Im having a hard time getting a straight answer on SOTW.  Do Bronze 
pieces need to be plated?  Also, if they are not plated do they tend to 
have an unpleasant taste.  Ive found some brass to leave a metalic 
tast.  I think Lawton and Berg used Bronze unplated...am I correct?

There are very few Bronze MPs.  Do you own one?  If it tastes bad to you,
plate it.



		
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I dont own one.  I was going to make one.  I dont know if I should 
stick to silver plated brass or unplated bronze.  The added price of 
bronze is easily offset by the price of plating.  I have never played a 
bronze piece


--- In MouthpieceWork@yahoogroups.com, Keith Bradbury <kwbradbury@y...> 
wrote:
> There are very few Bronze MPs.  Do you own one?  If it tastes bad to 
you,
> plate it.
> 
> 
> 
> 		
> __________________________________ 
> Do you Yahoo!? 
> Yahoo! Mail - Find what you need with new enhanced search. 
> http://info.mail.yahoo.com/mail_250

--- In MouthpieceWork@yahoogroups.com, "sigmund451" <sigmund451@h...>
wrote:
> I dont own one.  I was going to make one.  I dont know if I should 
> stick to silver plated brass or unplated bronze.  The added price of 
> bronze is easily offset by the price of plating.  I have never played a 
> bronze piece
> 
> 
> --- In MouthpieceWork@yahoogroups.com, Keith Bradbury <kwbradbury@y...> 
> wrote:
> > There are very few Bronze MPs.  Do you own one?  If it tastes bad to 
> you,
> > plate it.
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > 		
> > __________________________________ 
> > Do you Yahoo!? 
> > Yahoo! Mail - Find what you need with new enhanced search. 
> > http://info.mail.yahoo.com/mail_250

Hi Sigmund,

I have a bronze Berg.  It is not plated.  A benefit of bronze is that
is does not need to be plated, since it does not tarnish as much as
brass.  It just goes a slightly duller colour.  Another benefit is
that is is tasteless, at least to me.  It is also slightly harder than
brass.

Basically brass is an alloy of copper and zinc.  Bronze is an alloy of
copper and tin.  They both may contain small percentages of other
metals as well.

I think it is a good material for mouthpieces, but I understand that
brass is cheaper and easier to cast, hence more common.

Regards,
Andrew

Actually, brass is easier to machine, but a little more difficult to
cast. Bronze is very easy to cast...I know a few people that do it in
their backyards, but it does not machine as easily as brass for a
variety of reasons. The plating on mouthpieces is generally to protect
the mouthpiece, not you. If you don't like the taste, then you need to
plate, or just use rubber (I don't like the taste of HR). I personally
don't detect anything with brass. The one caveat with brass, is that
if you eat a lot while playing or have basic (i.e. not acidic) saliva
and never clean your mouthpiece, the brass can decompose and will form
a green layer of copper carbonate. The 'green grunge' that forms on
mouthpieces (and other brass) with poor care and hygiene is, in fact,
toxic. That said, the LD50 (point at which half the rabbits die) is
about 200 mg/kg of body weight . This says that an average 70 kg
person would have to eat 14 grams (half ounce) of the stuff in one
sitting. Long term it's bad for your liver. If there is no green,
there is nothing else toxic...the little bits that you wipe away are
probably 1-2 mg at a time. If you wipe off and swab your mouthpiece
each time you put it away, you will have no problem. 

jeff

--- In MouthpieceWork@yahoogroups.com, "andrewhdonaldson"
<andrewhdonaldson@h...> wrote:
> --- In MouthpieceWork@yahoogroups.com, "sigmund451" <sigmund451@h...>
> wrote:
> > I dont own one.  I was going to make one.  I dont know if I should 
> > stick to silver plated brass or unplated bronze.  The added price of 
> > bronze is easily offset by the price of plating.  I have never
played a 
> > bronze piece
> > 
> > 
> > --- In MouthpieceWork@yahoogroups.com, Keith Bradbury
<kwbradbury@y...> 
> > wrote:
> > > There are very few Bronze MPs.  Do you own one?  If it tastes
bad to 
> > you,
> > > plate it.
> > > 
> > > 
> > > 
> > > 		
> > > __________________________________ 
> > > Do you Yahoo!? 
> > > Yahoo! Mail - Find what you need with new enhanced search. 
> > > http://info.mail.yahoo.com/mail_250
> 
> Hi Sigmund,
> 
> I have a bronze Berg.  It is not plated.  A benefit of bronze is that
> is does not need to be plated, since it does not tarnish as much as
> brass.  It just goes a slightly duller colour.  Another benefit is
> that is is tasteless, at least to me.  It is also slightly harder than
> brass.
> 
> Basically brass is an alloy of copper and zinc.  Bronze is an alloy of
> copper and tin.  They both may contain small percentages of other
> metals as well.
> 
> I think it is a good material for mouthpieces, but I understand that
> brass is cheaper and easier to cast, hence more common.
> 
> Regards,
> Andrew