1928 Martin Handcraft Alto project

464 Views 6 Replies 3 Participants Last post by Hoosier Ken, 8 d ago

Hoosier Ken

Discussion Starter · 1 mo ago

So I have been putting this one off for a year. Okay I just got on with other projects and this kept getting put on the back burner. Since the weather in Indiana is warming and I will be moving to outdoor projects I figure I had better get this cleaned up and repadded. So far I have managed to disassemble, this turned out to be a lot more difficult than I had allowed for. I got the last rod out by soaking overnight in Blaster. I was afraid that I might have to de-solder a post to get it free. I managed to polish 2 keys tonight and I had cleaned on the bell a little in the past. That's a start I reckon, I have also ordered some green felt because that is what is on it and I used red on the 23 Conn and I can't have them match.

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Hassles

· #2 · 1 mo ago

well done - keep it up

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PigSquealer

· #3 · 1 mo ago

Another 40 hours and you’ll have the keys polished. Add three more to flatten the cups. Then another three to clean the polish out of the tubes and refit those too. Rag the body with cheesecloth and jewelers rouge.
The felts on this year / vin were dark blue.
Usually a result color change from time invested in polishing🤣

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Hoosier Ken

Discussion Starter · #4 · 1 mo ago

PigSquealer said:
Another 40 hours and you’ll have the keys polished. Add three more to flatten the cups. Then another three to clean the polish out of the tubes and refit those too. Rag the body with cheesecloth and jewelers rouge.
The felts on this year / vin were dark blue.
Usually a result color change from time invested in polishing🤣
View attachment 151896

I did pull off a very dark felt but could not tell its original color, did you order white and then dye them blue. I have only found red, green, white, and black.
For polishing, I am starting off with scotchbright and then fine green buffing bar and soft bit in my rotary tool. I finish off with plain ol' Turtle Wax for autos. I have tried the Renaissance but found it too much like floor wax and it attracts dirt. I have no way to level the cups that I know of and these look perfect. I did have to straighten some on the one Indiana tenor that was in such bad shape.

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PigSquealer

· #5 · 1 mo ago

Hoosier Ken said:
I did pull off a very dark felt but could not tell its original color, did you order white and then dye them blue. I have only found red, green, white, and black.
For polishing, I am starting off with scotchbright and then fine green buffing bar and soft bit in my rotary tool. I finish off with plain ol' Turtle Wax for autos. I have tried the Renaissance but found it too much like floor wax and it attracts dirt. I have no way to level the cups that I know of and these look perfect. I did have to straighten some on the one Indiana tenor that was in such bad shape.

Lol you’ve been teased. Those blue felts are from an Italian make🤣
for polishing I would try some different grit steel wool. OOO or OOOO. Scotch Brite will actually scratch the surface. Steel wool will burnish/polish . Just be aware that the dust will rust. Keep the work area clean! Blow the sax off with compressed air. You may have some luck with turtle wax white polishing compound. Final ?
For a leveling the cups. Hobby stores like hobby lobby have a jewelers blocks($18). Rounding, I use a assortment. As a DIY suggestion measure the inside of the cup. Find an automotive socket that’s clean with a square edge.. Make a plastic hammer. Gently tap to a conforming nice radius. This hammer I made from 5/8” polypropylene and a chopstick. If the face gets worn, I grind it flat again. leaves no marks.

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Hoosier Ken

Discussion Starter · #6 · 1 mo ago

PigSquealer said:
Lol you’ve been teased. Those blue felts are from an Italian make🤣
for polishing I would try some different grit steel wool. OOO or OOOO. Scotch Brite will actually scratch the surface. Steel wool will burnish/polish . Just be aware that the dust will rust. Keep the work area clean! Blow the sax off with compressed air. You may have some luck with turtle wax white polishing compound. Final ?
For a leveling the cups. Hobby stores like hobby lobby have a jewelers blocks($18). Rounding, I use a assortment. As a DIY suggestion measure the inside of the cup. Find an automotive socket that’s clean with a square edge.. Make a plastic hammer. Gently tap to a conforming nice radius. This hammer I made from 5/8” polypropylene and a chopstick. If the face gets worn, I grind it flat again. leaves no marks.
View attachment 151939

I tried these scotchbright bits in my rotary tool, Amazon calls them abrasive buffing polishing wheels. I also have very soft ones for the green polish. I could have really used the leveling on the Indiana. A couple of its cups were butterflied to some extent. I don't think that this Handcraft has any dents. It is in very good condition except for tarnish. I did have to work to get some of the rods out, I used the hobby heat gun to heat the posts. The last one I let soak overnight with Blaster.

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Hoosier Ken

Discussion Starter · #7 · 8 d ago

The body is looking pretty good.

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