As I've said in a previous comment, I just recently switched to Horn (I'm now officially second chair hurrah) and I was curious as to how long it's been since my horn has been cleaned. I asked all the horn players before me and they asked all the horn players before them. Turns out my horn hasn't been washed for 7 YEARS. I instantly bought a snake, rotor oil and slide grease and ran to my bathroom.
I don’t mind because I know the consequences.. My friend didn’t clean his trumpet at all.. He got a very severe staph infection in throughout his back. There was fluid in his back and he couldn’t breathe..
Because of the COVID-19 school is canceled for 3 weeks. Some of our online homework is to take video of us cleaning our instruments. This was very helpful.
Who knows what you will find in there once you'll finally clean it... Maybe will there be an entire ecosystem which would have been developing itself inside the slides ?! Just imagine that a second XD
dont know how long its been since my horn has been clean, so im going to clean it this weekend, mostly because i have an all county band concert, and i want it to play at its best. Currently been playing for 2 years and in 1st chair for all county band,(im an 8th grader,) This video helped me alot, make more youtuebevideos on tips for french horn to help us players in need.
Have you ever sent your horns out to be cleaned/serviced? Do you know if an ultrasonic cleaning would be better than an acid/chemical bath? P.s. I love your videos and should tell you that they are incredibly inspirational. You are amazing!!
Can you please make a tutorial on your bell it is super cool and wanna try myself so of you could be descriptive in the video it would be extra helpful!! Thanks your an awesome horn player
I see your valves are worked by linkages, but mine have strings. Do I have to worry about the strings getting wet? Would I have to replace them, if they did? It's generally safe to soak brass instruments with a bit of washing soda (sodium carbonate) in the water, so you might want to do that for your slides since the snake can't go all the way through. Some people add citric or acetic acid (spirit vinegar) too. It reacts with the washing soda, but any verdigris gets involved in the reaction, so that helps remove it. I've used kitchen roll soaked in vinegar wrapped around a slide for a few hours to get rid of stubborn verdigris (the green stuff). I also use twisted up kitchen roll / paper (only the better quality stuff that doesn't break up into fibres so easily), to clean inside slides. It removes gunk that the snake leaves behind. I use it inside my piston valves, on trumpets and cornets etc, instead of using a brush. I like the painted bell :)
TooSlowTube If you have strings on your horn you might want to replace them after washing. If you need to buy rotor string here is a link Yamaha YAC 080000 Rotor Valve String www.amazon.com/dp/B002J99IEY/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_eNUJCb5PMNRBQ if you need to know how here is an article on how to properly string it houghtonhorns.com/how-do-i-change-the-string-on-my-french-horn/
I LOVE YOUR BELL!!!! I'm in middle school so my horn is owned my the school district but we toon it in to get fixed caused I bent it after dropping it. My dad doesn't want it to get cleaned but I feel like it should
I know I'm a little late on this, but yes. They won't come dislodged or anything if they've been put on right because they're screwed in pretty tightly.
Everytime I clean a French horn I feel like I haven't done it right cause it's not clean enough. This definitely helps so I'm sure I'll get it this time! I just hope I don't procrastinate much longer :/ *Thanks for video!!*
Thanks for the awesome video! I see you have all different kinds of oil. Could you explaining which types of oil to use and where to put the different types? I normally just put Al Cas Fast Oil in my valve slides, on the linkages, and under the valve caps. Does it matter that I use the same type of oil for everything? I hope to see more videos of this kind in the future!
+Nathan Halberstadt I will do a video to explain eventually. Everyone does the oil process differently so it's hard to cover the topic without getting feedback saying i'm completely wrong
One time I accidentally put in one of the pipes wrong ... it got stuck.. I have no idea what happened to that French horn Because my school basically took it away from me when I had to go into homeschool
so i haven’t cleaned my french horn ever because it’s a school horn but because of corona i have to clean ALL my instruments (horn, trumpet, mellophone) thank you!! (it also wasn’t as dirty as you’d expect)
Now I'm scared to play my schools ancient horns that have been played by like 50 differnt kids for like 50 years and have never been really cleaned........😫 Edit: the schools horns are literally the crappiest instruments I've ever seen in my life. My friends has like 3 dents and it makes it sound like a literal duck. Still never giving up horn though.
I borrow my school's f horn and the valves come up very slow and putting rotor oil on it doesn't help either. Is there a way to make the valves come unstuck/ not sticky? I was wondering if cleaning it would help?
