William, I own 7 CF Schmidts, 1 Conn Schmidt and 1 Alexander Schmidt, and piston placement is slightly different depending on the horn. The earlier Berlin models seem to place the piston higher, the later Weimar models are lower, and post [193?] Conns actually dealt with the problem you're describing by placing the tubing closer together and thus lowering the piston so it would be more comfortable for people with smaller hands (they seem to have shortened the mouthpipe in the process) (the pre-1908 Alexander also features a lower piston setting). Moving the piston is a lot of work and the only practical solution I can think of in a worst case scenario is to alter the spatulas so they dogleg upwards. Put another way, it seems to me that if the second of the length of each spatula was bent upwards at a 35% angle your fingertips would make the appropriate contact without as much thumb stretching. I realize this a sort of "If the mountain won't come to Mohammed, Mohammed must go to the mountain" approach. Congratulations on picking a Schmidt, I bought and sold 20+ horns before I discovered that Schmidts give me what I'm looking for. They can be quirky, so please drop me a line off list if you have problems/questions/concerns; chances are I've dealt with some of the issues already (or no someone who has).Best regards,Louis Denaro _________________
I'm trying out a Schmidt model horn for a week and I love the horn and the Schmidt wrap, but it's the first time I've really had time to try it out and I wasn't aware that my hands (which are small) find it difficult to reach the thumb trigger comfortably. To clarify, this is Schmidt with a 'tee' - the thumb piston change valve wrap. I'd hate to say no to this horn just because of that reason alone, so I'm wondering what I could do to make playing this horn more comfortable? I've seem some people with Klebsch straps, but I'm not sure what other people have done for this type of horn. Any thoughts, suggestions? -William ____________________________________________________________ Groupon™ Official Site 1 ridiculously huge coupon a day. Get 50-90% off your city's best! http://thirdpartyoffers.netzero.net/TGL3231/4dea70fb6728d31734ast02duc _______________________________________________ post: [email protected] unsubscribe or set options at https://pegasus.memphis.edu/cgi-bin/mailman/options/horn/archive%40jab.org
