My King 2341- the “dump” and “fuzzy slides”

[DonO.]

Hello all! I am having a blast with my new horn. Approaching the one month anniversary and still liking it quite a bit. Just a couple of questions.

1. Am I doing the “dump” right? Everyone talks about the water collecting in the 4th valve slide, But on my horn there is a water key on the 4th slide that works well. I have 3 water keys: 4th, tuning slide, and one on a bend that is not a slide. When I do the “dump”, water comes out primarily when I press down the 1st valve, not the 4th.

2. When I put the horn into its factory hard case, little pieces of fuzz or lint from the lining of the case get stuck on the exposed grease of the slides. This cannot be a good thing. My previous horn was kept in an Altieri gig bag and I didn’t have that problem. The only cure I can think of is to push in all the slides when it’s in its case and pull/reset intonation every time I play, which would be a huge drag. How do others deal with this?

[KingTuba1241X]

The newer 2341's (short bell) had that factory water key on the back/inner portion of the 4th valve.

Also, in between tunes I would just set the horn on the bell and pull/dump slides from top as well/only...no King spin needed.

[matt g]

re: The Fuzz

Try running a vacuum and lint roller over the interior of the case several times to remove the looser material and you should see a reduction in fuzz on your slides.

[Three Valves]

I shove my slides in before putting in away.

[greenbean]

I would get used to pushing the slides in. It is only a pain if you don't have the right kind and amount of lube on them!

[DonO.]

For those who say that they push in all their slides before putting the horn back in the case: then you have to re-set the intonation every single time you play! Once you have everything just right, isn’t it a pain to have to go through that process over and over? Also, what is the “right” slide lube? I’m using Bach Synthetic Slide Gel and I don’t like it! The slides are very hard to move.

[matt g]

I used to mark my slides with pencil.

[bloke]

Yeah… I believe I would aggressively brush out the case, and follow that up with a vacuum. (If old, that also might freshen it up a bit.)
You could also try wiping all the grease off of your slides and see if they slide OK with just valve oil on them. If so, the oil on the exposed part of the slides will evaporate away, and nothing will stick to them.
Otherwise, consider greasing the parts of the slides that are inserted, and leave the exposed parts of the slides free of grease, eh?

An auxiliary water key immediately past the number four piston eliminates a lot of problems.

[greenbean]

For those who say that they push in all their slides before putting the horn back in the case: then you have to re-set the intonation every single time you play! Once you have everything just right, isn’t it a pain to have to go through that process over and over? Also, what is the “right” slide lube? I’m using Bach Synthetic Slide Gel and I don’t like it! The slides are very hard to move.

I use a lighter slide grease so pushing them in is not a hassle. But heavy enough grease that the slides stay where I put them. Yes, I pull them all out. It takes, honestly, no more than 10 seconds. And, of course, I know exactly where they go - I do it everyday. Pushing them back in at the end of the session takes no time, really, because I pull them all out to dump them anyway.

And on slides I move while playing, I use Hetman light slide oil. They glide effortlessly.