Despite the fact that one can learn something of the history of the clarinet from music written for the clarinet, from patents, from concert reviews and from other written sources, the primary resource from a playing point of view has to be the surviving instruments.

- Nicholas Shackleton

I wondered if I should even bring this up, but there's nothing like a bunch of shady monopolists except a bunch of shady monopolists: http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/

This is my first alto clarinet. When I was learning jazz tunes on my Bb soprano, I realized that quite a few of these lead lines I was reading were a bit awkward and seemed displaced in some passages. Thinking about the recordings these lines were transcribed from I realized that these were probably transcribed from alto saxophone lead lines, then scored for Bb. These might sound truer to form played on an alto clarinet than a soprano, I decided.

I began looking for an alto clarinet that fit my generally nonexistent budget, and after missing several, finally won this antiquated Harry Pedler model 175A (The "A" designates that it plays low Eb on the bell key, the 175 is the model plays E on the bell key). Accessories included the original case in great condition, the marching lyre, and the metal mouthpiece cover. No mouthpiece.

This alto model was presumably available for about a decade when Harry Pedler was completely in control of his company, beyond his partnership with Gronert and before his brief partnership with Martin Band Instrument Company. An alto Harry Pedler is a model that is seldom seen;- genuine Harry Pedler sopranos and basses are rare enough.

Most of the Pedler altos and basses we see are the Custom-built model that debuted after Pedler became part of MBIC. These instruments are completely redesigned consistent with later features and more complex mechanics.

If this one had a mouthpiece, I think it would have played as it came, but it needed a good bit of optimization to make it play well. While I waited for a mouthpiece to materialize, I got the optimization underway. Like many antique instruments, it's service history included an accumulation of errors and half measures among some more professional repairs. I spent about 3 days cleaning it up, tightening up a few posts and limiting the key action everywhere with fresh corks as needed.

It has tan leather pads new and old, and I'll use similar when I replace any. The pads look like the same type that are on my 201A bass model of the same era.

Whenever I get one of these USA built ancient relics (circa 1925), and go over the mechanics, I'm impressed with the care and precision of the original manufacturer that is evident in every detail. All of the parts are high quality, no shortcuts taken, and the whole is the sum of the parts. Harry Pedler instruments were not that fancy, well, until you start looking at the sheer elegance of form and fit. It goes beyond the audacious bell engraving which Harry might have inherited from C.G. Conn.

The pivot screws are not the pointed type, but rather a screw with a short rod attached to it. This positions the key rods very positively. It also means that post alignment is critical. If expansion and contraction have loosened the posts, those need to be tightened up.

The keys are solid nickel-silver, soft enough to be adjusted where needed without breaking but hard enough not to bend under normal use. Springs were blued needle springs, most of them in good enough shape to remain in service.

The wood is very dark rosewood (as reported in the brochure) and this is obviously a wood that is a good bit less dense than grenadilla. The joints feel lighter than they look. It's not a heavy clarinet until the bell and neck are added and it is still lighter than it looks.

One previous repair that was very well accomplished was the replacement of the LJ F# key cup with what looks like a silver-plated sax cup. It's not something that jumps out at a glance, and it's so perfectly fixed to the rod that it looks like factory solder work.

So how does it sound? I can't get a note out of it without the mouthpiece! 

There are not many reviews of Harry Pedler alto clarinets. The discussion I could find is primarily for the Custom-built model that followed the 175A and was a Martin Band Instrument Co. product, and it seems that the owner had not ever faced up to having the keys properly serviced, and blamed the instrument's performance on being worn out. Such is the type of review that indicates an instrument being judged while in poor condition. Big surprise that an instrument in poor condition has issues?

Before I discuss how this one sounds, it will have been brought into at least optimum mechanical condition. It will feel tight and solid under the fingertips. How well an instrument is set up makes a huge difference in how well it plays and older instruments that have never been totally rebuilt probably do not have very carefully set clearances and key motion limits. This one Is getting all the tweaks and corrections.

Feature limitations due to era of construction:
1) Left thumb and LH 4 ( C ) plateaus, 5 open holes.
2) Manual double register keys

Desirable features:
1) open holes for note bending
2) Eb bell key
3) Mechanics are as simple as a full Boehm Bb soprano.

A few photos:

I did a forum search for fungus and found mentions of it on several threads, but no threads dedicated to removing, permanently eradicating, and preventing future infection of wooden instruments by fungus or mold.

If you restore antique clarinets, sooner or later you will find one that the worst thing wrong with it is that it harbors a healthy fungus bloom, which is often coating a good part of the bore, tone holes, as well as some areas of the exterior of the instruments and sometimes also the pads.

The good news is that it can be killed by the essential oil of white thyme. This is far less destructive than treating wood with chlorine or other caustic chemicals.

