Shires Mouthpieces

[harrisonreed]

I can report that the Shires 11C mouthpiece I tried is the heaviest mouthpiece I've ever held. It weighs nearly as much as an alto trombone. That is all!

[DaveAshley]

Also, it's more like a 6 3/4C than an 11C.

There are two versions of the Shires 11C - The original is marked "Vintage 11C" and the current one is marked USA. The Vintage 11C is just a little bit heavier. I was told by someone who worked at Shires that they trimmed it down a little when Pickett started producing them. There may or may not have been other slight alterations.

I've owned both, and I prefer the Vintage 11C. It lines up great with my Earl Williams 6 - not so great with my Lawlers.

[harrisonreed]

It seemed to be a lot wider than an 11C

[ngrinder]

The vintage, non-Pickett 11C is one of the best (for me) 11Cs I've ever played. The Pickett one is good, too, but I prefer the earlier one, for whatever reason. The rim width is closer to that of a 6-3/4C, but the cup is more similar to an 11C than a 6-3/4C. In fact, the rim width is very close to an old NY Bach 11C I have.

And yes, it is heavier than some other mouthpieces.

[GabrielRice]

In fact, the rim width is very close to an old NY Bach 11C I have.

It was probably copied from a NY 11C.

[WilliamLang]

shires made a really nice set of mouthpieces for a few years. i absolutely loved the vintage 4G and played on one for almost a decade - always thought the quality of those pieces was up there with griego and greg black

[greenbean]

Does anyone know the history of Shires mouthpieces? I think Pickett makes them now. Before that?...

[DaveAshley]

They were made in Taiwan before Pickett started making them.