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We haven't run any lexan rims in quite a while. The Kelly people - I'm pretty sure - use molds. Machining them is very messy, thus the reluctance to produce them. I have had one for quite a while that is the size that I use, but honestly I've never used it until today. I've used Kellyberg mouthpieces with sousaphones, and didn't think good or bad about them; I was just marching in a parade and making noise.

It's funny how our mind tells us that something is going to be different. The thing is very smooth but somehow it feels different to the touch. I moved it around on my face and noticed that it seems to slide around as easily as a smooth metal mouthpiece.

The next thing I did was screwed it on my mouthpiece and dug into the same difficult excerpts that I had been playing. The first time through I think my bias got the best of me, but after that I pretty much decided that there really wasn't any difference, other than the way it sort of felt temperature-wise due to being plastic.

(' sorry for the run-on sentences, and having no idea how to punctuate them)

Slurring - which involves moving the face a little bit, was just as easy and smooth, and I really can't say that I heard anything different. I might mess with it for a while...(??)

I love the way my Lexan rim feels. I love the warmth, and I don’t notice any difference in playability.

I will ask him, but I think Doug Elliott machines his Lexan rims. They do feel "warmer" when playing and I found I didn't care for that sensation.

The playing experience with different rim materials WILL depend upon one´s skin type, individual distribution of nerve cells, and the last couple of meals one had.
Similar to the way some people (including myself) just can´t stand dry shaving and prefer the use of real shaving soap and brush rather than shaving cream or gel.
Same thing goes with beards and 5 o´clock shadows, which I detest when playing and which actually hurt to the point of bleeding follicles during concerts.
Others don´t seem to have these issues.

In the horn world (@bloke -- HORN!!) there are occasional discussions on wet or dry. I find wet to be what works, and as long as the rim can be made slippery enough, it will work. I don't have stainless, but I have silver, gold, and Kelly, and they are all fine.
I don't, however, have the follicle/stubble issue for some reason. This may sound like a silly question, but has anyone considered eradicating the problem facial hair? If you never want to let a beard grow, like, why not? Leave the "Abe Lincoln beard" ability still there.

For some reason, it's way more comfortable for me to play with trimmed (no super duper long mustache) facial hair than clean-shaven. This is something I found out when I was 22, and I've had a beard pretty much consistently since then (now in my early 30s).

I had two. one clear and one black. both #2 33.2 mm. I now have just the black one.

The clear Lexan was kinda ugly and less smooth than the black. I could see the threads through it.

I like having a Lexan rim. It's lighter. It's nicer to play when it is cold. I do wish I could have some #2 32.9 mm versions so I could get rid of the one I have now.
I could play the Lexan rims all year. They never need to be warmed up or cooled down.

Clear Kellyberg is my go-to outdoor mouthpiece. Last gig with the floral sousaphone, it actually got more comments than the sousa's paint job. ("is that a glass mouthpiece?")

It's pretty comfortable and is totally fine. I will echo some others and say that my opinion, contra Joe's, is that Lexan seems more grippy on my face.

I may decide that I don't prefer it, but since I've never used one - yet have offered them for sale, I thought it might be a good idea to actually play one ( and not just to make outdoor noise) for a little bit.

When I was battling psychological weird (I've said dystonia-ish before, but I have no idea) symptoms towards the end of my undergraduate degree, I noticed that my chops never shook or got screwy when I was using a Delrin visualizer -- even if I put the Delrin visualizer ON TOP of a brass mouthpiece (i.e., making an ultra-ultra-deep cup), but the minute I went back to the metal mouthpiece, they would start to shake and get screwy. The body's response to tactile stimuli is really interesting.

Tubeast wrote: ↑Fri May 26, 2023 12:38 am The playing experience with different rim materials WILL depend upon one´s skin type, individual distribution of nerve cells, and the last couple of meals one had.

Also pressure, and any such variables involved in how the player goes about making noises into the mouthpiece.

Polycarbonate can have a high "static" friction against some surfaces. That's the resistance to moving, as opposed to the resistance while moving. I imagine polycarbonate mouthpieces could encourage beginners to use less pressure, but just guessing at that.

I guess I'm still going to mess with it for a while. I picked up the tuba today and start playing without even looking at the mouthpiece or remembering that I put the plastic rim on there or even about this thread. It took me about 2 or 3 minutes to remember that there is a plastic rim on the mouthpiece.

I'm happy with the sound, and I didn't notice anything about the feel.

I'll probably stop using it and decide that I don't like it for some reason.

Donn's post makes some sense in regards to others comments.

I think the advantage is that it's a good instrument, it's a good mouthpiece, and the rim shape is one that I have determined works really well for me and have used it for a long time. Therefore, the plastic issue is probably way in the background as far as what I'm noticing is concerned.

Of course one can enjoy the organic feel with any old mouthpiece (the older the better), by applying a coat of nail polish. I believe that would be nitrocellulose, but similar feel. I had the most even results dipping the rim in a circular polish puddle.

Hey Joe! Can I get a clear rim for that C4 type mouthpiece I got from you? The Rim is marked Sellmansberger W-M 33.3 MM.

Schlepporello wrote: ↑Sun May 28, 2023 7:40 pm Hey Joe! Can I get a clear rim for that C4 type mouthpiece I got from you? The Rim is marked Sellmansberger W-M 33.3 MM.

I have a black one in that size..

bloke wrote: ↑Sun May 28, 2023 7:47 pm

Schlepporello wrote: ↑Sun May 28, 2023 7:40 pm Hey Joe! Can I get a clear rim for that C4 type mouthpiece I got from you? The Rim is marked Sellmansberger W-M 33.3 MM.

I have a black one in that size..

OK, what's the material? Same as the clear? If so, send me a PM with the price and I'll get the money to you.

I'd love to have several black lexan 32.9 mm #2 rims. two normal, one extended depth.

I have a Kelly. I really like it in inclement weather, whether too hot, too cold, preciptation, or any combination. I played a lexan bloke rim for several years; it also worked well. I only sold it because I sold the tuba I played it on and I liked the tone of another mouthpiece better on the tuba I subsequently purchased.

My view is that everyone should have either a Kelly in reserve or a lexan version of a preferred rim just because, as I do for outdoors.

cjk wrote: ↑Wed May 31, 2023 10:10 am I'd love to have several black lexan 32.9 mm #2 rims. two normal, one extended depth.

Find me a mint condition 1990's vintage Jakob Winter case designed for an old 4/4 Cerveny rotary B-flat, and I'll see if I can figure out some way to get something to happen.