Posted by humble on February 14, 2004 at 08:43:29:
Hi There,
I have a question concerning valve oil. Is there really a difference between it and a light machine oil (sewing machine oil, for example)? It sure doesn't look terribly different. Is valve oil specifically engineered for brass instruments? If so, how? I ask for two reasons:
1) It seems vaguely ridiculous to me to pay up to $3.00 for two ounces of oil, if a similar or identical oil is available at a local hardware store for much less.
2) There are no music stores in my immediate area, though there is a hardware store just down the road.
I need to get some oil soon, and before I drive off to the music store, I was wondering if I could get some thoughts on this.