sheesh) I had to silver-braze a post back onto to the metal neck receiver assembly on a professional model wood bass clarinet.

This is copy of part of a web pic (to save me from going out to the shop) of a SIMPLER (intermediate) model.

Ours is a fancier model with the upper octave pad located HIGHER on the instrument - which improves the upper register response (requiring a much more complicated octave mechanism...See the note on the picture).

...so there was a very delicate post brazed on there the arrow is (rather than a metal pad vent), a broken off spring was embedded, and Mrs. bloke was exerting a good bit of force (correct tool) trying to push it out. I had probably been bumped several times (several decades old) and the post's silver-brazing failed...

...so - not only did I have to braze the post back on (perfectly straight and perfectly correctly-oriented to line up with the rod and octave mechanism), but I also had to first REMOVE the circled neck receiver (VERY SECURELY GLUED and three screws YET a delicate assembly AND crack-able wood) from the wood and (of course) WITHOUT tearing it up.

Further (with no reliable way to hold that post in position), I had to (with my septuagenarian eyes and hand (hold that post perfectly in place (with a freaking pair of pliers) while silver-brazing it with the other hand (actually, only holding the torch...Mrs. bloke had to feed in the silver-brazing wire, RIGHT when I told her to. (Also, the pliers had to be - as a disadvantage - LONG, so that I wouldn't burn my skin off.)

When she calls me to help her (rather than when I call her to - simply - hold or beat on something), I KNOW I'm in for hell, because - if she couldn't do it on her own - it's going to be REALLY hard.

THE POINT OF THIS SEEMINGLY OFF-TOPIC POST:

Silver-brazing up an assembly to be able to (subsequently) lead-solder a tuba thumb ring to an optimum "ergonomic" position is way easier than what I did today for Mrs. bloke...and I believe most of you guys can master this skill-set well enough to build something to mount a tuba thumb ring...

...but ya gotta have basic silver-brazing skilz.

It's worth it, and you guys can then solve (some of) these formidable problems without having to pay people like me.