Originally Posted by
Dieter Debusschere
Roger,
There are no instrument repair shops where I live, so once a year I clean my valves and valve casings using normal toothpaste as mild polishing/lapping paste. I use a regular soft toothbrush to apply and scrub carefully the casings and body of the pistons, and rinse all parts thoroughly with water after cleaning. Especially the notch in the valve casing where the plastic valve guide fits into seems to collect dirt over time, making the valve to stick. However, I do dismantle the valves completely to do this, which is fairly easy on my Besson 765. I maintained the valves of my horn for more than 20 years now this way, and they still play like new.
Hope this helps?
Dieter