From Trash to Treasure- making a tuba mouthpipe- band instrument repair- Wes Lee Music Repair

In this episode, Wes makes a mouthpipe starting a restoration for a vintage Conn 20J tuba.
Thanks for watching.

[@Argyll9846]

As an ex E flat tuba player, I love watching you restore damaged brass instruments. You show great skill and patience in your work.

[@jagilo9677]

I loved when he said “I just use what’s around my shop, my knees “ 😂

[@NatureOkie]

As a BBb tuba player in high school, and a Contrabass Bugle in the Navy. This brings tears of joy to my eyes. I had a stroke in 2008, then another on the other side in 2016, as I was recovering the use of the right side hand, fingers, I borrowed a 1920s baritone from a buddy. The higher pressures make my "mask" uncontrollably snicker on high notes. Being about to retire, I guess I won't be buying a tuba soon... wish we had an oom pah band in town! Lol

[@alanwbelcher]

Beautiful piece, sir. Thanks for showing us how it's done.

[@shimmy5737]

You are a genius, using that block of wood in the vise as a tubing bender. Reminds me of my brother, when he fixed electric guitars in the early 70's. He used an old motor from a construction set (maybe an Erector set), jury rigged it to hold the pickup coil forms and wound his own pickup coils. A couple of reps from Gibson came to our house to see why he was ordering all of these repair parts, and were impressed enough to make him an authorized dealer, so he got a discount on his orders. He mostly fixed electric guitars, but did an electric accordion that had a Screwdriver drink dumped on it, ( dried orange juice we cleaned up with water and Q-Tips) and fixed an electric piano that had some broken hammers. He rebuilt all of them in it by cutting off these little plastic nubs (they would have broke off eventually) on the side of the hammers, (we called 'em hammers, not sure of the proper name. the things that hit the piano wires when you pressed the keys) drilled them out on his "drill press" (a Uni-mat mini lathe set up as a drill press) and replaced them with pieces of drill rod cut to length. The owner said it played better than brand new.

[@jstep4146]

I would really love to see that beast restored completely! I played one of those in band back in the olden times, and it would look awesome. Those generic lead pipes really have gone up in price. The first one I bought was about $15, and now you need a cosigner to buy one!

[@acidburner420]

Absolutely beautiful work as usual, recently found you on KZbin and couldn't be happier.

[@joeo6378]

I am sure I am one of many comments like this but here I go anyway. When I first found the channel I expected a lot of very precise and very special tools to fix these horns. While there are a lot of special tools, I am very surprised by how often "Bend it with my thumbs" and "Smack it with this thing that is the right shape" is the answer. Very fun. Thank you for sharing.

[@brianwalker6849]

I love to watch a craftsman at his work plus a craftsman will always work in a clean and safe work shop.

[@kristimiller-lee2338]

Great use of your custom tools on bending that pipe- your hands!

[@dougberrett8094]

Once again another interesting video. I love the cute little torch.

[@bruhsoundeffect8455]

I’ve loved today’s and yesterday’s videos!!!!!!!! I always look forward to getting notifications of your and art’s videos

[@wesleemusicrepair9820]

Thanks!

[@steveinman1512]

Excellent work. Excellent videos. Thanks for your tuba rescue projects!

[@lotsabirds]

Fantastic work!

[@nealebarltrop-pm6nn]

Hi Wes. I just love watching your videos and thank you for sharing your amazing trade skills. I am always inspired.

[@alphabeets]

Geez, great work on this. Impressive work.

[@josephervine1119]

Played a 20J in high school. absolute beast of a horn!

[@tomsavage6911]

Enjoyed this video as well as yesterday’s!

[@wesleemusicrepair9820]

Thanks for watching.

[@1lewtime]

I am 75 years old and played t Sousaphone in high school. I never even thought about instrument repair when I graduated from high school.

[@retrovinilos5631]

Que maravilloso trabajo !!! Felicitaciones por tanto talento !!

[@dragbikedemon]

That baby torch is awesome!

