Saxophone Forum


by m33p0n3
(2 posts)
20 years ago

Berg Larsen bari mouthpiece

When I took over playing the bari sax forone of my school's jazz bands, I found a metal mouthpiece laying in the case. Nobody knew who it belonged to, so I adopted it. I found it it was a Berg Larsen. But it really needs to be cleaned and is missing the ebonite strip across the top. I took a mouthpiece patch and stuck it on there, cutting it to make it fit. A)What's the best way to clean stuff that's been crusted on the inside? B)Would a repairman be able to replace the ebonite strip?

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  1. by sax_maniac
    (984 posts)

    20 years ago

    Re: Berg Larsen bari mouthpiece

    Vinegar will clean out the spit crusties - whether it's rubber or stainless. Soak it for about an hour and use an old toothbrush (or a new one if you feel like it). There are folks that do mouthpiece repair, but depending on the value of the mouthpiece (what material, specs, vintage) and what other damage might be present, it might not be worth it. If you don't live in an area with a tech who can do this, you might want to take a bunch of digital pictures and contact some techs. I won't list techs here. Do a search on Google.

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    1. by SaxMan
      (559 posts)

      20 years ago

      Re: Berg Larsen bari mouthpiece

      "Do a search on google" That was perhaps THE single most unhelpful tip ever posted on this board. The google search engine is huge billions of sites can be accessed from it. And most techs do not refer to themselves as techs on their site. sarge over at world wide sax does some mouthpiece work I think. Theo wanne does good work, paul tenney does good work, you can find through mark. Johannes gerber in south africa also does very good work. Replacing a bite plate is pretty cheap - id be surprised if you were charged more than 45 bucks for it. And even then you are getting raped - it would take all of a minute to put one in, 5 if you had to take one out. But like maniac said, if there is other stuff wrong it would quite easily out weigh the price of a new piece. As for the vinegar, you dont want to soak rubber pieces in it. The acid screws it up somehow taking sulphur out makiing the piece turn a nasty vomit green. If you have calcium deposits in the piece, use tea kettle cleaner, doesnt harm the piece at all. YOu know those wanrings to use in a well ventilated area? this one you want to listen to, this stuff is about as noxious as brasso if you have ever experienced that. for just cleaing the crust up, use amonia free windex with a tooth brush, works quite good - that crust has calcium in it so you dont want to leave it on there. If there is all sorts of stuff, soak it in hot soapy water - unless rubber, only use cold water, always. even warm water will shorten the life of the piece, though in a small amount, 40 years down the road when that piece isnt made anymore, you might be sorry depending on how much you washed it. For rubber, if the cold water doesnt hurt, it isnt cold enough. If you cant get it any colder, the coldest out of the tap will be fine, dont need to use ice or anything, the life will onyl be slightly shortened, but hey, we have a legacy to leave behind for tomorrow why not leave as good a legacy as possible?

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      1. by sax_maniac
        (984 posts)

        20 years ago

        Re: Berg Larsen bari mouthpiece

        good catch, saxman. I should have phrased things gooder. A stainless steel Berg mpc will hold up to just about any cleaner you put on it, including vinegar. A hard rubber piece should be treated a bit more delicately. Glass Plus is ammonia free, and I use it on my black gloss-lacquered piano as it does the job without harming the finish.

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        1. by SaxMan
          (559 posts)

          20 years ago

          berg larsen bari mouthpiece

          THATS where I learned that from!!!! People have been asking me where I learned the trick of using amonia free windex to clean stuff - never could remember till now. I saw my accompanist cleaning her steinway once with it. It has been driving me nuts where I learned that.

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