Posted by Tom B. on August 12, 2001 at 19:21:36:
The following message in response to a question about a Weril got me thinking...
As far as piston valve tubas are concerned, how many have plastic or nylon vavle guides? For a personally owned horn is it desirable to have the plastic type of the metal ones? Does one type guide the valves better or keep them in better alignment? How does one know if the guides (plastic) need to be replaced before the horn developes valve problmes.
Original message:
=========================================================================================
"I've been told that by Dan Getzen of D.E.G. Music (the U.S. distributor).
Although most of us have established a comfort zone with slot guides made of plastic, they have some drawbacks:
School-owned tubas plastic slot-guide tubas: Yama/Jupi/Bess/King etc. often arrive for repair with the guides' retainer nibs either rotated over to the air vent hole (unplayable) or with their guides sheared off due to soft material combined with careless insertion.
The Weril guide system, a throwback to an old Conn system is quirky, but as unusual as they are, I never (at least not yet) see them back for guide-related repairs.
I suppose, however, that within months they will "Go with the flow". They are possibly, if they've decided this for sure, working to perfect the slot-cutting (??) before committing AND (possibly) trying to manufacture an inexhaustable supply of replacement guides for the "old" style (??).
Joe "some conjecture here, obviously" S. "