How do you do this? How does one accurately measure the tip opening of a mouthpiece? What tools do I need, or is this something a sax shop can do?
Grasshopper
Good question...I just picked up a $5 feeler gauge from Home Despot and can't figure out how to use it (I'm a dummy). Help! 
The simple answer is to place the table of the mouthpiece flat on a piece of glass (or glass gauge) with the tip even with the edge of the glass (or the 0 marking on the glass gauge). You then measure the distance from the glass to the tip with a wand or caliper. (I use the JJ Babbitt tip gauges) Some measure at the bottom of the tip rail, some at the top.
I defer any more technical answers to the refacers amoung us.
I defer any more technical answers to the refacers amoung us.
You cannot measure the tip opening with feeler gauges. Feeler gauges are used for measuring the facing curve.
There are several ways to measure the tip.
The traditional way, place the "glass gauge" on the table of the mouthpiece, aligning the tip of the mouthpiece with the edge of the glass by pushing gently against a vertical surface (like the edge of the workbench). Then a "tapered wand gauge" is inserted. This is a rod that has a long flat machined on one side, that is cut at a slight angle so that it is very thin on the end, and thicker toward the other end of the rod. There are little lines etched on the flat side. The wand is inserted between the tip of the mouthpiece and the glass, with the flat side up toward the glass. This way, it only contacts the tip rail at one point, because the other side is round. It is slid in until a slight resistanceis felt, and the the tip thickness is read where the flat side is even with the glass. The reading changes slightly as the wand wears.
These gauges are specially made just for this purpose. You cannot buy these at the local hardware store.
Another method is to use the glass as before, but attempt to use a caliper to measure between the glass and tip. This does not give the same reading as above, because it does not measure at the very tip of the tip rail, but rather must measure in somewhat, so it always yields a slightly smaller figure. Plus, as you adjust the caliper, it will push out on the glass slightly, you must be careful not to push the glass away and get a false reading. Also, the hard steel of the caliper can scratch the tip of a hard rubber mouthpiece.
A better way with the caliper. As you open a caliper, there is a part that sticks out of the other end of the sliding rule part. That is a depth probe.
You can have a hole drilled in the other end of your glass gauge, large enough to allow the depth probe to pass through, and place that hole over the tip rail. Insert the depth probe through the hole, and push the caliper down until it is sitting square on the glass. Then subtract the thickness of the glass (which you can also measure with your caliper) from the reading from the depth probe, that is your tip opening.
And finally, from my mouthpiece kit from Madison Enterprises (apparently no longer available) an aluminum block fixture with a dial indicator attached. This is placed against the table of the mouthpiece and the probe touches the outer edge of the tip rail. Counting back from the zero (the depth is measured below zero), the tip opening is taken.
And what is a glass gauge?
This is a piece of glass approximately 1" wide (25 mm) x 4" long (100mm) with lines etched on the glass at 1mm increments. Zero at the edge of the glass.
The glass is placed against the table of the mouthpiece, the edge of the glass is aligned with the tip by pressing the tip and glass gently against a vertical surface (such as the edge of the workbench).
Feeler gauges are inserted, and slid down gently until the feeler stops. The measurement on the glass is the distance from the tip for that thickness of gauge.
The standard gauges used are .0015" (.04mm) for the facing length. Some use .002" (.05mm) which yields practically the same reading, and holds up better under constant use that the thinner .0015".
.010" (0.25mm) which is the "break".
(And I also use a .014" (.35mm) for additional accurace in the break section of the mouthpiece.)
.024" (.60mm)
.035" (.90mm) or some use .031" (.80mm)
.050" (1.25mm) or some use .048" (1.2mm)
Let me interject here, .0015", .010", .024", .035", and .050" were the standard gauged used by the old Eric Brand method, but sax and clarinet mouthpieces in those days did not require any larger than these. These larger sizes are needed for modern saxophone mouthpieces:
.063" (1.6mm)
.077" (2.0mm)
.094" (2.4mm)
So, a plot is made by noting the readings of these various feelers.
There are several ways to measure the tip.
The traditional way, place the "glass gauge" on the table of the mouthpiece, aligning the tip of the mouthpiece with the edge of the glass by pushing gently against a vertical surface (like the edge of the workbench). Then a "tapered wand gauge" is inserted. This is a rod that has a long flat machined on one side, that is cut at a slight angle so that it is very thin on the end, and thicker toward the other end of the rod. There are little lines etched on the flat side. The wand is inserted between the tip of the mouthpiece and the glass, with the flat side up toward the glass. This way, it only contacts the tip rail at one point, because the other side is round. It is slid in until a slight resistanceis felt, and the the tip thickness is read where the flat side is even with the glass. The reading changes slightly as the wand wears.
