BEAKS:
I have designed what I believe to be the most comfortable tenor beak designs of any saxophone mouthpieces made. We experimented with beak angles of varying degrees (between 16 and 21 degrees), different widths, and overall shapes. The beaks are super comfortable for me whether I take in a little mouthpiece, a medium amount of mouthpiece, or a lot of mouthpiece. My upper lip does not get crushed against the beak curve when I take in a lot of mouthpiece, but I prefer taking in very little mouthpiece, myself. The beak are very comfortable. Great detail has gone into making these beaks just right.
TABLES:
All of the tables on my tenor mouthpieces are longer than the reed on my 10MFANTM tenor mouthpieces. This was done so that you can easily line a reed up and see that it’s perfectly aligned top to bottom and side to side. Also, the entire reed can vibrate on the table and be held down by the ligature. Dexter Gordon used to keep the ligature far back. I bet he would have loved to have tried my mouthpieces with the ligature all the way on the butt end of the reed. The tables on my mouthpieces are the perfect width, flat, and very reed friendly. Great detail has gone into these pieces to make sure that the tables match the reed contour precisely.
Please make sure when you put your reed on, that the tip of the reed matches up with the tip rail of your mouthpiece, and that the bottom of the reed is perfectly centered on the table.
The longer tables show alot of care and thought because it makes perfect sense. The table is where the whole reed lies—- If you’re a 6 foot tall person, would sleeping on a 4 foot long bed be optimal for you??? We do not buff the table, rails, or inside of the mouthpiece because once they are hand-finished, they are perfect, and we leave them that way. You will see the hand-finishing marks on purpose. Our primary concern is that the table is perfectly flat, not that its shiny and glowing after a buffing. Never ever hit the table with a buffing wheel….that’s a good recipe for disaster.
LIGATURES:
I have heard the numerous complaints about many modern hard rubber tenor mouthpieces having ligature issues. People are complaining that many modern mouthpieces are a little too small to fit regular tenor ligatures properly— so a lot of people have had to resort to buying expensive modern ligatures to accommodate this.
Who signed up for that???
All of my mouthpieces are made from scratch, so I’ve made sure that the bodies and tapers are just right to fit an abundance of ordinary ligatures. My mouthpieces are precision machined for accuracy and designed to be very ligature friendly. I am not including a ligature with my mouthpieces because I feel strongly that players have ligatures they prefer to use, and I don’t want you to judge my mouthpieces with any ligature I could include. For me, ligatures make a big difference, so use what you find works best for your needs- so be sure to try different ligs so you can get the perfect set-up for yourself. Many modern ligs fit my mpc’s wel.
***Ligatures for my 10mfan hard rubber tenor mouthpieces: 99.9% of the ligatures out there designed to fit full sized hard rubber mouthpieces will fit mine beautifully. The 2-screw ligs, Rico H, Vandoren M/O, BG, Bonade, Rovner Platinum, Francois Louis, Ishimori ligs that fit Selmer, Silverstein, Absolute lig from Italy, Oleg ligs, Marc Jean, and tons more.
*** The only ligature I have found too tight on my tenor saxophone models, is the Vandoren Optimum ligature. ***
FACING CURVES:
I have addressed facing curves aggressively. We tried everything from super short lengths to super long lengths and various curve rates. We are using facing curves that provide more minute control over the curve rate. This provides great accuracy among all my mouthpieces. These mouthpieces are incredibly efficient!
TIP RAIL:
The tip rails are very finely handcrafted for accuracy of articulation and attack. These are all thin and accurate. I want fast and clean response from my mouthpieces with the right amount of resistance, for me.
Please make sure you always line the top of the reed up to the very tip of the mouthpiece without going over.
FRONTAL RAIL:
The height of the front rail has been perfectly calibrated for precise attacks.
SIDE RAILS:
The rails are beautifully done on all of my 10MFAN mouthpieces for harmonic profile and response characteristics.
CHAMBERS:
I tried small, medium, medium-large, and large chambers when prototyping my hard rubber tenor mouthpieces. I bought a large supply of hard rubber so I could try everything with my mouthpieces till I got it right. Chambers are of the greatest importance. My 10MFANTM tenor mouthpieces have the right size chamber to help each design do what its designed to do. Some people don’t want a chamber so large that the sound doesn’t center, and others don’t want a chamber too small that they can’t manipulate the timbre. The classic medium large chamber has proven itself to be the perfect size for my hard rubber Merlot and Robusto models, and I use a unique oval chamber on my model called The Classic and Showtime models. The Black Widow is a smaller chamber in comparison to the other models. The chamber and baffle configurations are different on my tenor models to provide you with the desired goal for each of the mouthpiece models. My 1st two category alto pieces both have medium chambers.
CONSISTENCY:
The wonderful thing about these mouthpieces is that they are amazingly consistent from one piece to the next. Eric and I both play test extensively every single mouthpiece I sell, so I know for a fact, that they will be perfect when bought. I’ve laid out a table full of 7*’s, and I can’t notice any discernible difference in sound or feel between any of them. Every piece ridiculously consistent from one to the next. This is great news if a friend of yours tries your 7* and wants one for themselves —- they can have the confidence that when they receive their 7*, it will play just like yours. It’s also great news and truly a relief to know that if you drop or lose your mouthpiece and wonder if you’ll ever get another one as good as that one—-the answer is yes you will! These mouthpiece designs are saved on the computer, cut by CNC precision machined for complete accuracy, and hand finished one at a time.
