Do Lawtons squeak?

[Sax_Lass]

Hey there!

I own a Lawton (7* B for alto) and I was told by a a mate at college that Lawton mouthpieces tend to squeak a lot because they are so precisely made that the reed has to be absolutely perfectly in line when setting up. Is this the same with every metal mouthpiece? Is this true with Lawtons? Is my mate talking a load of crap?

Cheers!

Sax_Lass
:)

[Sigmund451]

Yup. The source of squeaks or squeals is typically the lack of precision. Sounds like a rationalization to me and a call for a good refacer unless the reed is warped. Metal does have a bit more tendency to squeal until one becomes used to it. It should not take long to adjust. I briefly had a lawton but didnt care for the sound. No problems with squeals or chirps, a bit hard on the chops for the opening tho. I just love their ligs...awesome. I wish others used a similiar design

[MojoBari]

The Lawton rail and chamber work is really nice, but many of them have some facing problems. The baffles are very high near the tip rail which makes them prone to squeeking for some players, even if the facing is good.

If you tend to play on the tip, use hard reeds and a lot of blowing pressure. This is fuel for squeeks.

[Eulipion2]

Well, I know this isn't for everyone, but some of the most common reeds people use on Lawtons with much success are Lavoz, Rico Jazz Select, and Rico Plasticovers. I used to squeak hardcore until I switched to Lavoz. So if you experience squeaks, try different reeds before getting the piece altered.

[singlereed]

Geoff Lawton always made his mouthpieces personally and had a good reputation for quality. However, his pieces don't suit everyone - I have never been able to get on with them myself. Since his death, his pieces have acquired some kind of mystique, but whilst they are undoubtedly nicely made, maybe it just doesn't suit you.

[Joe Jazz]

I play on Lawtons on sop, alto, and tenor on a regular basis and in the beginning had a few squeeking problems....harder reeds solved the problem..... :)

[Rasty]

Joe sorry for quoting outside original topic but as for me it fits perfectly ;)...


As a member of the NRA I must inform you that mouthpieces don't squeek, people do.......... :?

...and I couldn't agree more, all you have to do is to create appropriate setup (piece+reed+ligat), so that you can make almost every piece rock.

[JimMetcalf]

I use a Lawton 7*BBS on tenor,Bronze 7*BB on Alto and a Stainless 9B on Soprano and Stainless 8B on baritone. Bari* Medium reeds work well on all. Reed placement is VERY critical to produce good sound on these pieces. The more you play these pieces-the more "user friendly" they become!

[baribri]

Hi,
I've played Lawtons off and on for almost 40 years and I have found that I can honestly say I've never had one that really played at 100% until some kind of refacing adjustments were made to them. (during my "Stint" at USA horn I was able to try a really large number of Lawtons constantly) Once that is done they are great. Of course we would all like to think and say it's the person that squeeks but that really can often be far from the truth. All it takes is one minute variation in tip, table or rails and there you have it, squeeks. In theory the embochure should always be constant but in reality this just does not happen on sax, ergo.. squeeks if the piece is the slightest bit off.
good luck all.