Yo!, Slide, check the info below to keep ya' slick and slippery.
Description
Procedure
Frequency
Blowout
Assemble your horn and mouthpiece. Blow air vigorously through your horn to clear the case fuzz out. You don't want it to mess with your slide action.
Before every use
Lube up
Remove your outer slide and wipe off the inner slide tubes. If you are using oil, put a few drops on the stockings (the larger part of the tubes at the bottom). If you are using anything else besides oil, sprits a little water from your slide sprayer onto the stockings. See Warnings
Before every use and as needed during playing
Wipe
Blow the condensation out of the horn using the water key and lots of air. With a soft cloth, wipe the finger prints off.
After each use
Cleaning
Pour cool, soapy water through your slide and bell separately. Test your water key cork by pressurizing the outer slide and look for bubbles. Work the slide a bunch of times, drain, rinse and let dry. Reapply oil or other lube. Pull tuning slide, wipe tubes and reapply grease. See Warnings
Monthly
To prevent the catastrophes that lie in wait for the trombonist, heed these words.
The trombone is a long cumbersome instrument. It is easily bent and can be broken completely apart. When moving around with the trombone, hold the instrument long wise against your side so that it isn't sticking out at right angles.
The main slide is the heart of the horn. You have to take care of it. Don't bump it against ANYTHING. The tubing has to be thin or it would be too heavy to move quickly and will droop out of alignment. Being thin it is easily dented.
Either use slide oil or something else. Don't mix the two types of lubricant. They turn into something that doesn't help your slide move freely.
Main slide lube actually isn't to help your slide move. A dry slide moves very well. The lube helps to fill up the gap between the outer and inner slides to lessen the leakage of air, but if you use too much it will affect the slide action. You should not be able to see your slide lubricant.
Watch the quick horn lifts. If you snap the horn down onto your shoulder, you will flex the joint at the rotor valve. The knuckle will flex and break over time. This is a costly repair.
Please do not use super glue on your horn in any way, shape, form, or fashion. To do so will cause extra time and expense with repairs and will not be corrected under our maintenance agreement.
DO NOT DO NOT DO NOT DO NOT
use any polishing cloth that puts red stuff on your hands to polish your silver trombone. You may use a cloth that has a white or yellow inner cloth that turns black when you use it. The reason? The red stuff rubs off the silver.
'nuff said?
