Ugh, Clarinets!

Apparently, clarinets are supposed to be easier than saxophones to repad, etc in general: No stacks to worry about, pads easier to seat due to size, fewer pads, but here I am kind of struggling with it. For those that don't know, checking a saxophone for leaks involves placing a light behind the pad down the instrument. It does take experience to know how to look and find the very smallest leaks, but it's a very straightforward operation otherwise. With clarinets, the pads are translucent so a light won't work. People recomment feeler guages, using smoke, the suck/blow test, even using liquid in the bore to find leaks. For me, I do the most simple: feeler guages. I have feelers made out of the thin mylar window that comes on envelopes containing bills. I cut a number of these from the envelope to use. I try to adjust pads so the 'grab' on the guage is about even from at least eight different angles. I still can't find all the leaks. Oh, yeah. Working with plastic clarinets is a joy. Apparently I got a little to much direct heat on a tonehole and it warped slightly. I took a rotary tool with a sanding disk (trimmed down to size) to redefine the hole and level the surface, then I buffed around it a little (before leveling the rim again). Clarinets. what a pain!

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