Posted by Chuck on October 23, 2000 at 11:55:55:
In Reply to: frozen slide and piston felt posted by Karl on October 22, 2000 at 21:26:07:
Karl, you didn't mention the age of the tuba. If it's an oldie, I'd take it to a music store to have the slide pulled--they have tools for that. The rag trick is worth a try, but the slide may come apart on you, leaving part of itself inacessibly stuck in the outer tube of the slide. A repair shop shouldn't charge much to pull a slide.
Same for felts--it's relatively important that the valves be adjusted via the felts and corks so that they are properly aligned. Not a big deal when you're a repair shop with a drawer full of felts and corks, but a bit tougher if you have to roll your own. In a pinch, you could probably cut your own felts or use some of the synthetic ones from Vallentino.
Worn valve guides may also be contributing to the noise. Try rotating each valve piston a bit while they're installed. See if there's a significant amount of play side-to-side. If so, that's definitely a job for a repair shop.
Also, check the water key cork(s) while you're at it--if the felts are getting too worn, the water key cork's probably not far behind. And give the whole horn a good snaking out and rinse--school horns tend to accumulate a lot of debris.