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I 3D-printed a working trombone!

It's mostly based on the design from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OI0A-zdRvIk but the 3D printer I used is too small to print some of those parts, so I had to get a bit creative with cutting and gluing/taping.

In theory it should sound decent, but I'm pretty bad at playing the trombone. See the end of that video for a demo by someone who actually knows how to play the instrument.

Mar 6 at 1:28amWeb
Show thread​Mar 6

Technical details:

It's an alto trombone in F (2/3 the size of conventional tenor trombone).

The slide is quite squeaky so I lubricated it with PTFE grease which helped somewhat.

There's no slide lock or water key or F attachment (C attachment?)

I tried several 3D-printed trombone mouthpieces and the 11C from https://www.printables.com/model/484499-trombone-mouthpieces-based-on-bach-sizes-7c-11c-5g worked best for me. Most trombone mouthpieces are intended for tenor trombones which makes it harder to hit high notes on an alto using them.

Trombone Mouthpieces based on Bach Sizes 7C, 11C, 5G by Nicholas Oclassen | Download free STL model | Printables.com

Printables.com
Show thread​Mar 6

The notes don't slot in that well, but on the flip side it's really easy to play false tones (a third below the 2nd harmonic) and pedal tones (fundamental frequency and lower notes) on this thing.

As I said, I'm awful at playing the trombone so I can only play up to the third harmonic, although I can hit much higher notes using a trumpet mouthpiece (but then it sounds like demented squeaky shrieking instead of a trombone)

Show thread​Mar 6

TIL the names of brass instruments in Chinese:

Trumpet: 小号 "small horn"
Cornet: 短号 "short horn"
Flugelhorn: 柔音号 "soft sound horn"
French horn: 圆号 "round horn"
Trombone: 长号 "long horn"
Euphonium/Baritone: 上低音号 "upper low sound horn"
Tuba: 大号 "big horn"

Show thread​Mar 6
Flugelhorn best horn
Show threadBen ZaninMar 6
@xy fluwugelhorn
Show thread​Mar 6
Meanwhile the English names make absolutely no sense, for instance,
Tuba: the Latin word for trumpet
French horn: Actually invented in Germany
Show thread​Mar 6
I am better than 99% of people at playing the trombone but worse than 99% of actual trombone players
Show thread​Mar 29

I 3D-printed a full-sized tenor trombone! (Except for the metal mouthpiece and PEX slide)

It's mostly based on https://www.printables.com/model/324716-printbone-pex-slide-files and https://www.printables.com/model/80017-the-printbone-v11-a-fully-printable-playable-tromb with a few slight modifications, and cost around $35, most of which was for the mouthpiece and PEX tubing.

Show thread​Mar 29

Technical details:

It's surprisingly usable as a musical instrument, the partials are all mostly in tune, and false tones and pedal tones are pretty easy to play on it. It has a 0.485 inch bore and 8.5 inch bell.

Unlike the alto I printed, the slide isn't squeaky and didn't need lubrication. Again, no water key so I have to empty the water by pulling out the whole slide.

Show threadThomas BrandMar 29
@xy video of the trombone in action requested.
Show thread​Apr 1
I wrote an April Cools post about that 3D-printed trombone, feat "Bad Apple!! But It's 8 Trombones Played Badly": https://unnamed.website/posts/3d-printing-trombone/
3D-printing a Trombone

Building a perfectly playable plastic trombone for only $30

Show thread​Apr 11
Instead of learning to play actual music on the trombone, I'm learning
1. Playing two notes at the same time (multiphonics)
2. Making car engine sounds (using flutter tonguing)
3. Womp womp womp womp (using a plastic bowl)
Show thread​Apr 11

WHOA this guy can throat sing while playing the trombone? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gl3r22rz2rg

All my tricks look trivial in comparison

Trombone Extended Techniques - Tuvan Throat Singing Multiphonics

YouTube
Show threadThomas BrandApr 11
@xy making the most of your tuition?
Show thread​Jun 9
I should buy a case, except that the case would cost more than trombone itself 🤣
Show threadThomas BrandJun 9
@xy maybe give it a twist like a silly straw and see how it sounds.
Show threadDavid, a Bostonian in Tokyo.Jun 9

@xy

I have the opposite problem. In real life, a gig bag actually protects guitars better than a hard_shell case, but as soon as you get into somewhat nice guitars they include a hard_shell case, and you are stuck with a case too heavy to carry. And you have to buy a gig bag for it.

But condolences on your problem: trombones are more easily dented than guitars.