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Rim size, am I insane?

Posted: Wed Jan 09, 2019 12:57 pm
by SwissTbone
Did that get your attention? :-)

I play large bore tenor and bass trombone. More time on bass trombone, but doubling isn't a big issue anymore.

On tenor I play on a 26,9 rim wich seems rather large, right?

But I still feel somewhat constricted with that rim amd am toying with the idea of going to a 27,2 rim. Anybody playing on such a rim? Is that still a reasonable size for tenor?

Re: Rim size, am I insane?

Posted: Wed Jan 09, 2019 1:09 pm
by BGuttman
Joe Alessi plays very large (bass sized) rims. A large rim with a shallow cup may be fine for you (but not necessarily everybody).

Re: Rim size, am I insane?

Posted: Wed Jan 09, 2019 1:24 pm
by Redthunder
"Reasonable" has to be contextual, specifically with regards to your face and what works for it. If you asked your run of the mill large tenor player, professional or otherwise, odds are they'd tell you that you were nuts for even using a 26.9mm rim on a tenor. Those of us that have ever had a lesson with Doug know otherwise...

You should definitely try the larger rim size if you feel like you need something even larger, and see for yourself if it works!

Or you could go the other way and be like 90 percent of players and just use a 5G because someone told them that's what works...

Re: Rim size, am I insane?

Posted: Wed Jan 09, 2019 1:46 pm
by Burgerbob
BGuttman wrote: Wed Jan 09, 2019 1:09 pm Joe Alessi plays very large (bass sized) rims. A large rim with a shallow cup may be fine for you (but not necessarily everybody).
The largest Alessi pieces are 26.9mm, or a little bigger than 2G. Cozza wants to go larger than that.

Re: Rim size, am I insane?

Posted: Wed Jan 09, 2019 2:04 pm
by Bach5G
Talk to Doug E. Lots of options you can try.

Re: Rim size, am I insane?

Posted: Wed Jan 09, 2019 2:33 pm
by hyperbolica
I play a 104 (26.4) rim on everything from sub .500 bore up to .547 because the larger rims helped me to stop splitting notes. On small bass, a 2G works even for high notes, so the sizes you mention don't sound insane to me. You need to consider why you're making the change, and if it will have any detrimental effect on things like sound and endurance. I agree with the recommendation to talk to Doug E.

Re: Rim size, am I insane?

Posted: Wed Jan 09, 2019 2:37 pm
by Doug Elliott
It's unusual but not unheard of - there are a few tenor players who play on bigger than that - Slide Hampton and David Gibson come to mind. I'm tempted to try it myself but I've been satisfied with the N104 for a very long time. If I have an outdoor gig in the cold, I think a larger rim would make things easier.

Re: Rim size, am I insane?

Posted: Wed Jan 09, 2019 6:20 pm
by Bach5G
How much difference is there between a Griego Alessi 1C and a Bach 1 and 1/2G? A little shallowerI suppose. The GA has a wider throat.

Re: Rim size, am I insane?

Posted: Wed Jan 09, 2019 10:15 pm
by harrisonreed
Doug Elliott wrote: Wed Jan 09, 2019 2:37 pm It's unusual but not unheard of - there are a few tenor players who play on bigger than that - Slide Hampton and David Gibson come to mind. I'm tempted to try it myself but I've been satisfied with the N104 for a very long time. If I have an outdoor gig in the cold, I think a larger rim would make things easier.
That size rim on a shallow cup works really well outside. On lexan it's great even in the cold.

Re: Rim size, am I insane?

Posted: Wed Jan 09, 2019 10:52 pm
by SwissTbone
FWIW on bass trombone I play on a 28,00 rim and I have a good low and high range on it.

Endurance is definitely an issue on tenor, but thats more a matter of practice I think.

Re: Rim size, am I insane?

Posted: Wed Jan 09, 2019 11:14 pm
by Burgerbob
Bach5G wrote: Wed Jan 09, 2019 6:20 pm How much difference is there between a Griego Alessi 1C and a Bach 1 and 1/2G? A little shallowerI suppose. The GA has a wider throat.
Totally different rim and cup profiles.