[tenorblack]

The pearls that came on my sx90 are concave shaped. To me this severe bowl shape makes the action feel a little slower in reponse. I remember trying out a friends cannonball and the action on that felt faster. The pearls on that one was more of a selmer style design with a very shallow 'bowl' ie. concave shape.
On my horn my fingers have to sink down too much into the pearls to press the keys. I want a more instantaneous response more like the feel of my king zephyr alto (lightning fast). That horn has almost no concavity to the pearls.

Can the outer rim on the pearls of the SX90 be filed or sanded down more to my liking without adverse effects? Or Should I replace the pearls completely?

 

[Seasax]

i dont know what you could do but i also dont like keilworth pearls, but prefer selmer pearls, as you do!

 

[MusicMedic]

I think the SX90 has pearls that are glued on. The surface of the "Pearl Holder" has ribs in it, the pearls have matching ribs to hold them on the holder. As there are no sidewalls on the holder I find these pearls to fall off more often. Be careful as you sand them not to knock them off the holder. If they fall off use a good epoxy to put them back on.

I have successfully shaped pearls with these silicone polishing wheels:
http://www.musicmedic.com/catalog/products/abra-w100.html
I use the black or the blue for this.

This is the epoxy I use:
http://www.musicmedic.com/catalog/products/adhe-e100.html

Best of luck!

 

[kimslava]

When I've ground pearls on a grinding wheel to decrease the size to get them fit, I recall them making an ungodly stench. I assumed it was semi-toxic...not that it stopped me from doing it.

 

[Gordon (NZ)]

If the pearls are made from shell-like material, then the dust is known to be very harmful for the lungs.

 

[shmuelyosef]

When sanding pearls, I always use wet/dry sandpaper and sand the pearls wet. I collect the resulting slurry in a paper towel and dispose of it immediately. If shaping pearls, I start with 200 grit and work through 280, 400, 600, 1200, 2000. I then polish with Wenol (a fine metal polish) to get the lustre back. No dust...no smell, just slurry.