Brass Serpent owners - Announcement

Whistle
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Dale said this was okay to post.
If you are the owner of a Brass Serpent tunable, and want to get rid of the hassle of using the PTFE, well, here’s how! (edit2) This thought process kicked off by an email exchange with Wendy Morrison - THANK YOU, Wendy!) :smiley: (/edit2)

  1. Remove the tape from the slide
  2. Rub a heavy coat of beeswax on the slide
  3. Warm the beeswax with your fingers
  4. Reassemble the slide, rotating as you do so
  5. Check the fit and for leakage, apply more beeswax if needed.
  6. If this doesn’t work for you, you can always continue to use the PTFE, and let me know via email, please.

So far, this has worked on every set I’ve tried (14, so far). I will begin including a small block of beeswax with every tunable, instead of the tape. (edit) And all new shipments will be assembled using beeswax, so you won’t have to go through the rigmarole of removal! :smiley: (/edit)

Enjoy your Brass Serpent! :smiley:
Bill Whedon, Serpent Music

[ This Message was edited by: serpent on 2003-01-12 14:37 ]

[ This Message was edited by: serpent on 2003-01-12 14:43 ]

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It is best to use only beeswax from your local beekeeper, alot of beeswax sold (in the uk anyway) is imported from africa/india/china, and is very often not pure beeswax having been adulterated with other waxes or STUFF!!, in the UK all honey products from china were withdrawn last year as they were found to contain banned chemicals, these chemicals would also be present in the wax!! and I don’t think you’d want to put toxins on you whistle.

Any one in the uk who needs a small amount of pure beeswax for whistle uses drop me a mail, we have upto 350,000 apis mellifica mellifica the british black bee which is rare and endangered( thought to have become extinct in the '20’s untill recently)

Vindemy - the taking of honey from the hive..

rbm, in the wilds of the English Lake District, where the fells stand proud, the lakes are clear and the sea be in the celler!

[ This Message was edited by: rbm on 2003-01-12 15:18 ]

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Mirrific mellifica–magnifique!

And from the Lake district, too ?

Hee-hee: why wouldn’t you come and sell us some where “everyone who counts” meet : 4-5-6 July, Mesquer, South of Brittany. :wink:

There you can taste our “chouchen” (hydromel, or honey-wine), maybe come back with new recipes for apis hydromellifica vulgarly known as “typsy bee”

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rbm, thanks very much for the heads-up on beeswax, especially since putting it on your slide means your hands will come into contact with it. I do purchase mine from a local beekeeper, a friend, in fact, so know the origin and composition of what I will send with the whistles.
Again, thanks! :smiley:
serpent