Re: Re: Re: Repeated bell damage, replace bell?


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Posted by Chuck(G) on April 02, 2001 at 11:00:10:

In Reply to: Re: Re: Repeated bell damage, replace bell? posted by Tubaguy on April 02, 2001 at 09:49:18:

Depends on your threshold of aesthetic pain; it's mostly a matter of costmetics. Bells that are split or torn can be patched, but can end up looking like hell. Removing creases leaves faint traces in the metal that are faintly visible. Any dent or wrinkle removal "stretches" the metal a bit like pie dough, distorting the shape a little. Some antique horns that have been set down on hard surfaces so often have the wire rim tearing away from the bell body, but even that can be mended after a fashion. After too many sessions with the repair guy, the metal does get more brittle and thin and subsequent repairs get more difficult--and the bell is less sound structurally.

But from an acoustical standpoint, there isn't much of a reason to replace a bell unless it's so bad that it's a mass of patches or just plain demolished. Heck, I've seen an old Martin bell that was drilled to hold Christmas-tree lights--still sounded just fine and the holes were patchable.

A lot of damage can be fixed; just ask anyone who repairs school horns for a living. Appearance of the finished result is variable, depending on the extent of the damage and the skill of the repair tech.


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