TromboneChat

Hey everyone, I have this symphonic tenor that I REALLY love the look of. It's a rather cheap, Thomann brand trombone with a copper bell(Thomann Classic TF525 GL). It sounds and looks great. My only issue is the slide is just not up to my standard. I wondered If buying a better slide for it is even an option? And if it isn't, do I have any options? I gave it a bath, snaked it, and ran through it with that slide-o-mix sheath that goes on a cleaning rod multiple times. Is there a way to keep this bell but make my slide quieter or find a quieter slide altogether?

Thank you in advance

A professional repair tech can remove dents, align the slide, polish, and maybe remove mineral buildup. None of these things are part of your day-to-day cleaning process. You can probably learn to polish the slide yourself, but I'm not going to get into that. The rest should only be done by a practiced tech.

If you post your location, we might be able to suggest someone qualified.

I find that a tune-up by a tech every 2 or three years is an eye-opening experience. I suspect most of that is because I don't polish my slides.

It could also be that the slide has alignment problems.
This fellow has a series of videos on the 6 different alignment problems that can be present


I pulled out my old school horn and was stunned to discover how bad the slide alignment was. It became one of my first projects (and was successful).

I'm not suggesting you DIY the repair... suggest you look at the videos to help identify problems.

AtomicClock wrote: ↑Sun Feb 25, 2024 6:47 pm A professional repair tech can remove dents, align the slide, polish, and maybe remove mineral buildup. None of these things are part of your day-to-day cleaning process. You can probably learn to polish the slide yourself, but I'm not going to get into that. The rest should only be done by a practiced tech.

If you post your location, we might be able to suggest someone qualified.

I find that a tune-up by a tech every 2 or three years is an eye-opening experience. I suspect most of that is because I don't polish my slides.

Okay, thank you! I wasn't aware of how much a tech can do for a slide that I can't. I'm in CT, do you know anyone?

I use Osmun Music in Acton, MA. A bit of a drive, but somewhat reasonable from east CT. Maybe someone can recommend someone closer.

I'll also point out that when I was growing up, the local band instrument store never did a satisfying job. You really want to find a good tech, not just any tech.

tonyycanolli wrote: ↑Sun Feb 25, 2024 6:59 pm Okay, thank you! I wasn't aware of how much a tech can do for a slide that I can't. I'm in CT, do you know anyone?

Dave Zoni at the music lab, he used to work at Shires. Located in Milldale, near Southington.

Seconding Dave, as well as Nate Medsker at David French Music in Westborough, and Nick Martino up here at Shires. Dave Sherman is in Matunuck RI, and doesn't take on a ton of work, but he does do really good work as well.

Well……..there are several different issues here. Many of the Chinese stencil trombones have poorly designed slides. You can certainly get them perfectly aligned, but they might remain mediocre slides. Here are the reasons:

1. Many of the trombones have nickel or nickel-plated inner slides. The action on nickel slides does not have the potential that a quality chrome plated inner slide has.

2. The outer slides are usually an inferior form of a nickel-silver alloy. They tend to be very porous and produce a scratchy action. I have scoped some that had pronounced striations on the inside.

3. This is the clincher. A high performing slide usually has a .009-.012 inch difference between the stockings of the inner slide and inside of the outer slide. Some of the stencils I have seen have been in the .006 inch range. Too tight! I have replaced a few outer slide tubes on these horns with properly sized outer tubes and the slides worked much better.

tonyycanolli wrote: ↑Sun Feb 25, 2024 6:59 pm

AtomicClock wrote: ↑Sun Feb 25, 2024 6:47 pm A professional repair tech can remove dents, align the slide, polish, and maybe remove mineral buildup. None of these things are part of your day-to-day cleaning process. You can probably learn to polish the slide yourself, but I'm not going to get into that. The rest should only be done by a practiced tech.

If you post your location, we might be able to suggest someone qualified.

I find that a tune-up by a tech every 2 or three years is an eye-opening experience. I suspect most of that is because I don't polish my slides.

Okay, thank you! I wasn't aware of how much a tech can do for a slide that I can't. I'm in CT, do you know anyone?

Send me a message. I have a great one in CT.

Best slide tech in CT is Bill Korzick, IMO. He's in New Haven.

According to this site: https://www.thomannmusic.com/thomann_cl ... ombone.htm
This is a $5xx trombone. And if what you like about it is visual.. . I wouldn't get too heroic about fixing it up. If you have to replace tubes, your slide repair could run up close to the cost of the entire horn quickly. I think there's a Yamaha that looks almost exactly like that.