I don't play an instrument but I have often wondered why in an orchestra I often see some horns beautiful and polished and some are dull and dirty looking. Don't the musicians polish them? I can't imagine anyone wanting to play a horn that wasn't polished and beautiful.
That "gunk" is built up condensation from not cleaning the horn after playing. Believe me I know what it's like I played sax and I didnt clean it for a whole month and when i dropped the cloth down there was a whole lot if it.
How often do should you do this I've never done this we bought mine probably a year ago but when ever I spin it now I hear something inside so I figured I should clean it out but how often should you clean it out like this?
Patrick, how do I play Offbeats well? I currently sit behind the Tubas which have the Down Beats, and it makes it kinda difficult to NOT play with them.
When I played I would make a soft sort of "click" in my throat on the down beat and then play on the upbeat if there was a down beat I couldn't help but gravitate to. Almost like beat boxing although that might be a terrible analogy. Eventually as you get in the rhythm you don't even need to do it. Also it helps to time your play with when the heel of your foot is at its greatest height (if you are tapping your foot along). The feeling of your foot hitting the ground on the downbeat also helps you from playing along with it.
it was very helpful!!! TYVM!!! however I bought an OLD horn off of EBAY....it's a good horn...but it smells horrible.....I'm thinking about using a little bleach to get rid of the smell....I mean it's on your hands after you play it it stinks so bad!!
@@FhornPatrick it stinks SOOOO bad....it's been airing outside for a week and i can still smell it everytime i open the door....not sure what to do.....it has decreased in smell...but i can still smell it
+philipbest2009 First of all, you made the right choice! Second practice all the ranges, not just the high stuff. Work on smoothness and note accuracy, practice! that's really all I can suggest. It just takes some work!
A couple of my slides on my horn I rent from the school were stuck when I got it, and they're impossible to get out. How could I get them out to grease them?
You don’t have to. Just make sure to wipe them when you’re done. It’s best if they’re not left wet. I’ve heard some people blow dry them as well. I’ve never needed to do that though. I would never recommend removing the string if you’ve never done it.
+RiptorEsquire The back pressure can make your valves go slightly out of alignment. Also your slides are thin metal, the back pressure can cause the valves to collapse if they are weaker.
What is your recommendation for cleaning the lead pipe(s) of horns having "split" leadpipe(s)/"bell branch" change valves such as a Paxman 40 descant horn or Alexander 107X descant horn? Thank you.
+Branden Kohnle the actual valves? Or the slides? If the rotation will not move, take it to an instrument repair!! Don't force it. If it's a slide try wiggling
As I've said in a previous comment, I just recently switched to Horn (I'm now officially second chair hurrah) and I was curious as to how long it's been since my horn has been cleaned. I asked all the horn players before me and they asked all the horn players before them. Turns out my horn hasn't been washed for 7 YEARS. I instantly bought a snake, rotor oil and slide grease and ran to my bathroom.
Salma Torres how bad was it xD
Legend has it, they awakened a dark force in the horn and were never heard of again since then...
Oh my
Its also helpful to put a towel in the bottom of the tub to help protect the horn and cushion the metal.
+Khiarhu I've never thought of that! Great idea
+FhornPatrick Glad I could give some good input! It's a neat trick and has done me and mine well for 15 years. :)
It would help protect the paint around my bell!
+FhornPatrick That paintjob is awesome, no lie.
@@FhornPatrick Lots of companies would have painted Bells which really rocks
Brass instruments are like sewer pipes. No one cleans them and no one wants to
Am I an outsider to the rest of the brass players then? I actually have fun cleaning mine-
@@hazeymcdaisy6701 same
@@hazeymcdaisy6701 I do a deep cleaning once a year, and just the oiling every few weeks
I don’t mind because I know the consequences.. My friend didn’t clean his trumpet at all.. He got a very severe staph infection in throughout his back. There was fluid in his back and he couldn’t breathe..
im borrowing a french horn from my school and it literally smells like shit... literally
Because of the COVID-19 school is canceled for 3 weeks. Some of our online homework is to take video of us cleaning our instruments. This was very helpful.
This really helped me I'm staring on French horn I play a lot of trumpet but in my school I'm switching to French horn
Great Choice!
Ikr
Same. I switched yesterday.
I haven't cleaned my horn since I got it 8 years ago
OMG XD MAKE A VIDEO OF CLEANING IT FOR THE FIRST TIME
oh
well there might be interesting things in there😂
Dude me too
thats dangerous
Legend says he still hasn't cleaned his horn.
