New Schullies, new parts ?

[Roy]

Hi all -

 

With the thread of peeling handles, and a possible "bad batch" - I wanted to ask the wisdom about another issue...

 

Up until 2010, San Diego Harmony Ringers played on a 5-octave set of Schullies at our host church which were in the neighborhood of 20 years old.  We were very fortunate to be able to finally purchase our own set - again from Schulmerich.

 

This new set was considerably less "bright" than our former borrowed bells, which we attributed to aged (and therefore hardened) clappers.  But even on the 'hard' settings, we were not able to get the dynamic range we wanted.  We also had several bells that buzzed, and several more in the bass that made a noticable "smack" when rung.

 

Shulmerich was GREAT (thanks Kermit!) in working with us - letting us know that there had been a recent redesign of the clapper mechanism, that was getting negative feedback from customers.  They replaced ALL of the clapperheads, and recommended that we use the 'select-a-strike' option so we could voice the instruments more evenly.

 

2 years later, we are still unhappy with the significant reduction in dynamic range - we have them, again, towards the 'hard' setting... we get lovely pianissimos, but find ourselves working very hard (to the point of fear of injury) to get to the fff area.

 

Has anyone else found this issue with new Schullies? and what (if any) solutions were sucessfully used ?

 

Thanks !

 

Roy Attridge

San Diego Harmony Ringers

[Nancy Kirkner]

Could you please tell us more about this clapper redesign? - Nancy

[Thomas Simpson]

Well. You do know Malmark sells their clappers in a Shulmeric version?

At one of my old church jobs, we had one or two bells that just played dead when being rung. I tried the Malmark clappers and it fixed them right up.

They were expensive though. Like $29 a clapper set.

Just a thought.



Thomas

Sent from my iPhone

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[Nancy Kirkner]

Hi, Thomas, that's a good idea, and maybe a different brand of clapper
would help my Bb5. I have a question, though, as I've heard
conflicting information about these hybrids. I have a vague idea that
when my set needs refurbishment, I'm going to retrofit with Malmark
clappers instead of replacing all the nyliners. However, I've been
told that only the clapperhead is different, when what I covet is the
spring mechanism. Since this would be a very expensive retrofit, it's
on the back burner until I actually *need* to refurbish. But I'm
curious - is the whole assembly like the Malmark clapper assembly, or
just the clapperhead?

I would also be interested in when Schulmerich did the clapper
redesign, and what measures are in place to refit bells that are
already out there. I don't feel like I can just request a free set of
new clapperheads, but it seems like there might be some accommodation,
like replacements at a reduced cost. Or maybe my sets are new enough
that I already have the new clappers, and that's why I never got a
"recall notice." Silver? Anyone?

Best -

Nancy

On May 24, 11:03 am, Thomas Simpson <ftsimp...@aol.com> wrote:
> Well. You do know Malmark sells their clappers in a Shulmeric version?
>
> At one of my old church jobs, we had one or two bells that just played dead when being rung. I tried the Malmark clappers and it fixed them right up.
>
> They were expensive though. Like $29 a clapper set.
>
> Just a thought.
>
> Thomas
>
> Sent from my iPhone
>

> > Digest: e-mail mdpr...@gmail.com with subject line "Digest-L"

[Nancy Kirkner]

Hi, Roy, I wrote an article about movement and dynamics on
solobells.com. It's mostly from a soloist's perspective, but I've
used it in teaching choirs. You may find some helpful techniques
there, in addition to looking for a solution to the clappers
themselves. I seem to remember reading that the clappers harden over
time, and that's why your old set may have been louder.

FWIW, my accompanist told me I started to ring louder when I began
wearing hearing protection. At my last concert, I forgot to put my
plugs in for the first piece, and we both noticed balance problems we
hadn't had before. That may not apply to your group, but it's worth
considering.

Best -

Nancy Kirkner
www.solobells.com

On May 24, 10:01 am, Roy <ro...@sbcglobal.net> wrote:

[F. Thomas Simpson]

It's a whole new clapper assemble.

The block is fitted for a Shulemeric bell (shullies have a orientation pin in their bells crown), but has Malmark springs, stem and clapper action. It's a nice compromise.

Why not just change out clappers as they have problems? The the cost is spread out over months/years instead of one big lupm of cash!




Thomas

[Mickey Johnson]

I was told a few years back by Kathy Ebling - formerly with Malmark - that they no longer made the conversion kits. Has that changed?

Also, such a change would void your Schulmerich warranty.

"Mickey" Johnson

[F. Thomas Simpson]

Hmmm Don't know about that one. I bought these about 3 years ago.

Getting your bells "refurbished" by anyone other than Shulmeric technically "voids" your warranty too. So, we all make choices. :-)




Thomas

[Nicholas Barnard]

I see technically that itd void your warranty, but why not just save the old clappers and if you have trouble with the casting or handle that requires it going back to the factory, put the schully clapper back in and send it off. 

Though this would make sending the bells off for refurbishment a pain as you have to disassemble the bells twice (once before sending em off and once when they get back.)

Nick 

Seattle, WA

Sent from my computer that moonlights as a phone. Please forgive any misspellings or terseness

[F. Thomas Simpson]

And that is why my old church had a big ole bag of old used clappers and parts!!



Thomas

[Silver Woodbury]

I'm not entirely sure exactly when Schulmerich came out with the current
style of clappers. The website mentions the G#6-C7 re-design in 1999. I
believe the rest of the range was shortly before then. Last year, they
re-designed the 4th and 5th oct. bass clappers to round off those pointed
area on the bronze clapper centers that I mentioned in my last post.
Schulmerich considers these changes as innovations (they have also made
improvements to the disks, handles and yoke mechanisms over the years), so
there is no recall or widespread retrofit offered. Instead, these new parts
are available as upgrades.

I caution against installing one manufacturer's parts in the other's bells.
In doing so, you run the risk of voiding your warranty. Just sayin'. Also,
terminology can make a difference as well. I believe what some of you are
calling the "clapper" is actually the entire yoke mechanism consisting of
the clapper, clapper shaft, yoke block and spring. When I say "clapper," I
mean the clapper head itself. The "yoke" is the mechanism containing the
spring and clapper shaft. I believe Malmark's terms are slightly different
for these parts.

I don't make the policies and I am not privy many things, so please don't
shoot the messenger!

Silver

Mrs. Silver D. Woodbury
Silverbell Enterprises
Regional Independent Sales Representative for Schulmerich Bells
Oklahoma - Kansas - Arkansas - Northern Texas
Authorized Dealer for Murphy Robes in Oklahoma
10012 Carnie Circle, Yukon, OK 73099
405-519-0331 mobile
888-735-5407 toll-free voice and fax
silve...@cox.net or SWoo...@SchulmerichBells.com

[F. Thomas Simpson]

The funny part to all this is:

The guy who invented the Malmark clapper (yoke assemble) and the Malmark / Shullie retrofit clapper, ALSO invented the Shulmeric Bell!!



Thomas

On May 24, 2012, at 12:20 PM, F. Thomas Simpson wrote: