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Thread: Placing a horn on it's bell

  1. Actually wherever you put it in proximity to the floor it's a foot magnet of sorts, even to your own feet! The under the chair idea is worrisome too based on break-time community band observations. I've put instruments down for a moment to grab something at home (tuner, metronome, more music, etc) and have gotten close to a foot incident as well. For that reason, although pricey, Hercules stands are the bomb.com (did I really just quote my 13 YO daughter?)
    Bob Tampa FL USA
    Euph -- 1984 B&H Round Stamp Sovereign 967 / 1978 Besson NS 767 / Early 90s Sterling MP: 4AL and GW Carbonaria
    Tuba -- 2014 Wisemann 900 CC / 2013 Mack 410 MP: Blokepiece Symphony American Shank and 33.2 #2 Rim

  2. I believe that placing a horn on its bell is never a good idea. No matter where you are, if there is room to place the horn on its bell then there is room for a stand to be used. Most stands are no larger than the space the horn takes up. There are several mfgs of stands, K&M, Jupiter, Wessex, MM, just to name a few. Most will fold up for ease of transport and offer an inexpensive alternative to placing your horn in its bell. If you bring a stand to rehearsal, I'm sure you can find room for it, just like the Trombone, Trumpet and Clarinet players. Tuba & Euphonium players are using stands to protect their babies more often than you might expect.

  3. #13
    Usually during breaks, I either put it back in its case or I just carry it with me.
    Al
    Valencia College 2013
    UCF (GO KNIGHTS!)
    Studying Music Education as a Major

    Weapons of Brass Destruction -
    Euphonium - 1969 Besson Imperial with a Denis Wick SM3U Mouthpiece
    Tenor Trombone - 2011 Getzen Eterna with a Schilke 51 D Mouthpiece


    I play in various ensembles at Rollins College, the University of Central Florida, and anywhere else that needs either a Trombone or Euphonium player in the Central Florida area.

  4. #14
    Quote Originally Posted by UCFEuph View Post
    Usually during breaks, I either put it back in its case or I just carry it with me.
    That's partly why I like the generous fit of my Altieri bag. I keep it nearby, and when there is a break it's very easy to slide the horn into it.
    Dave Werden (ASCAP)
    Euphonium Soloist, U.S. Coast Guard Band, retired
    Adams Artist (Adams E3)
    Alliance Mouthpiece (DC3)
    YouTube: dwerden
    Facebook: davewerden
    Twitter: davewerden
    Instagram: davewerdeneuphonium

  5. #15
    I purchased 1/4 inch plastic tubing from Hobby Lobby and cut it the full length of the diameter of the bell. Placing this on the bell prevents any scratches and, I too, don't leave it on it's bell for long periods of time. No problem whatsoever with valves yet. I do tend to keep the valves cleaned out from sludge, cookie crumbs, etc. building up.

  6. #16
    Join Date
    Dec 2013
    Location
    El Paso, Texas
    Posts
    383
    I used to set my horns on their bells, but stopped after my horn would leak the fluid from inside my valve or dump the "moisture" in my spit catcher down onto my bell and finger buttons making for a splash every time my valves compressed and decompressed. I then got my new Adams and baby the crap out of it and refuse to set it on its bell because of the above listed reason, and the because I did not want to scrath my new horn as well as risk myself or anyone tripping and bumping the horn and all sorts of nonsense happening to it. So long story short DIDO. For me no mechanical reasons, merely safety and cosmetics.
    Adams E1 SS, Gold Brass Body .6mm DE Euph N103 Jcup, J9 shank
    Meinl Weston 2141 Eb Tuba PT 84

  7. Quote Originally Posted by ghmerrill View Post
    All of the above reasons are good ones for not putting your horn on its bell. Here's an additional one:

    It's bad habit. If you do it in the privacy of your own home, you'll do it elsewhere. If you do it in a band situation, the horn attracts woodwind players who step on the bell. (Actually, an upended tuba-like instrument also seems to attract many trombone players to walk near it as well.)