[@billykerker3089]

Absolutely awesome. Thank you Warm regards from South Africa

[@krikorarnelian2909]

As usual great job amazing work...

[@edwardpeacock9718]

A GREAT SPECIALLY SKILLED GENTLE SOUL WE HAVE MUCH TO LEARN FROM, VERY PATIENT AND PERSEVERING PERSON WHO GIVES HIS ALL---EVERYONE WILL ENJOY THANKS, ED PEACOCK

[@olycarpio9102]

Well done... Master..

[@TheMrAshley2010]

Great work as usual Wes. And by the way, 6 weeks or so ago, when you were working on that King bari sax you mentioned a hand cream that you use. It could not have been more timely for me to see it. I had never heard of that brand before. I was in bad shape at the time with cracked bleeding fingers, and it was getting worse despite efforts to turn it around. Well, ONE application of the cream you recommended and the downward spiral was halted! Using less than one tube has restored good health to my hands. Thank you! Finally, I have a 20J and hope you have the opportunity to make more videos about them down the road. Will be interested to see what's up next, regardless.

[@wesleemusicrepair9820]

Thanks! That O’Keeffe’s is good stuff, glad it helped you out. I’m hoping to get to dig in more on this 20J. Thanks for watching.

[@elischultes6587]

Cornhuskers lotion might be a good choice too.

[@playonkorg]

You are a great leadpipe fixer...I like to see this

[@AndyMarsh]

Great work! I'm constantly amazed by the condition of the instruments you get. I can understand an instrument that got dropped or sat on but so many seem to be just abused.

[@usefi79]

great work

[@attia1184]

Good work very nice

[@giannicarlo]

Very nice

[@guidotrubenbach-saxman2524]

Great work ! Greetings from Germany !

[@trig6712]

Great, Excellent

[@drlegendre]

Just found your channel Wes, and it's been a thoroughly enjoyable watch. It's always so enjoyable to see these less-common trades being worked. Your work reminds me a bit of one of my favorite channels, Dave Engals' Engals Coach Shop. Have you ever seen any of his video?

[@20jcontra]

Not just a 20J but a 24J. My college marching band tuba. Great video! 👍

[@justinhartley871]

TOAD

[@TiagoGregoriodaSilva]

4:10 4:11 3:25 Muito bons vídeos desse profissional americano! O meu respeito e consideração á essa pessoa. sou tubista aqui no 4:41 Brasil! Parabéns! 76 anos de idade

[@michelcarreau7973]

Strong arms and fingers are good tools too..:-)

[@jamesmoon8947]

Most interesting 💯

[@EeekItsSnek]

I know I'm late but great work! I'm wondering if a conduit bender would help at all with the larger pipes like that? I am an electrician and have used one enough to see some crazy bends out of a hand bender. Made some myself too around some wacky obstacles Idk if brass would crush though. Great video anyway!

[@p227_3]

Отличная работа.

[@wilsonrawlin8547]

Wes you are one strong man, brother. Grip of steel with Popeye's forearms.

[@jimsnoke4545]

Also, the reason the lead pipe brace was angled is that the Conn, though a large, heavy instrument, sits in the lap better with a slightly downward angle on the mouthpiece. In this way, saliva does not back up in the mouthpiece. I played a 20J and a 24J for years, and having the leadpipe come out "straight" as opposed to angled will force the player to turn his or her neck to the side to accommodate the mouthpiece. Or, use a stand raised enough to compensate for the lack of angle, and then have to deal with saliva backing up in the mouthpiece.

[@johnkelleh7054]

Industrial purple degreaser is my preferred method for darkening brass!

[@jimflys2]

For decades I have been cooking those tubes to burn out the pitch. Not anymore. Melt it out and then plug it and fill with acetone or lacquer thinner. Clean. Quick. No smoke. Chem flush and buff.

[@wesleemusicrepair9820]

Will try! Thanks

[@cheknfaks]

The best tool ever created is the human hand. Thank God.

