Posted by Mark in Ohio on July 29, 2000 at 23:45:50:
In Reply to: Future Tuba Improvements??? posted by J.A.D. on July 27, 2000 at 23:56:34:
Hello All
I'm sure someone has tinkered with this idea before, but so far I haven't found anything in the literature, so here goes....
An all plastic (composite, synthetic, resin, ...whatever) valve and valve branches, with the pistins or rotors in a bored-out block, rather than thin-wall cylinders of brass. The advantages are apparent- no accidental bumping of casings out-of-round, and (aside from initial design and tooling) easier mass production. Such a valve cluster could also prove to be lighter, much quieter, immune to corrosion and the green stuff, and even more durable than current materials.
GM has successsfully prototyped plastic auto engines, with much the same results as described above (material cost is the big hurdle presently). Auto engines endure far greater stresses than a tuba might! The technology is here. Someone has to simply be ready risk parting with the traditional construction materials & methods that have essentially not changed since the advent of the "Tuba" as we know it today.
Any polymer chemists and plastics manufacturers out there with me?
~-o^o-~ Mark in Ohio