    Some of the woodwind players in my community band are pretty hot, so maybe standing the horn on its bell is an improvement over online dating services. I do stand the horn sometimes, but at
    home the bell is on carpet and away, the horn is down for at most two or three minutes. I have found that if I have to use both hands for something, like adjusting a music stand, and lay the horn across my lap, the horn is more at risk of sliding off and being dropped than it is from being stood. But never do I stand the horn on its bell and go off and leave it.

    And how is standing the horn on its bell going to deliver more scratches than sliding it under a chair? In either circumstance, it's the same floor.
    Harry Nuttall

    Bach Stradivarius New York model 8II tenor trombone #28xx
    Besson New Standard #438xxx
    Besson "Prototype" euphonium #510xx
    Conn 30I Wonderphone double-belled euphonium #327xxx
    Hawkes & Son Excelsior Sonorous #534xx
    Holton Revelation euphonium #753xx
    Holton Revelation euphonium #797xx

  8. #18
    I have a follow up question for you guys...can I assume that you are also not supposed to store the horn in its case facing bell down? I rarely set the instrument down by its bell, but for storage, a euph case takes up less space stored bell down.

  9. #19
    Join Date
    Dec 2011
    Location
    Central North Carolina
    Posts
    2,369
    Two words in response to Harry's "How is standing the horn on its bell going to deliver more scratches ..." question: "tuba stand" (or "euph stand", if you like). Or here's two more words that may be applicable "easy chair" (much better than putting it on the floor whether under a chair or not). At least thee work at home. And for concerts, I sometimes take my folding tuba floor stand for my big Wessex tuba.

    Also, for my tubas (though not for my euph) I have made bell rim protectors from clear vinyl tubing. So on the (VERY INFREQUENT) occasion when I need to put the instrument on its bell, the rim does not actually touch the floor. In the past certain high-end tubas have been provided with such protectors from the maker, though this seems to have gone out of fashion.

    In terms of putting the cased horn in an orientation where it's bell-down, I used to do this. Then I realized it wasn't smart. In part I realized this after discovering that when I did it, all the oil in the piston valves seemed to disappear if the horn was left this way over time (for rotary horns, it doesn't seem to matter). So now, I don't set them bell-down any more even within the case. There is one exception to this. I typically "store" my 1924 Buescher tuba by standing it on its bell (with the aforementioned vinyl bell protector in place). I don't really like to do this (because of the oil problem mentioned), but given my circumstances and where I keep it, it's the best compromise.

    My wife keeps suggesting that I make a bracket to hang the Buescher from on the wall (how I store my oval euph), but I haven't gotten around to it. I probably will do that at some point within the next year. But given that the horn has a 17" bell, the bracket needs to be fabricated with some care.

    See the attachment for a pic of the hanging oval euphonium, with fishing rod rack and hanging bass guitar in the background.
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails hanging euph.jpg  
    Gary Merrill
    Wessex EEb Bass tuba (DW 3XL or 2XL)
    Mack Brass Compensating Euph (DE N106, Euph J, J9 euph)
    Amati Oval Euph (DE 104, Euph J, J6 euph)
    1924 Buescher 3-valve Eb tuba (with std US receiver), Kelly 25
    Schiller American Heritage 7B clone bass trombone (DE LB K/K10/112/14 Lexan, Brass Ark MV50R)
    1947 Olds "Standard" trombone (Olds #3)

  10. #20
    Yeah, I always used to store my cased horns on the bell...because all of my horns stack neatly in a small closet that way. I rarely ever put the horn on its bell out of the case except in a pinch, but reading Dave's point (which makes sense to me) about the collected crud migrating back into the valves is a major concern. I won't be storing it on its bell in the case any more.

    On the other hand, retailers must bank on this not being a big deal. At the Army conference, nearly every tuba/euph are left out in the open bell down.

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