[@whotknots]

Wes when I was much younger an old timer showed me some special alloy called Woods Metal which was used for bending fine tube when he was young because it would melt in boiling water or even in your hand. Watching you work with pitch filled tube made me wonder if Woods metal is still used for any applications requiring tube made of particularly malleable metals like brass and copper to be bent into complicated shapes?

[@general5104]

Have you ever thought about purchasing a set of "Spring Benders"? You slide the appropriate spring onto the tubing and then hand form as you usually would, except the spring prevents kinks and flat spots. You can then, just slide it off. I very much appreciate watching another craftsman do quality work ! Bill, from Tn. 🇺🇸

[@TheStickCollector]

Cool

[@yotubamaster9288]

Saludos desde mexico

[@erniearruda8861]

Same method I used to darken the raw brass to match . I feel your pain at the end of the day with all that bending by hand . Can’t do it anymore ,it starting to catch up with me. Lots of voltaren topical cream and arthritis pain pills will ease the sore the next day😰

[@wesleemusicrepair9820]

Yea, someday sooner than later I will be one of those making forms and cheater bars.

[@youtuuba]

Isn't that a 24J rather than a 20J? I did not get a good view of a 4th valve, but it appears to have all four valve tuning slides in addition to the main slide....... I have a fully restored 24J convertible to a 25J (in other words, I own both the 'recording' bell [24J] and the upright bell [25J] for it). It is not a subtle instrument, and I don't think it sounds as good as any of the big German rotaries I usually play, but it is a good choice for 'concerts in the park' kind of gigs, where I want to be playing 'big' all the time and having the sound go out to the audience rather than up into the trees. It is the LAST tuba I would consider for use in a brass quintet! I have both the dual hard-shell cases (huge!) and dual gig bags (for bell and body). Something of a pain to lug around. It is also the only tuba I own that I need to rest on a tuba stand instead of my lap....just too heavy. And while Conn's short valve stroke design makes it comfortable to play (to press the valves), I am not convinced that all the deformation of the tubing through the valves is doing the playing characteristics any favors.....

[@benloyd1970]

In today’s throwaway society, i enjoy watching a craftsman repair damaged instruments. However, what is the repair cost versus the price of a new instrument in cases like this?

[@windrepair309]

Jax gold dye is a good way to darken brass. Matches lots of old tinted or age darkened lacquer.

[@wesleemusicrepair9820]

That’s good stuff, I like that as well. This patina was still quite yellow, I know it was hard to see in video. I’ve seen some other things applied directly to the brass to give it patina, but I haven’t messed with any of that. Have you?

[@christopher5577]

@@wesleemusicrepair9820 not really though I’ve heard of it. I have a client that’s into vintage saxes and he really got excited when I found out classic brass cleaner does a good job of darkening fresh solder. He always hate those fresh solder lines. Silly vintage guys...

[@ms-mac521]

👍👍👍

[@jobkneppers]

Wes, I just discovered your channel and watched a few of your videos. I like your style and another look on how to repair thin walled brass instruments. I'm a designer and machinist and like to create stuff for 40 years now. One item you use makes me jealous; the torch, which I could find on the internet and order, and your hydrogen/oxygen generator if I'm correct (humming sound when you use the torch?) I searched your videos but couldn't find a clou. So my question is; what brand and type of hydrogen/oxygen generator are you using? I was quoted a few years ago for a Castolin Ohm unit but this was way to expensive for the work I'm doing. Thank you for your answer! Best, Job

[@randolphfriend8260]

❤

[@paulthesoundguy1]

How was the intonation of the instrument after the new lead pipe

[@angelonunes9006]

👍

[@samuelpate8707]

What u do is cool,have u ever broken down and put together a tuba

[@mikerichards6311]

👏🏻👏🏻👍

[@FernandoMoura08]

Hi: I am a follower/subscriber to you channel and always enjoy to watch a real professional apply its superior workmanship.....Although I am a guitar player and know nothing about wind instruments, I recently bought a sax (pawn shop) because i really like the instrument.... I know that needs cleaning and most probably some fixing but before I get too much into it, I would like to know if its really worth it.... Just watching your videos, i think its a tenor sax...Its a BUNDY - Selmar and it has some numbers at the bottom that are mostly illegible x0xx588 I think... could you tell me some info about this brand/model Thanks...