BAFFLES:
My different models have different height, shape, and length baffles which provide a high degree of control and accuracy. The length and angle of the baffle provides different sonic character that will suit an individual players’ style or preference. *** Leaving texture on the baffle is more desirable than polishing it for me, because of the way the air interacts with the textured surface. You can see the hand finishing marks there for a reason. The textures of the baffles have been optimized to enhance the intended performance of the mouthpieces. *** We will also not buff or polish the table side of the mouthpiece, because after they are each hand-finished, and don’t want to mess anything up after the hand finishing. No reason to mess with perfection.
All the important details have been addressed thoroughly. Nothing has been left out in terms of making these mouthpieces play fantastic
TIP OPENING SIZES:
My mouthpieces are available in the most widely used tip openings, because players want and need a choice. I don’t make one size tip opening so that you are forced to play that size even if it doesn’t fit you. I make a nice variety of tip sizes available for players so you can play the correct size for you, not what’s easiest or most profitable for the mouthpiece maker.
TENOR TIP OPENINGS:
6 = .090 6* = .095
7 = .100
7* = .105 7** = .108
8 = .110
8* = .115
9 = .120
9* = .125
10 = .130
ALTO TIP OPENINGS:
5 = .072 6 = .078 7 = .083 8 = .090 9 = .095
*** If you have an “in between” alto size that you are very fond of, we are happy to make that custom for you without any worry. ***
ENDORSERS:
A humble and honest approach to selling mouthpieces.
I do not want or need to have “endorsers” for my 10MFANTM mouthpieces like you see on other saxophone mouthpiece websites. I can’t begin to tell you how many of those “endorsers” don’t even play or like the mouthpieces they “endorse”. Many are just given free mouthpieces and others are paid to use the mouthpieces. Don’t buy mouthpieces because your favorite player has his name associated with a certain mouthpiece. You’ll see players hopping around from brand to brand for many reasons…you dig what I’m saying?
Many of the heavyweights have their mouthpieces refaced and tweaked over and over and over again, to get it to be just what they want, and many are being paid to play certain mouthpieces. Just because their name is on a mouthpiece doesn’t mean it’s going to be what YOU want from a mouthpiece. The heavyweights who play my mouthpieces are playing the exact stock mouthpieces that everyone is buying, and loving them as-is without visit after visit for special adjustments. It’s all in the designs. A super heavyweight who will stay unnamed here loves my mouthpieces, and I told him I would never pay him to have his name on my mouthpieces. He asked, “Why not?”. I answered, “Because you already love the mouthpieces and want to play on them….so why would I need to pay you to do so?” He laughed and said that was refreshing, and it brought him back to what was really important…..It’s all about the sound!
I personally despise BS marketing. Pro’s and players of all levels will play my 10MFANTM mouthpieces because they want to, because it gives them the best sound for themselves……just like you. That’s all that matters. Seeing these heavyweights out there in the real world using my mouthpieces because they want to—-is the most HONEST endorsement a mouthpiece maker can have. My website has audios and videos of players playing my 10MFANTM mouthpieces so you can hear for yourselves how these many players sound and hear how flexible they are from one player to another. Players don’t sound the same on my mouthpieces because of the fantastic designs, and I am incredibly proud of this! These videos and audios are solely to educate you and help you with your mouthpiece choice. I want you to buy my mouthpieces because they will play as great for you as they do for the guys in my audios/videos. These are great players who will show you the flexibility in sound within each of my 3 mouthpiece models. You will hear the rich, complex core sound and flexibility in each piece in the videos/audios. For me personally, I find it incredibly disingenuous to have a panel of players who are listed as “endorsers” if they don’t even record, gig, or play on the mouthpieces at all—so I won’t do that. Do you really need “so-and-so” famous player to have a little caption under his bio, telling you these are the greatest mouthpieces ever, and then you see him “endorsing” some other guys pieces in 8 months. Answer: No!
I’m not including any bios on my website to over-hype my products. The players sounds in the audios and videos will tell you what you need to know! Seeing all the real world players using these in the real world, is what backs up what these mouthpieces are all about.
Several heavyweight pros have already thanked me for this, and have expressed to me that this is an extremely refreshing approach for them. Watch the videos and listen to the audios, and then decide what piece/pieces you want for yourself. I’m taking an “old school” approach here by letting my mouthpieces do all the talking. Check out the video and audios section—new ones will be added all the time.
THE FUN FACTOR:
I personally haven’t been able put down my 10MFANTM mouthpieces because they are just so much fun for me to play. All are voiced just right, and they have met all my goals in each of the 3 categories. They just get better and better for me as a player, as time goes on. They are incredibly reed friendly, and just a joy for me to play. The altissimo are as easy as can be and they sound like a true extension of the saxophone…not thin and edgy!. When mouthpieces are designed this well, the “fun factor” is alive and vibrant. These simply make me happy when I play them. I am practicing much more these days, since I made these mouthpieces. I can’t help you play Cherokee at 300 BPM in all 12 keys, but I can make sure that any frustration you will endure, will not come from your mouthpiece.