Thank you for this video. I am a non-musical parent of a younger musician. This was more than extremely helpful!! Thank you loads!!!!!
The Bb tuning slide on the 2nd valve is still in place, while you're cleaning it. I kept saying "You missed one!" but you couldn't hear me.
I noticed this after :P Brain fart
This only reminds me that it's time to clean it :(
+Annie Longoria Same, but I clean it every month. Though, I lost my snake years ago.
+Bri Lewis me too
This was a pretty good help because it was my first time washing my French horn. Thank you!
What if I don’t have a horn snake? What can I use that I may have at home?
make more of these videos these are so helpful
+hunter k Horn tutorials will be weekly!
I haven't cleaned my f horn in 3 years. 👍
Oh lord
+Tasteful Couch yuk
Tasteful Couch not even dump the condensation out
i just let it come out the bell
Who knows what you will find in there once you'll finally clean it... Maybe will there be an entire ecosystem which would have been developing itself inside the slides ?! Just imagine that a second XD
dont know how long its been since my horn has been clean, so im going to clean it this weekend, mostly because i have an all county band concert, and i want it to play at its best. Currently been playing for 2 years and in 1st chair for all county band,(im an 8th grader,) This video helped me alot, make more youtuebevideos on tips for french horn to help us players in need.
How did all-county band go!?
I'm scared because I've never cleaned it and I don't know if the shop it gets annual maintenance at does.
Have you ever sent your horns out to be cleaned/serviced? Do you know if an ultrasonic cleaning would be better than an acid/chemical bath?
P.s. I love your videos and should tell you that they are incredibly inspirational. You are amazing!!
Can you please make a tutorial on your bell it is super cool and wanna try myself so of you could be descriptive in the video it would be extra helpful!! Thanks your an awesome horn player
I see your valves are worked by linkages, but mine have strings. Do I have to worry about the strings getting wet? Would I have to replace them, if they did?
It's generally safe to soak brass instruments with a bit of washing soda (sodium carbonate) in the water, so you might want to do that for your slides since the snake can't go all the way through. Some people add citric or acetic acid (spirit vinegar) too. It reacts with the washing soda, but any verdigris gets involved in the reaction, so that helps remove it. I've used kitchen roll soaked in vinegar wrapped around a slide for a few hours to get rid of stubborn verdigris (the green stuff).
I also use twisted up kitchen roll / paper (only the better quality stuff that doesn't break up into fibres so easily), to clean inside slides. It removes gunk that the snake leaves behind. I use it inside my piston valves, on trumpets and cornets etc, instead of using a brush.
I like the painted bell :)
TooSlowTube If you have strings on your horn you might want to replace them after washing. If you need to buy rotor string here is a link Yamaha YAC 080000 Rotor Valve String www.amazon.com/dp/B002J99IEY/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_eNUJCb5PMNRBQ if you need to know how here is an article on how to properly string it houghtonhorns.com/how-do-i-change-the-string-on-my-french-horn/
This Video is very good for me, especially because I'm a beginner.
+Biner Karin Great! :)
Thank you for making this!!!
I LOVE YOUR BELL!!!! I'm in middle school so my horn is owned my the school district but we toon it in to get fixed caused I bent it after dropping it. My dad doesn't want it to get cleaned but I feel like it should
Are the strings on the horn able to get wet?
I know I'm a little late on this, but yes. They won't come dislodged or anything if they've been put on right because they're screwed in pretty tightly.
Great video! So thorough! Thanks for making this!
i have the exact same horn, and the same vintage, love it love it, i also have a beautiful 301, but prefer the old 103. great vids
Everytime I clean a French horn I feel like I haven't done it right cause it's not clean enough. This definitely helps so I'm sure I'll get it this time! I just hope I don't procrastinate much longer :/
*Thanks for video!!*
Breh
Finally got tired of excess spit, very helpful video.
By taking all of the slides & valve caps off (also valves if possible) it'll allow all the water to be fully drained.
I think some Red Soap would help alot & it'll keep the metal shiny. If you remove all the Slides it'll help get all the spit out form the Horn
Thanks for the awesome video! I see you have all different kinds of oil. Could you explaining which types of oil to use and where to put the different types? I normally just put Al Cas Fast Oil in my valve slides, on the linkages, and under the valve caps. Does it matter that I use the same type of oil for everything? I hope to see more videos of this kind in the future!
+Nathan Halberstadt I will do a video to explain eventually. Everyone does the oil process differently so it's hard to cover the topic without getting feedback saying i'm completely wrong
@@FhornPatrick Nope, you're wrong.