Since I don't have an alto mouthpiece yet, and I have an old alto that needs a little maintenance, I decided to break it down and clean it real well while I'm looking for the right mouthpiece. And it has a bit of a fungus infection. This is something I want to nip in the bud so it doesn't spread. Fungus like this can make some people sick.

The typical appearance of the fungus we find on clarinets looks like a fine white lint or dust on the surface. Inside the bore or tone holes it can have almost a crusty appearance depending on how long it has been there. Using a disposable swab soaked with white thyme oil to saturate the bore will kill and remove all of the white residue and spores. A cotton swab soaked in thyme oil can be used to treat and clean up all of the tone holes. If the mold is severe and covers a good part of the bore, I give it three treatments 3 days apart and wipe down the whole exterior of the joints as well as swabbing the bore and the tone holes.

Thyme oil is a light oil that soaks into the wood very fast, saturates it, and then begins to evaporate. If you treat the joints and put them back in the case, the fumes of the thyme will fumigate the instrument case and kill any fungus spores that might be in the case. It's also a good idea to vacuum the case very well if there is any mold or fungus detected in the case. The odor to me is something between pine oil and gasoline. It doesn't smell good when concentrated and first applied. Because the oil is light, it does evaporate much faster than the vegetable oils we typically use for bore oil and the odor will dissipate leaving the instrument having a very light and fresh sent after only a few days.

This white lint-like mold does not typically smell like mildew. In fact it has almost no odor (and I don't recommend inhaling it). But it can make you sick, and it can cause pads to wear out and need replacing sooner.

Thymol has long been the industry standard for elimination of fungus in paper documents. Thymol is a water soluble derivative of thyme oil, and thus better suited to fumigating artwork on paper. The natural thyme oil contains the same active ingredient as thymol, but as an oil based version, it is far more suitable for eliminating fungus in wood.

These are a couple of photos of the rosewood Harry Pedler alto upper joint that show the white fungus growing in the tone holes and around the crowns. I'm not pushing any particular brand of thyme oil. The one shown is the one that works for me.

With only a few examples represented on this forum so far, I still think it is not to early to begin a thread on Amati clarinets and various brands that were Amati made. These two photos are not ones I made, but are seller's photos I have borrowed from past listings. They are sufficient to identify the stencils because the Amati key work is very unique and easily distinguishes these other brands. Amati resulted from the consolidation of many independent makers under one name and after a decade or more, the quality of the instruments improved immensely. Some of the other trade names that are common are Meyer and Artist. Expect to see other names less frequently. As usual, be sure to compare the key work features because any maker could mark a clarinet Meyer or Artist and certainly I have seen the "Artist" name on clarinets by other makers.

"Starting at the top with the barrels (first photo), L > R, is the PMP - 63.5mm, the PM - 67mm, and the P - 69.9mm. When the barrels are long, the upper joint is short by the same amount." - Silversorcerer
http://clarinetpages.info/smf/index.php?topic=1003.msg4851#msg4851

That observation regarded a Pruefer, Penzel-Mueller Pruefer, and Penzel-Mueller all from the same decade about.

Recently I have three European clarinets from around 1900, all Albert LB Bb models, two from France and one from Austria from different makers. Left to right in the 4 photos below are an M. Dupont / Paris, a Lafayette / Paris also marked France, and a CH JEROME marked Austria. The barrels get shorter as we look at them from left to right, but as observed with the P, PMP, and PM, the distance from the top of the barrel to the register port remains about constant within .5mm. (roughly 8.4 mm).

I was sure the barrels on the two French were original by the markings, but the CH JEROME barrel was hard rubber on a wood body, no marks, and looked unusually short. The socket rings were a match so it was very plausible that it was original.

The long and short that we can conclude from all of this with a fair degree of certainty is that we really cannot look at a barrel length as being short or long relatively unless we also check the distance between the top of the barrel and the register port. Without that measurement the barrel height is almost meaningless.

This information could be of great value when one is trying to find an appropriate barrel substitute for a missing barrel. For European clarinets, it seems that you might want to aim for a barrel that completes the measurement to about 8.4 cm. With a USA make, the measurement to aim for is about 9 cm. This of course only applies to LP Bb instruments of the particular eras illustrated.

As you might have suspected, the Lafayette Paris in the center is the same one that suffered the electrical tape bondage ritual. Recovery is in progress.

"These talking machines are going to ruin the artistic development of music in this country. When I was a boy...in front of every house in the summer evenings, you would find young people together singing the songs of the day or old songs. Today you hear these infernal machines going night and day. We will not have a vocal cord left. The vocal cord will be eliminated by a process of evolution, as was the tail of man when he came from the ape."

John Philip Sousa, testifying before the US Congress, 1906.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Philip_Sousa