As a tuba player, I found commercially available keeps flimsy and worried about longevity. I make these keeps, also called “tuba catches” or “slide stoppers” for my own, and now your, use. The keeps have two functions. The first is to stop slides from falling out when the tuba is on its bell. The second is to prevent pulling the slide all the way out when playing. Each keep is sold separately. There is no need to have buttons soldered onto your tuba, simply use my invented removable system (sold separately).
Keeps are hand stamped and stitched, so they are an entirely handmade product! I use a combination of glue, stitching, and melting the stitching to prevent breaking, even with constant use. The design includes two layers of leather sandwiched together, with two layers of stitching holding on the nylon cord. My goal is to use materials that will withstand the test of time.
Keeps are made with Chrome-Tanned leather, so are naturally water resistant (which is especially useful when emptying slides!). The leather used is Second Run, meaning it has minor cosmetic defects giving each piece its own character! When purchasing multiple keeps, leather from the same hide is used to minimize color changes.
As a tuba player, I found commercially available keeps flimsy and worried about longevity. I make these keeps, also called “tuba catches” or “slide stoppers” for my own, and now your, use. The keeps have two functions. The first is to stop slides from falling out when the tuba is on its bell. The second is to prevent pulling the slide all the way out when playing. Each keep is sold separately. There is no need to have buttons soldered onto your tuba, simply use my invented removable system (sold separately).
Keeps are hand stamped and stitched, so they are an entirely handmade product! I use a combination of glue, stitching, and melting the stitching to prevent breaking, even with constant use. The design includes two layers of leather sandwiched together, with two layers of stitching holding on the nylon cord. My goal is to use materials that will withstand the test of time.
Keeps are made with Chrome-Tanned leather, so are naturally water resistant (which is especially useful when emptying slides!). The leather used is Second Run, meaning it has minor cosmetic defects giving each piece its own character! When purchasing multiple keeps, leather from the same hide is used to minimize color changes.