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Cleaining a bass saxophone?

4K views 12 replies 8 participants last post by  SaxTon 
#1 ·
After playing I clean my baritone saxophone using a Helin 420M pull-through micro-cloth, which works really well. On my bass I use the waterkey and clean the neck. Other than that, is there any need to clean my bass saxophone, and if so, how to do this?
 
#2 ·
Collector: The subject of swabbing/cleaning saxophones has been hotly debated on SOTW for quite a while. I doubt if a bass sax is any different than any other saxophone as far as how players deal with them after playing them.

I, for one, have rarely "cleaned" the inside of any of the saxophones I've owned (and that would be many over the years). I don't swab them, either, having once experienced a stuck swab that resulted in damage to one of my sopranos. I've found no need to do it - the moisture in the tube dries by itself. If, on the rare occasion where the inside of my horn looked like a dirt-bike trail, I used a rifle-rod with a gun-cleaning patch to "wash" the inside, but that was only a few times.

Usually, when this subject comes up (and it does all the time), I offer this response and then others feel the need to tell me about double-ended swabs and swabs made specifically for soprano saxophones, etc., etc. I offer this only because I'm sure someone will come in once again and say those things. I know about them - still, I choose not to swab.

So no, there is no need to clean the inside of your bass saxophone, at least that's MY opinion. I keep the outsides of my horns clean but not the inside. DAVE
 
#3 ·
I'm with Dave on this. Most of my horns live on their stands anyhow - so they dry out quickly.
I can't imagine swabbing my bari or my bass - or my curved soprano for that matter. I could - but WHY?

My only exception to this is I swab my clarinet every time I play it for more than a few minutes. Wood is a very different animal..
 
#4 ·
I swab S,A,& T every time to dry it out, as I don't often have the luxury of leaving the horn outside of the case. I also insert HW Pad Savers afterwards to pick up and wick away any residual moisture. This is almost exclusively to extend the pad life and prevent sticking.

You don't have that same issue with a bari or bass. Nearly all the moisture condenses and collects in the first 12" or so of the horn and the rest of it stays pretty dry and it's seldom, if ever, that any of the pads get wet just from playing it. This is not to mention the royal PITA of trying to run a weighted string through the top crook of either.

So, on bari I run a chamois swab through the mouthpiece and neck, and a Hodge swab into the tenon for a ways just to dry out the bottom of the top crook so the water doesn't run down the horn. It's enough on bari, and probably all you'd ever want to do on a bass too.
 
#5 ·
I let all my saxes dry out sitting with the case open in my studio - or on the stand. And swab them (only SATB) just after playing to select reeds etc when I'm packing for a rehearsal or gig and after the gig of course.
My guess is Adrian Rollini never cleaned his bass, and as I most humbly say, do the same.
 
#6 ·
#7 ·
After playing the bari I use a chamois swab for the neck and a Hodge silk swab for the neck each time. Occaisionally (just to show off) I use a silk swab with a long string inserted into the bell. It requires a some spinning and rotating the sax over your head. It's a real crowd pleaser when the little weight and string come out of the neck after all the girations.
 
#8 ·
I expect a demonstration next Thursday.... ;)
 
#9 ·
I'd like to thank Dave, hgrail, maddenma, Saxton, xraydog for their responses. I will continue to enjoy my bass saxophone and won't bother trying to clean it.
 
#11 ·
I think we all have something to learn from you. :)
 
#12 ·
Here's the thing. The "U" tube after the neck on a bass sax, or the "loop" in the neck of my Eppelsheim catches all the condensation (spit!?) before it gets to the pads. It's probably a good idea to clean the "U" tube now and then, but remember, the water in the upper parts of a bass or baritone saxophone is condensation, not saliva. Since it's really distilled water, it is very clean, at least if the upper loop of a bass or bari sax is clean.
Bass and baritone saxophone players are fortunate, because the back and forth hydration/dehydration of the pads is minimized when water is captured in the top loop. The pads don't get as wet as the pads in tenor, alto, or soprano saxes. Nothing lasts forever, but I have pads in one of my baritone saxes that are nearly 50 years old that do their job very well.
 
#13 ·
Some older American style basses have a spit valve installed but not really needed IMO.
When I I play a gig or practice a lot I will turn it upside down to drain it but it's usually on a stand when at home with a dust cover and can naturally dry out.
As Saktek says the body stays quite dry in the bass and bari and pads last longer for sure.
 
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