Advanced Saxophone Repair Topic: Pivot Receiver Bushing and Post Washer 

+Topocalma You can (and should) lengthen solid rods just the same as you can hinge rods, with swedging. Its a bit harder and you need more mechanical advantage, but thats all. First though, you need to make sure that the body is straight, that the posts are in the correct position (sometimes people will move posts instead of fixing a body bend, and when you fix the body bend, your posts need moved back to original position), and that they are at the correct angle. If the horn has not been beat up, it is unlikely that you will find a large gap as that is not a wear point (the wear point is the inside where the pivot contacts). If there is a large gap, you've either got a horn that has seen damage (including relacquering where somebody buffed the post or rod face down a bunch) or was built on a bad day at the factory- and either condition is fixable by someone with the right tools and the experience to make the right decisions.

Ferree's actually has a tool to lengthen solid rods. It's a set or roller that works with the latest version of their neck tenon expander. Work well provided you have enough room to use it. Would work fine on a high E key for example.

The place I got mine no longer sells them (Kraus Music) but you can make them with a basic lathe and mill, starting with drill rod and heat treating the end product.

@@StohrerMusic Hi, thanks for the answer and for all the information you share with us :)

+Topocalma It would be nice if there was something like that (indeed I've thought about making some myself) but consider: - usually you are taking off a few thousands of an inch when countersinking a pivot screw post, and making bushings as shown above is typically the result of a bad repair - the pivot receivers in the keys are typically also worn, and need reamed out a tiny bit to have a snug fit again - the exact amount of wear in the receiver and exact fit from the factory is different on every key on every horn, and the chances of a premade pivot screw fixing every issue exactly right is approaching zero, with at least some of the regular key fitting methods still needed, which is why... - reaming the receiver and countersinking the post for exact fit is how they do it at the factory. Unless you want to be like modern Selmers and Borganis and have the little spring-loaded jimmy in there, which has its own problems.

I currently have a Taig and love it. Before that, I had an Austrian-made Maximat, which was a wonderful lathe but too much of a pain to move around. I'll wait to get a bigger lathe until I own a house.

Thanks....South Bend 10k here with taper attachment and quick change

phooesnax I'd love one of those eventually. Hard to find one around here because its known as a great gunsmithing lathe.

funny seem to pop up here all the time. In DE PA area. Seems like there is 5 or more on CL all of the time. Mine was my dad's

phooesnax I have a feeling when I look for my forever lathe, I'll be taking a truck up to the NE to pick it up.

well you can either stock a hundred different sizes of tubes and solid rods and usually have an imperfect fit or just make it to fit each time. much cheaper, more precise, and more flexible to make it.

+Matt Stohrer I see, said the blind man!! Thanks Matt

+Michael McDermott If you aren't doing it for a living, the tools and skills necessary to do this job will be more expensive than the money you'd save by doing it yourself (not to mention a probable difference in quality in the completed job). Some things are best left to professionals, even if you are heavy into DIY. Like resurfacing a cylinder head when you are rebuilding a car engine- nobody does that at home, even if they do almost everything else.