It's the curse of oboe players, isn't it?, that we never seem to 1) have enough reeds or 2) they're all horrible. My teacher has given me some helpful hints on picking and preparing of the cane and picking tubes that will result in the making of more consistent reeds. I hope that you find my information helpful.

Choosing staples (tubes)

     Bet you never really thought much about how your staples affect your reeds, but I bet that it is more than you think.

1.      One thing that you need to look for is the shelf of the tube, how thick the metal is where the cane is wrapped around. The thinner the better, because a thick staple will give more resistence to the reed that you don't need to worry about.
   
2.      Also need to make sure that the staple fits on your mandrel correctly. The flat end of the madrel needs to come up to the end of the staple. If the mandrel comes up further, throw the tube out. It will screw with wrapping and cutting of the reed (not to mention that the inside of the reed could get scraped from the mandrel if ill-fitted). If it doesn't go all the way to the top of the staple then try pushing it down. Sometimes the staples can get out of shape making it difficult to fit it on the mandrel. Just be careful-- don't want to get the staple stuck or the end split (yes this can happen, I've done it before).

Fixing staples

     If the cork of your tube is loose in your oboe, and this is for natural cork not composite, then wet the cork in your mouth and run it a few times throught the flame of a lighter. This expands the cork giving a better fit. Just be sure to wet the cork before putting it in the flame, no fires please :). If the fit is tight then take a metal file, or something similar, and roll the cork around underneath to compress the cork.
     If your compostie cork (looks flecky, small pieces of cork glued together) tube is too loose, then you can take dental floss and wrap it around until you get the desired fit. If the fit is too tight then you can take a file and file some of the cork off. This would be a good time to mention the old adage "Measure twice, cut once." In other words, take only small amounts off at a time.
     Now if the metal part is out of shape, all you need to do is to push it back down on the mandrel, remember to be careful. You may have to take it off and then put it back on several times to make sure it doesn't get stuck while getting it back into shape.

Ordering/Picking tube cane

First of all, my teacher suggests using 10 mm tube cane only. 10 mm will give the largest opening of a finished reed, and 11 mm will have a small opening and is much better suited for english horn reeds.

1.      Cane color on the inside should be a golden yellow, not too pale in color.
   
2.      The bark (outside) of the cane should be shiny. Dull bark means the cane is too soft.
   
3.      Also the outside of the cane should be smooth-- if you run your fingernail over it, you shouldn't feel very large ridges. Ridges mean soft cane. The same thing about ridges applies to the inside of the cane.
   
4.      The thicker the cane, if you look on the end, the stronger it will be as well.
   
5.      There should be water marks on the cane, they look like brown leopard spots. This means that the cane has been aged properly, approximately 5-6 years.
   

        ** This won't be found on most cane, but if it is, more benefit to you. The cane could have purple textures on the outside, they look similar to water marks. And yes they really are purple.

If you have any cane that does not have these qualities, it should just be thrown away. I understand that you wouldn't want to throw away your money, but you will be saving yourself a whole lot of problems and heartache if you just get rid of the bad cane. Now you have decent cane, hopefully great cane. Once it has been split, it's ready to be soaked.

Preparing cane

Soaking and gouging

DO NOT EVER BOIL THE CANE!!!!

1.      Cane should be soaked in hot tap water for 4 hours. After two hours the water should be changed. If it is soaked longer, the cane's infrastructure will break down, causing it to be too soft and lose its porous qualities.
   
2.      The cane is now ready to be gouged. Pre-gouging is a good idea if the edges of the cane come up higher than the top of the cane bed on the gouger.
   
3.      If it felt like the cane was been ripped rather than cut, set it aside for a few months and then try again. Once the cane has been gouged let it sit at least over-night before doing anything else.

Shaping and wrapping

1.      Before shaping, smooth the inside of cane by wrapping sandpaper (2000 grit) over 3/8 dowel. Sand cane while its dry!! Sand inside lightly until it is smooth. If you ordered already shaped cane this can still be done. Just do each half at a time.
   
2.      Then soak cane for thirty minutes or until the cane sinks,whichever is first.
   
3.      Shape.
   
4.      Wrap. (I prefer multi-colored thread {wink})
   
5.      Once the blank is wrapped, trim off the ears.
   
6.      Take the bark of the tip. Only the bark, do not start cutting the reed.

Set the reed aside over night. Once a blank is wrapped, it should be cut on within two weeks. Once you're done with the above steps, let it sit over night. Then you can start cutting your reed!!

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