These gauges are specially made just for this purpose. You cannot buy these at the local hardware store.
Another method is to use the glass as before, but attempt to use a caliper to measure between the glass and tip. This does not give the same reading as above, because it does not measure at the very tip of the tip rail, but rather must measure in somewhat, so it always yields a slightly smaller figure. Plus, as you adjust the caliper, it will push out on the glass slightly, you must be careful not to push the glass away and get a false reading. Also, the hard steel of the caliper can scratch the tip of a hard rubber mouthpiece.
A better way with the caliper. As you open a caliper, there is a part that sticks out of the other end of the sliding rule part. That is a depth probe.
You can have a hole drilled in the other end of your glass gauge, large enough to allow the depth probe to pass through, and place that hole over the tip rail. Insert the depth probe through the hole, and push the caliper down until it is sitting square on the glass. Then subtract the thickness of the glass (which you can also measure with your caliper) from the reading from the depth probe, that is your tip opening.
And finally, from my mouthpiece kit from Madison Enterprises (apparently no longer available) an aluminum block fixture with a dial indicator attached. This is placed against the table of the mouthpiece and the probe touches the outer edge of the tip rail. Counting back from the zero (the depth is measured below zero), the tip opening is taken.
And what is a glass gauge?
This is a piece of glass approximately 1" wide (25 mm) x 4" long (100mm) with lines etched on the glass at 1mm increments. Zero at the edge of the glass.
The glass is placed against the table of the mouthpiece, the edge of the glass is aligned with the tip by pressing the tip and glass gently against a vertical surface (such as the edge of the workbench).
Feeler gauges are inserted, and slid down gently until the feeler stops. The measurement on the glass is the distance from the tip for that thickness of gauge.
The standard gauges used are .0015" (.04mm) for the facing length. Some use .002" (.05mm) which yields practically the same reading, and holds up better under constant use that the thinner .0015".
.010" (0.25mm) which is the "break".
(And I also use a .014" (.35mm) for additional accurace in the break section of the mouthpiece.)
.024" (.60mm)
.035" (.90mm) or some use .031" (.80mm)
.050" (1.25mm) or some use .048" (1.2mm)
Let me interject here, .0015", .010", .024", .035", and .050" were the standard gauged used by the old Eric Brand method, but sax and clarinet mouthpieces in those days did not require any larger than these. These larger sizes are needed for modern saxophone mouthpieces:
.063" (1.6mm)
.077" (2.0mm)
.094" (2.4mm)
So, a plot is made by noting the readings of these various feelers.
G
You may not be able to perfectly measure a tip opening with feeler gauge but I find that I can get a measurement that is very, very close. If you just want to find out "about" what your tip opening is and don't want to spend a lot of money on dial indicators or tip wands here is what you can try:
Lay the mouthpiece on a flat piece of glass and slide your largest feeler under it (since you aren't a refacer I assume your largest feeler is about a .035" from an automotive set). Then stack your next largest feeler on top of that (probably a .030 - you are now at .065) - then your .020 (now at .085) and so on. As you get close to the tip you will want to drop down to smaller sizes. When you get nearly to the very tip but not quite (about 1mm away from the tip) you see if you can fit your .002 or .003 or .005 just under the tip. If it just barely fits under the tip then you can add up all your feelers and you will be very, very close to the actual tip opening (unless you didn't hold the mouthpiece tight against the glass or pushed too hard on the feelers or something else screwed up - try it several times and see if you get the same reading each time). I find this to be accurate within about .003" and that may be close enough for your purposes.
Lay the mouthpiece on a flat piece of glass and slide your largest feeler under it (since you aren't a refacer I assume your largest feeler is about a .035" from an automotive set). Then stack your next largest feeler on top of that (probably a .030 - you are now at .065) - then your .020 (now at .085) and so on. As you get close to the tip you will want to drop down to smaller sizes. When you get nearly to the very tip but not quite (about 1mm away from the tip) you see if you can fit your .002 or .003 or .005 just under the tip. If it just barely fits under the tip then you can add up all your feelers and you will be very, very close to the actual tip opening (unless you didn't hold the mouthpiece tight against the glass or pushed too hard on the feelers or something else screwed up - try it several times and see if you get the same reading each time). I find this to be accurate within about .003" and that may be close enough for your purposes.
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