[jokunen]

Hi,

What would be a good ligature for a vintage tenor STM?
My definition of good:
Fits the mouthpiece in question.
Holds the reed in place.
Made out of rigid material (not something that stretches).
Comes with a cap that is as close to air tight as possible.
Easy to use.

I'm not good enough player to hear sound differences between ligatures.
The original lig does not hold the reed in place securely and the cap has a large hole in it (the reed dries out too fast).
I currently use a FL lig but there is no practical cap for it.
For alto I have the Rico H-lig that is perfect for my purposes but I'm afraid the ridge on the STM could cause a problem with that design.

 

[SiB0717]

I'd recommend anything by Rovner. They do everything you mention above + are easy to hande + aren't that expensive.
I personally had a Dark ligature on my Link but there is some controversy on the forum wether it sounds good or not.
My opinion on the sound issue is that most of it, although it's noticeable, can be blow over quite easily once you got used to it. For me there was never a reason to use a lig, that handles badly and doesn't hold the reed when I tune, if the sound was a little better.

 

[chknbon]

I've used a Rovner Mk3 on my STM, & it is good. It comes with a cap that would probably give a good fit. I've used F.L., Oleg & Selmer 404, which don't come with caps. I like the 404 most, but Rovner comes with a cap. You'll have to find a cap for the others.

 

[Black Obelisk]

Go for the Selmer 404, tried & true, will not let you down.

It looks like there making this plastic cap now:
http://doctorsax.biz/Link_Mpc_Cap.htm
Looks good, I might buy one.

 

[thadnoland]

Go for the Selmer 404, tried & true, will not let you down.

It looks like there making this plastic cap now:
http://doctorsax.biz/Link_Mpc_Cap.htm
Looks good, I might buy one.

I say go with the Selmer 404.

Also, I have this cap. It works well with my standard Link lig. The cap is open, though.

 

[Nobby Keys]

The only (not tried any others) lig I've used on my Link is the Francois Louis Ultimate, which seems to work fine for me. BTW it does come with a cap, of sorts.

 

[bariandyf]

Selmer 404 - used by many players for a metal Link - and the likes of Michael Brecker and Jerry Bergonzi used one when they played metal links.

Originally Posted by Black Obelisk
Go for the Selmer 404, tried & true, will not let you down.
It looks like there making this plastic cap now:
http://doctorsax.biz/Link_Mpc_Cap.htm
Looks good, I might buy one.

I have one of these caps, ok as mentioned with a std link lig, but doesn't fit when using the 404 lig, it's too big.

 

[CarlHeanerd]

404.