Tim Dugen dropped by my shop about a week ago with a broken bone. Tim plays a Shires large bore trombone in The President’s Own US Marine Band. He came in to have a bell dent removed, but when I examined the slide, I found a problem with the socket on the inner hand assembly. Stay with me, repair nerds!

Before

After

Here are the bits and pieces of the inner slide assembly. The silver solder joint had failed at the socket.

Broken Bone

Residual lacquer and solder has been removed in preparation for new silver solder.

Silver Solder Prep

Flux applied to allow the silver solder to flow properly.

The Flux

Silver soldering. The two pieces here are of different mass, so it’s tricky to direct the flame to make sure they are heated evenly. Otherwise, the socket could melt into a puddle.

Yikes!

After a quick dip in acid, the part is ready for buffing.

Ready to Buff

Good as new!

Buffed

Assembling the cork barrel.

Some Assembly Required

Better than ever.

Upper Cork Barrel

Preparing to solder the socket.

Line up

Ready for spot lacquering.

Done!

Tim approves!

Happy Customer!