HOW I DO MY ORDERS, DELIVERY TIME, AND SHIPPING:
We are always keeping up with the orders coming in, so every mouthpiece is made to order. All the orders are filled in the order they come in, and we are rarely able to keep inventory in stock due to all the orders. I will update this section on my website whenever necessary, so buyers know how long the current wait period is, but all the orders are typically completed in about a 3 week time period from when you order. Figure 4 weeks around Christmas time. Once completed, I will ship out the pieces to the buyers and I will update you with the tracking number. I use USPS Priority mail in the U.S., and USPS Express mail outside the U.S. All buyers outside the United States are responsible for any taxes or fees they get charged by their country.
HOW DO MY MOUTHPIECES MATCH UP WITH DIFFERENT SAXOPHONES:
Very favorably. I have tried my mouthpieces on various modern saxophones, as well as vintage Selmer, King, Buescher, Conn, SML, Couf, and Martin saxophones. They don’t have any issues matching up well with any of these horns. I have a client who bought a Merlot and it was too dark on his vintage The Martin tenor, so he bought a Robusto and loves it on that! He now uses the Merlot on his modern horn and loves that combo—it’s all about fine tuning what you want as a player.
RETURN POLICY FOR INDIVIDUAL SALES:
I do not offer trials or returns on my mouthpieces.
These are the finest playing mouthpieces made in the marketplace in my opinion, and I hope you choose to experience that out for yourself. If I did trials and returns, I would literally need 1000 mpc’s here at all times to send out to everyone who has a credit card and wants to “try these out” in all the various models and tip openings. I couldn’t possibly run my business like that. In fact, I got an email recently from a player saying he wanted to try out 4 of my hard rubber tenor models in 3 different tip openings each. I’m not set up to run a business like that. I have entertained the thought of a high restocking fee option like others use, but I have decided that it’s best to sell my mouthpieces at a fantastic price (far below what I feel they are worth), and if the buyer doesn’t love the piece, they can sell it themselves for around what they would have lost with a returned high restocking fee. For me, it’s an easier and cleaner way to do things here. I see that Klum, Macsax, Navarro, Retro Revival, and others do it this way also. There are some dealers who will offer trials and returns, so if thats a necessary factor for you in buying a mouthpiece, you have options out there. In 5 years of selling my mouthpieces, thousands of players all over the world are thrilled with these mouthpieces, and I haven’t endured any issues, so I will continue with what’s working very well. Players can hear what these sound like in the Audios section, and I always recommend you getting the tip opening you feel most comfortable on. There are also pictures and great descriptions to go along with the audios and videos. I also put my mouthpieces in categories to simplify the choices for the buyer. I am also always happy to talk with everyone and help them with the process.
10MFAN OVERSEAS DEALER POLICY:
All mouthpieces must be inspected within 48 hours of the dealer receiving them and if there are any issues, (which I cannot imagine), I must be contacted within that timeframe. Anything outside of that timeframe, will bypass any return consideration. It’s that simple. All dealers who sell my mouthpieces must adhere to my policy of contact inside the first 48 hours of receiving the mouthpieces. I take immense pride in sending out beautifully made hand finished mouthpieces that play great and look great. They are all inspected and play tested thoroughly by myself. In any case where someone has altered the original product it would void of any consideration for a return.
FOLLOW YOUR JOURNEY, YOUR WAY:
For me, my mouthpieces are the absolute best playing hard rubber tenor mouthpieces available in each of the 3 categories I have set up……I say this with the utmost pride. I wouldn’t be releasing them if I felt any different. The beauty about all of our journeys is that they are truly our own. There are other mouthpieces available in the marketplace that play well, and if you personally enjoy someone else’s pieces, then you should be playing those. We are all different and we like different sounds and feels. You need to find what works “best” for you. That’s all that matters. If you want to try original designs that truly nail my 3 categories, I encourage you to give mine a try.
THE JOURNEY IS YOUR OWN AND ONLY YOU MAKE YOUR CHOICES.
For me, my personal journey for finding the best hard rubber tenor mouthpieces for myself became very frustrating.I had sold the best vintage mouthpieces available for 3 decades and always felt like I was “almost” there, but never 100% satisfied. Nothing in the marketplace was truly 100% satisfying for me, and no perfectly refaced or original vintage mouthpiece accommodated ALL my needs because of the same old design limitations. So I designed and made what I consider to be the perfect playing hard rubber tenor mouthpieces made for each of my 3 categories, to finally end my personal search. A incredible amount of time has gone into designs and prototyping.
CLEANING YOUR MOUTHPIECE:
When you clean your 10MFAN mouthpiece, a little cool water with a non abrasive soap will be fine. I just pull a paper towel though the inside and all is good. I read somewhere that someone didn’t recommend using water and soap….well, I can tell you that I have been cleaning my mouthpieces that way for 35 years without any issues.
