Below are some of our most frequently asked questions (in English only).

If you have any questions regarding our cane please email us and we will be happy to help and may include the details on this page.

Tube Cane:

Diameters
Colour

Splitting:

General

Pre Gouged:

General

Gouging:

Gouging Machines
Blade Bed ratios

Shaping:

Hand Shapers
Hörtnagel Machines/Shapes
Different Shapes
How shapes solve problems
Sides closing.
How does my shape affect my sound?
How does my shape affect intonation?

Binding:

Different Methods of Binding
Binding Legnths for various shapes
Burning

Scraping:

American Scrape
European Scrape
Knives

Profiling Machines:

General

Intonation:

Flying F#'s
Sagging low G's & Middle C's
Second register is too flat

Staples:

What staples are right for me
Troubleshooting.
Legnth of staples

Problems:

General

Micellaneous:

General

Tube Cane:

Question: I have problems with my reeds collapsing. I have tried wire but its not really that much better?
Answer: Try a smaller diameter. Using a 10mm diameter will help give your reed openings a wider aperture.

Question: Is there a particular colour in the cane I should look for when selecting?
Answer: Not really. The canes outward appearance does not really play a vital role in the canes response. HoweverÝ pieces of cane that are shaded in areas or uneven in colour have often received varying degrees of sunlight. This means the piece of cane will not be uniform. eg. One part may be denser than another, which means it won't vibrate easily.

Question: I have noticed that I often get good results from cane than is spotty. Is this a coincidence?
Answer: We often get requests for “spotty” cane. This cane generally has the tendency to be quite hard and dense. So I think what you like is dense cane. You can find equally dense cane that is not spotty.

Splitting:

Question: My teacher has told me not to use a cane splitter. How do you split cane?
Answer: The reason she has told you this is probably because, very few pieces of cane are perfectly round. Using a cane splitter means you might be left with three pieces of cane who's diameter are not identical. If you have a reed gauge, select the pieces that suit your desired diameter.

Pre Gouged:

Question: I do not own a pre gouger, but have my own gouging machine. Can I gouge directly without it?
Answer: Yes you can. However I would recommend investing in one. The reason being that blades for gouging machines can be complicated and costlyÝ to replace. A pre gouger will greatly improve the life length of your gouging machine blades.

Question two
Answer two

Gouging:

Question: I have just bought an old gouging machine. It works OK but the sides of the cane are far too thick. Can I do anything to change it?
Answer: The side thickness is directly related to the bed/blade ratio. If you have a 10.5mm bed you will need a blade with a greater diameter to have thinner sides. Eg. If you desire sides (measured on a shaped piece of cane) to be 20 thinner than the centre. For a 10.5mm bed you will need a 11.4mm blade and for a 10mm bed you will need a 10.9mm blade.

Question: I want to buy a gouging machine. Which one would you recommend to buy?
Answer: I think there are many good machines on the market. However, a gouging machine needs constant attention. Blades must be regularly sharpened and the machine must be adjusted regularly to make sure you are getting an even gouge. Either you buy a machine that is very easy to exchange (which are often the machines that are less accurate) or you choose a machine with the whos make is close or has a good overhaul service by post etc.

Shaping:

Question: I would like a darker sound. Are there any shapes that can help?
Answer: As a general rule (for European reeds), the wider you go the darker you go. Unfortunately at a price. The wider you go the more unstable certain notes become, namely low G, middle C etc. This can be compensated through choice of Staples. The narrower the staple the more stable these note become. You must find a compromise in the middle.

Question: I currently use a Mack 2 shape. What is the Hortnagel equivalent?
Answer: We have placed a chart (to be found as a link on both the cane and production pages) listing a comparison between most of the other shapers on the market and our Hortnagel equivalents.

Question: What is a Hortnagel shaping machine?
Answer: ...

Binding:

Question: one?
Answer: one

Question: two?
Answer: two

Scraping:

Question: one?
Answer: one

Question: two?
Answer: two

Profiling Machines:

Question: one?
Answer: one

Question: two?
Answer: two

Intonation:

Question: one?
Answer: one

Question: two?
Answer: two

Staples:

Question: one?
Answer: one

Question: two?
Answer: two

Problems:

Question: one?
Answer: one

Question: two?
Answer: two

Miscellaneous:

Question: My daughter plays the oboe and we buy her reeds. This is very expensive, can you recommend a book about reed making?
Answer: I would strongly advise against learning reed making from book. Every individual oboe player has a different concept of sound, resistance reed making making has a lot to do with compromise and priorities.Ý Many parameters of reed making help in one area and at the same time affect another. Each individual must sort out what they ....

Question: two?
Answer: two