2.0 Strength Reeds
2 reeds have been included with this care kit to get your familiar with your instrument and blowing techniques. These reeds generally won’t last more than a couple of weeks before needing to be discarded. If the reed chips or breaks it will no longer serve its purpose and then also need to be discarded. To elongate the life of the reed, it is advised to use a reed guard like the one supplied in this kit. Rotate your reeds on a daily basis instead of using one all the way to its expiration.
Mouthpiece Brush
This is a woodwind specific mouthpiece brush designed to fit the size of most common woodwind mouthpieces. Remove the ligature and reed and soak the instrument’s mouthpiece in the sink using a light amount of dish soap to create a lather. Scrub the inside and outside of the mouthpiece vigorously while avoiding the cork. Rinse the mouthpiece until any trace of soap or bubbles is gone. You may use an air compressor to dry if you have one (avoid direct air on the cork) or you wipe it down by hand using any light cloth. This should be done once or more times per week to keep free of germs.
Clarinet Swab
The clarinet swab is a pull through swab with a fanned backing that ensures the cloth cleans the entire bore upon use. With the instrument assembled (minus mouthpiece) drop the weight into the bell and draw it through the barrel opening. Pull the end of the swab so that the edges of the cloth remove any build up from the inside of the instrument’s bore. Feel free to do this as many times as necessary to ensure that all contaminants have been removed from the inside of the instrument. This should be done each time after the instrument is played and prior to disassembling and storing in the case.
Cork Grease
Apply a light layer of grease to each of the tenon corks each time you play the instrument. After a week to 2 weeks of applying grease prior to playing, the cork may become saturated and will no longer need extra grease. You may also want to add some grease to the mouthpiece cork to make putting on/taking off of the mouthpiece easier. Eventually the cork will wear out or tear and need to be replaced with a new cork (covered under your rental maintenance). Re-grease your new corks as necessary.
Reed Guard
The reed guard is where you should store your reeds when they are not being used. This is preferable to leaving the reed on your mouthpiece or putting the reed back in its packing plastic which will cause the reed to wear out quicker. After you have used one reed for a day, put it in the reed guard and pull out a fresh reed for the next time. You should put 3 total reeds into rotation, using each for just one day at a time. Doing the rotation this way will maximize the lifespan of your reed.