Valve Maintenance for Trumpets, Euphoniums, and Tubas

Hello again!

In this post, I'll write a bit about what you can do to keep your valves in top condition for your Trumpet, Baritone, Euphonium, or Tuba with piston valves.

This image from http://www.empirewinds.com/articles_valve_guide.htm shows the basic setup of most piston valves, although some variations are possible. For example, most trumpets have the spring built into the valve instead of being separate, or some instruments have the valve guide as an extension of the piston.

The most common maintenance that any valved brass instrument will need is the oiling of the valves. To do this, simply unscrew the top valve cap, pull out the valve, and apply just a few drops of valve oil to the exposed piston. After the valve has oil on it, slide it back in, making sure to properly align the valve guide. Make sure to only remove one valve at a time, and to return each valve to the correct valve casing. If your valves get out of order, or aren't aligned properly, it could make your instrument extremely hard to blow into, and possibly damage the valve!

If one of your valves is particularly sticky, despite frequent oiling, you can try cleaning the valve and valve casing. Using a small, lint-free cloth, wipe down the body of the piston and the inside of the valve casing. If a cloth is unavailable or not all of the casing can be reached, you can do this also by rinsing the piston and valve casing with lukewarm water. After cleaning off the valve, make sure to oil the valve.

As for what type of oil you should use, there are plenty of types out there, and most of them will be just fine for beginners My personal choice as a professional is Hetman Synthetic #2 lubricant, but that can be a bit pricey for a bottle that will most likely get lost by your 5th or 6th grader (I'm writing this as someone who is halfway through a Bachelor's in Music who just recently lost over $30 in various instrument lubricants). Al Cass Fast Valve and Slide Oil will work just fine for younger players, at a fraction of the cost.

For information about oiling rotary valves, check out this video by James Bolden
Rotary Valves oiling