TromboneChat

Hey guys, I have a question:
I got a new trombone and everything works perfect but the tuning slide just won't stop fixed, I tried putting different greases on it but still it's always going down, anyone have any tips?

Thanks

What brand of instrument? What sort of grease/oil have you used? If you try each of the tubes individually do they feel overly loose - they should move freely but have a bit of "grab" not feeling either overly loose or tight.

If you are using appropriate tuning slide grease and it does not stay in place, bring it back to where you purchased it.

Ultra-Pure Heavy is about as sticky as it gets, without resorting to industrial/automotive stuff. Plus some rubber O rings from the hardware store.

If the inner tubes have been buffed or sanded to death, the only serious solution is to have the tube expanded along its whole length (not just flared or put out of alignment).

Go to the hardware store and buy a couple of O-rings that are slightly smaller than the inner slide. Use those to limit inward travel of the slide.

Skip the heavy grease and o-ring bandaids and get the tubes sized correctly!!!

Easy fix for a tech!!!

Bonearzt wrote: ↑Sat Nov 19, 2022 5:57 pm Skip the heavy grease and o-ring bandaids and get the tubes sized correctly!!!

Easy fix for a tech!!!

What he said!

See a tech.
They can flare the end of the tube a little.

Note that rubber contains sulfur, which eats brass. Leave an o ring in one spot for too long, and you have a permanent ring around the tube.

Flaring the end of the tube is not the correct fix.

Have a tech correctly expand and fit the tube(s)

hornbuilder wrote: ↑Tue Dec 06, 2022 9:07 am Note that rubber contains sulfur, which eats brass. Leave an o ring in one spot for too long, and you have a permanent ring around the tube.

Matthew makes a great point. Many people use rubber bands as a quick fix when their water key springs break. If they leave the rubber band on for a few months the sulfur starts to etch into the brass. Avoid using rubber bands and O-rings.

O-rings can be a mixed bag. Rubber ones will create the sulfur etch. But polymer ones (Buna, Polyurethane) and PTFE will not. Still, expanding the inner tube is a much better solution.

Incidentally, Votaw Tool has some instrument parts and they sell to anybody.

If there is a problem with rubber and brass, do you think the shims of the neotech grip are made of rubber.
I rarely take a look under the bushing where the "rubber or not" side touches the surface.

wesleyrubim wrote: ↑Sat Nov 19, 2022 1:24 pm anyone have any tips?
Thanks

New trombone. The Thein?
I'd give them an opportunity to fix it.
If that becomes inconvenient for some reason, one or both male legs of the slide can be expanded very slightly by any good tech using a special tube expander tool, as others have suggested. That should take only a few minutes and cost very little.