Edwards T-350-E Compression

[JTeagarden]

I have an Edwards T-350-E, I suppose (no marking), the axial flow valve just says Edwards Instruments on it, and the horn comes with an Edwards case, which I understand were discontinued long ago.

My question: How do I test for compression on the valve? I tried what Aidan suggested for a rotary valve on a Bach 42: engage the valve, pull the f-tuning slide out, disengage the valve, push in the f-tuning slide, then engage the valve, you should hear a "pop" of compressed air, and zilch on the Edwards, in fact, I could hear the air coming out of the valve when I pushed in the f-tuning slide, but before engaging the valve.

Just not sure if axial flow valves show "leakiness" in the same manner...

When I tried Matthew Walker's test (pull off the main and f-tuning slides, dip the back of the bell section into a container of water, put a finger over the back of the bottom receiver of the main tuning slide, then blow into the front of the neckpipe, and see if bubbles come out of the f-tuning slide receivers, and I got bubbles out of both of them), but since I am on the more powerful side, not sure if the bubbles reflect a leak, or me just overpowering the poor valve section in a manner not actually reflecting a leak.

[CalgaryTbone]

As far as cases go, they still sell cases, but if you're talking about the old tan wood case with the combination lock, those are no longer made.

As far as compression, axial valves do need servicing every several years. I brought my T350 down to the factory some years ago, and they have a machine that they use to check the compression. Mine was in dire need of service - they actually swapped out the valve and casing at a minimal cost rather than spend the time restoring the old one. The problem is that the wear/misalignment of an axial valve happens VERY gradually, and you tend to not notice until it seems like you're having trouble with certain things like endurance. It tends to feel a bit like you're out of shape, or having mild chop issues. When I got back to my job, my section heard more core from the top of the section, and I felt greater ease going for high or soft entrances.

I'm playing a 396AR these days, but I think the old T350 probably needs a service (not a swap) by now. If you can schedule a visit to Elkhorn, I would highly recommend it. Christan is great, and is not someone who would tell you that you need any work that is not required. If it needs anything, it's probably fairly minor. The machine basically measures the air pressure through the valve - not my area of expertise, so I will leave it to someone who works in servicing instruments to explain it.

Jim Scott

[JTeagarden]

I have reached out to Edwards.

I think they no longer provide general repair services (they would not, for instance, fit their conversion assembly to make the 350 a straight horn), but maybe they will still service their valves.

[tbonesullivan]

I have reached out to Edwards.

I think they no longer provide general repair services (they would not, for instance, fit their conversion assembly to make the 350 a straight horn), but maybe they will still service their valves.

Is it a 350? It shouldn't require any modification to use the straight neckpipe then.

[JTeagarden]

I have reached out to Edwards.

I think they no longer provide general repair services (they would not, for instance, fit their conversion assembly to make the 350 a straight horn), but maybe they will still service their valves.

Is it a 350? It shouldn't require any modification to use the straight neckpipe then.

You wouldn't think so, but Edwards said they've changed some of the tooling over the years, and some older horns can require a bit of effort to get the straight neckpipe conversion to fit properly.

[ZacharyThornton]

Yep and any basic repair tech can do that work if needed. Now they have fixtures that keep the fit always consistent when it ships… but who knows if things will get banged out of alignment over the years.

[JTeagarden]

Turns out the valve compression is actually OK (again, I think I could force air through anything), but the retaining screw was loose, knuckling it down is helping a lot.