Thanks so much for this video!!!!! It's difficult to find any good horn cleaning videos.
+AlliEm Great! This is why I posted it, hoping to offer the simple explanation to the process
Thanks for the tips, have to clean a professional $8,000 horn... yay
Hetman makes good tuning slide lubricant
I love the design inside the bell
One time I accidentally put in one of the pipes wrong
... it got stuck.. I have no idea what happened to that French horn
Because my school basically took it away from me when I had to go into homeschool
Thanks for the tutorial! I'm going to play French horn so this is very helpful
Its nice to know that Im not the only one who hasn't cleaned. Im too scared to clean my horn but I NEED TO.. Im scared about the strings...
so i haven’t cleaned my french horn ever because it’s a school horn but because of corona i have to clean ALL my instruments (horn, trumpet, mellophone) thank you!! (it also wasn’t as dirty as you’d expect)
Double French Horns (like this Alex 103) have 4 Valves, some french horns have more valves than that.
thank god I have someone to turn to #fhorn
Please do a video on tuning a Conn 8D/Kruspe Wrap horn
What paint did u use
um so like what if you have dried period blood and a freakin giant bucket in your bath tub???
Do you think this would applicable to a rotary flugelhorn? Also, any tips to speed up a slow valve?
That's cool, man. Congratulations!
+Mc Clopedia Thank you!
I'm in beginner band, and the horn they give you is filthy. Thanks for this video.
Adam P no no no don’t clean a horn that’s not yours just in case
@@therealchaydizzle fuck it, I want to have a clean horn. Besides, im kinda curious on how much junk my horn has collected over the years
Very helpful! Thanks!
YES God's above!thank you for this
thanks! this really helped
A good tip video would be how to oil the rotors.
+Michelle Benna I will add it to the list!
Thanks for the tip
What about rotor oil? Whenever I put rotor oil through my horn, it gets on the slides and so the the slides get all stuck...
+mynameisntDaniell e Just put enough it where it sticks to the rotors. If you put too much it will gargle for a week!
Yeah, thanks... It's been gargling so much... And coming out the bell... *blugh*
Now I'm scared to play my schools ancient horns that have been played by like 50 differnt kids for like 50 years and have never been really cleaned........😫
Edit: the schools horns are literally the crappiest instruments I've ever seen in my life. My friends has like 3 dents and it makes it sound like a literal duck. Still never giving up horn though.
And you always have the kids who like to eat oreo cookies or cheetos while they practice. Yuck!
Very helpful
+Dylan Seets great!
0:54 Looks like you forgot to take out that last slide
I honestly like putting a little bit of dish soap in the water
What about taking the actual valves out? And should I take the strings off?
Good one. :)
Did you paint the inside of the bell yourself, or did it come like that, or did you get someone else to paint it? It looks really cool
+Saturn Painted myself!
I don’t have a tub ;-; I’m too poor
What is the purpose for the the two different ends of the snake?
On my french horn it has these strings connecting the valves to the things u press down, do I have to take those off or can I leave those on?
BLESS YOU
I have a French horn from a couple of years ago that I will admit that I have neglected over time, can this help at all with my horn?
Stupid question but does the same cleaning apply to silver horns as well?
francOh yes
I’m washing my nickel silver horn tomorrow!
How long did it take u to get good at the French horn
I borrow my school's f horn and the valves come up very slow and putting rotor oil on it doesn't help either. Is there a way to make the valves come unstuck/ not sticky? I was wondering if cleaning it would help?
can you get the strings wet?
Do you have to remove the valves to do this?
Nice Alex.
Infidel might be a copy bc theres no Gebr. Alexander stamp bc the brace of the bell
Really helpful!!😄😄😄 I'm serious
Why didnt you take out the second valve second slide
0:51 "Make sure when you're removing your slides, you hold the finger down then pull the slide out. You don't want it to pop." Why?
are the vale caps optional +Fhorn patrick
I don't play an instrument but I have often wondered why in an orchestra I often see some horns beautiful and polished and some are dull and dirty looking. Don't the musicians polish them? I can't imagine anyone wanting to play a horn that wasn't polished and beautiful.
That "gunk" is built up condensation from not cleaning the horn after playing. Believe me I know what it's like I played sax and I didnt clean it for a whole month and when i dropped the cloth down there was a whole lot if it.
if i had my horn polished,will a bath harm that polish?
