Posted by DS on March 22, 2001 at 18:09:42:
I hope I can get some help here. Our church brass ensemble recently received a YBB641 (used, mint condition, and of course, free) from a philanthropic church member whose son no longer plays tuba. I know these tubas are notorious for their valve sluggishness, and this one is no exception (valves 1 and 2 are BRUTAL!). However, a search of the archives turned up no fixes. There must SOMETHING a person can do to at least improve the problem. I therefore have two questions:
1. Has anyone ever actually determined the root cause of the sluggishness? The answer to this should be half the battle, or...?
2. Is there a fix, or at least partial remedy? A heavier spring would seem to help, but will obviously give unwanted side effects.
I've thought about this for a long time, but no immediate answer comes to mind. For what it's worth, I have a machine shop and could manufacture things like different linkages, etc (would Unibal equipment help?) Anyone out there have suggestions? Thanks in advance for any constructive help.
Dietmar Sedens