Virtual Factory Tour:
For those who can't come to Germany to visit the factory we've added photos to serve as a "virtual tour":
Martin Matthies (12.06.01)
Bellmaking:
cutting the bell stem out of a sheet of brass
several Tuba and Euphonium bell patterns
The bell flare is made out of a round sheet
of brass. It is to be brazed to the bell stem to make a full
Tuba bell.
Here we see the preparation of the bell stem.
gold brass bell on mandrel
Annealing prepares the bell for the next process.
Filing of the finished Tuba bellThe making of a bottom bow out of sheet metal requires years of experience - and still takes a full day:
Here the 2 halves
are prepared to be...
...brazed together.
After that, the
bow (which is still flat) is pounded...
...into roundness.
Burnishing the
bow afterwards requires at least a 3rd (and sometimes a 4th)
hand. This will take the last wrinkles or other imperfections
out of the bow.
Pulling
/ pushing the bow through draw rings of various sizes assures
perfect roundness.
After filing, sanding and buffing, this bow
is ready to be assembled.
valve group assembly:
mounting of slides and bows to the already assembled (rotary)
valve cluster
Precise alignment of slides, knees
and bows prior to soldering is necessary to assure smooth valve
slide action afterwards.
mounting:Perfect soft soldering is an art - assembly of a BBb-Tuba 25.
BuffingBuffing is not only done to give the Tuba its bright, shiny look - it is also done for quality control.
This is why the
Tuba
is actually buffed several times while being made: all the parts
undergo buffing first before being assembled: leadpipe, valve
group, bows and the bell.During assembly, we also buff the solder joints between the bows as it is not possible to reach them with the buffing wheel once the valve group is mounted.
last update of this page: June 29th, 2001