How often do should you do this I've never done this we bought mine probably a year ago but when ever I spin it now I hear something inside so I figured I should clean it out but how often should you clean it out like this?
+audrey mattock I do it every 6 months or so. At the end of each school semester
I don't have grease for the slides so can I use rotor oil on them?
You can use petroleum jelly (Vaseline)
Patrick, how do I play Offbeats well? I currently sit behind the Tubas which have the Down Beats, and it makes it kinda difficult to NOT play with them.
When I played I would make a soft sort of "click" in my throat on the down beat and then play on the upbeat if there was a down beat I couldn't help but gravitate to. Almost like beat boxing although that might be a terrible analogy. Eventually as you get in the rhythm you don't even need to do it. Also it helps to time your play with when the heel of your foot is at its greatest height (if you are tapping your foot along). The feeling of your foot hitting the ground on the downbeat also helps you from playing along with it.
What watch are you wearing
I can't find a rubber cleaning snake anywhere...
Thanks to God, that trumpet isn't this difficult to clean :))
What kind of horn do you have?
it was very helpful!!! TYVM!!! however I bought an OLD horn off of EBAY....it's a good horn...but it smells horrible.....I'm thinking about using a little bleach to get rid of the smell....I mean it's on your hands after you play it it stinks so bad!!
Michael Shelley DO NOT USE BLEACH!! YOU BREATH THROUGH THIS AND YOU WILL GET VERY SICK. DO NOT. I REPEAT, DO NOT USE BLEACH.
@@FhornPatrick it stinks SOOOO bad....it's been airing outside for a week and i can still smell it everytime i open the door....not sure what to do.....it has decreased in smell...but i can still smell it
How Can I remove those circle-shaped things if they are stuck?
tap (kinda hit) the area around it a few times, like as if it were a bottle cap
I usually GENTLY tap around the edges of the valve caps with my mouthpiece a couple of times, that looses them up:)
@@havynengle1387 I wouldn't recommend using your mouthpiece because that can cause dents and chips, even if they aren't visible.
I am in my schools band. I rented the my french horn from my band teacher. Should I ask him if its okay or should i just go ahead and do it?
Yea
So I'm switching to French horn from trumpet, and I'm wondering if there are any tips and advice that I should know about French horn?
+philipbest2009 First of all, you made the right choice! Second practice all the ranges, not just the high stuff. Work on smoothness and note accuracy, practice! that's really all I can suggest. It just takes some work!
+FhornPatrick thanks, I really appreciate your advice.
A couple of my slides on my horn I rent from the school were stuck when I got it, and they're impossible to get out. How could I get them out to grease them?
Bring it to a shop! Don't force anything!!
Are you supposed to de-string the valve keys? Are they supposed to get wet???
I never do, but I change the strings once every few years so mold isn't a huge issue
FhornPatrick thank you
Do I remove the valve string before putting it in the water?
You don’t have to. Just make sure to wipe them when you’re done. It’s best if they’re not left wet. I’ve heard some people blow dry them as well. I’ve never needed to do that though. I would never recommend removing the string if you’ve never done it.
@@FhornPatrick Thank u
What if my horn has strings to move the rotors rather than metal rods? I'm in high school and have a Holton h179 help would be awesome :D
+Joshua Piguet Mine also has strings! it's good to get them wet, it gets all the dirt and gross stuff out of it.
+FhornPatrick ok thanks! :D
I've been hearing this for years, but why do you not want the pop sound when taking out slides?
+RiptorEsquire The back pressure can make your valves go slightly out of alignment. Also your slides are thin metal, the back pressure can cause the valves to collapse if they are weaker.
i havent clean my horn since i bought it 12 years ago. i opened it recently, not as gunky as yours tho. just green stuffs
What is your recommendation for cleaning the lead pipe(s) of horns having "split" leadpipe(s)/"bell branch" change valves such as a Paxman 40 descant horn or Alexander 107X descant horn? Thank you.
+Avrum Golub There are horn rinse systems that would work!
+FhornPatrick Thank you. Do you have a link to this? Can I snake such lead pipes?
How do you like that 107x? I just bought a 301 and it's magic.
What happens if the rotary valves get wet?
+Branden Kohnle the actual valves? Or the slides? If the rotation will not move, take it to an instrument repair!! Don't force it. If it's a slide try wiggling
a bunch of the gunk came out before i put the horn snake through
But what about cleaning the valves?
ホルンのロータリーがダメにならないんですか？
where i can buy snakes
2:32 "3 or 4 months", me who has never done it over 7 years 😳