What's a good alternative to trombone slide oil?

Question

I read some of the other questions, and a lot of people said vaseline, but then some said it's not good... Any ideas?

Answer 1

try mineral oil, it's light weight and odourless, I'll bet it's the same thing as key oil. (or in your case slide oil)

Answer 2

Hi Crimson

After working 20 years in wholesale of musical instruments, we tried everything.

For trumpet and trombone, use sewing machine oil. Why????

It doesn't stick, feels like water BUT, it has the correct viscosity, never heats up (which is up it is used on high rpm gears). odorless, tasteless, and most importantly, it will keep the trombone slide going 3 times longer than regular oil.

You can get thissmall bottle anywhere. I gave some to my trumpet player who has sticky valve problems. He freaked out at how fluent and easy the pistons played.

Answer 3

I wouldn't use vaseline on the slide it might clog it

but usually you can just mist it with water and

that works but not always... you can try it though =]  

Answer 4

Slide-O-Mix !!! You'll love it if you try it.

Mr Private teacher tells me that slide oil is not very good for the slide. It's cheaply made. The solution should be mixed right before needed. Please try Slide-O-Mix.  

Answer 5

Like hedgehog said, I bought Slide-O-Mix a while ago and it's worked great ever since, but the bad side of it is that it's a bit expensive. If you want to go with something a bit cheaper, I've also used Pond's hand cream. It doesn't take a lot and all you have to do is rub it into your slide until it gets hot. It's a much cheaper solution if that's what you're looking for. It's available at any Walmart.

I have heard anything about vaseline, but I know that slide oil is not a good one to use. It has a bad smell and doesn't keep your slide lubricated for long.