Hey there-
Yesterday the first front of “colder” (haha), and drier air of the season came through Texas. Lovely weather, but the reed didn’t like it. As I had read on the forum, I applied a little bit of almond oil to the reed in hopes of stabilizing it through the humidity swings. Now, I know the reed ought to dry for a bit, and the only post I found with refernce to drying time was to let the reed dry overnight. Just for curiosity’s sake, though, I plugged the reed directly back into the stick, there was nothing coming out but air and a low grumble! Of course, I went into a bit of a panic at the thought of just trashing a perfectly good reed…and so my question is- will the drying time bring the reed back from beyond or am I sunk? Anyone know?
Perhaps sponging off any excess oil and letting it sit for a few days would help. I know people who oil their reeds will let them soak in oil for days to weeks, but I have never been too clear on how long the reeds should be left to cure afterwards. I would think you’d want to let the reed drip dry and then dry off any excess left. Maybe time to learn to make one’s own reeds, just in case.
I never have tried almond oil. I use neetsfoot oil and I dip the head up to the binding in it.
I can give a quick puff through the staple to blow the excess oil out to the lips and dry with my reed wiping rag and play it immediately (may sound slightly dull the first day).
I suspect that you may have some leaks in your reed. I get leaks inmine when the weather changes (I use a “square” head design of reed which can be prone to this) and here is what I do to cure it:
Place the fleshy part of a finger on the reed lip to seal that. Wet your thumb and forefinger and hold close to the edge of the reed and give a quick puff through the staple. If you feel air escaping on the wet fingers, you have a side leak.
I use a wood glue (Elmer’s in the US) and put a drop on my finger and draw up the sides of the reed just missing the very tip of the reed (next to the lips).
Also, to prevent leaks in the binding, scrub with beeswax and melt into the string by polishing it until shiny with a scrap piece of cane.
Just to let you all know- it all worked out. After about 24 hours of drying/curing the reed is back to its former glory, no autogran, no problems. Multo bene!
