Super 20 tenor and alto (Eastlake) pad sizes

[milandro]

Could anyone be so kind as to provide me with the metric sizes of a full set of Super 20 pads for both alto and tenor? Cheers!

[milandro]

bump......no one knows? I am surprised there must be someone among the many techs or Super 20 lovers who can help me, I just need pads sizes, that's all!

[shmuelyosef]

...just saw this...probably have the data in my records, but it will take me a few days to get around to digging it out of the files...hte other thing that you could do is email Curt at Music Medic (curt@musicmedic.com) and ask him, as I know he will source full sets without your needing to measure.

[saxtek]

I can give you Prestini's King alto and tenor pad specs, but the alto info lists 25 pads, so I'm thinking it's for one of King's really old horns with the double G key. The tenor sizes might be right, but I'm not sure.

Another problem is, different manufacturers measure slightly differently, even when they have the right horn. When I sold pad sets to band directors, over half were wrong, even when I spent tons of time measuring keys.

When you buy a set of pads, it may or may not be the correct sizes, and if anything goes wrong during the overhaul, there is no spare pad. Also, some saxophone pads, from any source, were never good enough to install on a saxophone.

I really want to supply you with the necessary information, and I actually dug into my files to find the sizes from Prestini, but after seeing the information I found, and after repairing saxes for 40 years, I think I might be leading you astray to post what I found.

Your best bet is to remove the keys, take them to someone local with a very good supply of pads, and ask them to fit the keys with pads. keep in mind that most King saxes use thin pads, about .160" thick, if the keys haven't been bent to fit thicker pads previously. Usually, one or more pads on the horn will prove to be the exception to the rule, and more problems ensue.

Think about it. If you really want the Prestini pad sizes, which are generally pretty good, let me know and I will post them or PM them to you.

[milandro]

thank you all , my friends! Any information is welcome! I know about Curt but I needed to explore an other source. Locally, most technicians would only use one thickness alone (in all sizes) and make do with it.

[saxtek]

OK, here goes. This is Prestini's list of pad sizes for King alto and tenor.

By the way, Prestini makes excellent pads, and they were the original pads on most King Super-20 altos and tenors. Some horns had smaller flat resonators with a rivet, and others had a larger domed resonator with no visible rivet, even though the resonators were riveted on. The "domed" resonators didn't bulge out from the pad very much, as Selmer domed resonators do. They were very similar to today's common plastic resonators, but made from nickle plated steel.

King alto (25 pads):
2 - 9.5mm pads; 1 - 15.5mm pad; 5 - 19mm pads; 1 - 23.5mm pad; 3 - 25.5mm pads; 1 - 27mm pad; 2 - 30mm pads; 2 - 31mm pads; 1 - 34mm pad; 1 36.5mm pad; 1 - 38mm pad; 2 - 41mm pads; 3 - 44.5 mm pads
I am highly suspicious of this pad list. Super-20 altos only have 24 pads.

King tenor (24 pads):
2 - 9.5mm pads; 1 - 19mm pad; 4 - 20.5mm pads; 4 - 30mm pads; 2 - 31mm pads; 2 - 34mm pads; 1 - 38.5mm pad; 3 - 41.5mm pads; 1 - 43mm pad; 1 - 48.5mm pad; 2 - 50.5mm pads; 1 - 56.5mm pad

All pads are thin, that is, about .160" thick

[milandro]

[QUOTE=saxtek]
King alto (25 pads):

I am highly suspicious of this pad list. Super-20 altos only have 24 pads.

[QUOTE]

Thank you ever so much! I will check it out. Could it be that this is a list containing the F# key since I've read that the last run of the super 20 did feature an option for such a key.

[baylistenor]

I bought a set of King Alto pads on ebay recently very cheaply.

[milandro]

interesting , could you please confirm sizes (metric if you don't mind)

[saxtek]

By the way, the same pads that were originally on King Super-20 saxes are still available from Prestini, just specify the type of resonator you want. Prestini might even sell sets of pads to private individuals.

[Stan]

My measurements in millimeters on a King S20 alto first series (full pearls) under repadding :D

40,5 x 2
29,5 x 2
31 x 2
34 x 1
30 x 1
25 x 3
44,5 x 1
45,5 x2
38,5 x 1
19 x 4
23,5 x 1
26,5 x 1
10 x 2
15,5 x 1

Total 24 pads!

All the best,

Stan

P.S. The Musicmedic S20 kit fits very well just they forgot to put inside one of the two 10 mm small pads.