[@pijnto]

What is the noise in the background when using you Little torch, are you running a oxycon

[@derek7676]

It would be cool if u played the tuba for a few seconds at the end.

[@lionelteles8197]

D'un autre côté cela donne du travail à des gens et j'espère qu'ils prennent cher pour remettre en état

[@lolbruhyeet4644]

Looks like a school owned instrument.

[@madjimbo4176]

Why not use simple spring pipe benders plumbers use on copper?

[@522Dusty]

I would imagine that HS Bands orchestras are very hard on the brass instruments, kids are not taught the careful handling as a primary concern. Marching tubas especially get treated roughly especially when they sit the tuba/contra bass up on the bell. Do you make al your own fixtures, or do you buy some?

[@PatrickMcNealMakesThings]

Where do you get pitch? It's very difficult to find via a Google search as the word has so many meanings.

[@HighPoweExpress]

How in the world all those instruments that you fix are so beaten up? I wonder for bending tubes, if works what I saw people fill the tubes with water, ice frozen and then do the bends to prevent the inside collapse.

[@jest2927]

siempre es mas facil empeza ra doblar por el centro y cortar los extremos,como es natural el tubo mas largo que el original

[@larrysupersport]

Does the pitch inside keep the pipe from crimping when being bent?

[@wesleemusicrepair9820]

That is correct

[@harrystone8847]

@@wesleemusicrepair9820 I watched a video a while back about building trumpets, and they put water in the pipe, and froze it, and they could bend the pipe without crimping, and then the ice melted, no residue

[@blanbec14]

What is in that tube ?

[@dingusdingus2152]

Once again the takeaway is: no matter how badly damaged a tuba is, it can always be fixed by hitting it with a hammer. When all else fails, use a bigger hammer...😅

[@warchitect73]

how is the tube not crushing under the bending stress? Edit: realized there is tar pitch...

[@llespiau]

Hello where do you buy the pipe?

[@wesleemusicrepair9820]

Allied supply

[@llespiau]

@@wesleemusicrepair9820 I'm not a professional i can't order.

[@espennybraten3832]

How in heavens name does the pipe not collapsing when bending?? And the answer to that came at 14:30……🤦🏼‍♂️😂😂

[@jimsnoke4545]

The horn is a 24J, not a 20J. The 20J has three valves.

[@llespiau]

If i want to order the pipe for making custome neck can I contact you to order this? Do you have a direct email?

[@wesleemusicrepair9820]

I ship in continental USA. My email is [e-mail]

[@barfman7767]

Been watching quite a few videos of this kindly craftsman and I am appalled by some of these instruments as being used as a pinata practice. As hard as this artisan does to restore the instruments he is working on... imagine how much harder these instruments getting beaten by whoever owns these instruments. Do they actually beat these instruments onto concrete or hammer or have a truck run over it? WTF? Some of these people simply do not deserve to own them or let alone to touch them.

[@juanjr.garcia6446]

Where did you buy the tube???

[@wesleemusicrepair9820]

Allied supply

[@AutismusPrime69]

Fill it with sand before you go bending it

[@sneezingfrog]

Amazing work. I presume the instrument to have been recovered from the remains of the World Trade Center.

[@grantofat6438]

I don't darken brass. I watch youtube videos.

[@lionelteles8197]

Moi ce que je trouve incroyable c'est que des gens minables arrivent à quasi détruire des instruments comme ça, aucun respect

[@user-kn8vr3yf2g]

Я з України в нас війна з росією але хочу повернутися до улюбленої справи грати на трубі....

[@cybens1]

You should include a estimate for repair with each video.

[@lubo8984]

👌👌👌👌👍👍👍