Laskey 85MD equivalents

[Elow]

What are some other brands' sizes that are close to a laskey 85MD?

[modelerdc]

Schilke 59 Greigo JP and Hammond 20BL are close in cup depth and rim diameter. Laskey has flattest rim, the others more rounded. Greigo and Hammond have larger throats.

[tbonesullivan]

Do you like Wide round rims? The Ferguson JR is about that size.

[bassbone721]

Out of the pieces I've tried, the GP, 59, DE 112 K8 are pretty close. The Griego 1 and GB 1 1/4 are the same-ish rim but much deeper and bigger in the back. Each of the rims feels slightly different as well.

[Bach5G]

Something like a Marc Phil Teele?

[Burgerbob]

Something like a Marc Phil Teele?

The Teele is like a big George Roberts piece. It's not really that big.

[GabrielRice]

Check out a Shires 1-1/4MD

Also a Doug Elliott, probably 112/K in either the LB or XB line.

[ZacharyThornton]

This has been my mouthpiece study for years. I play in this size range (28.5 rim) and never found anything I liked. Here is what I think is close by feel (not numbers):
Schilke 59
Doug Elliott 112/K/K8
Greg Black 1 5/16ths

Now here are some that are close but have a feature that make them very different from the rest:
Ferguson/ Minick L (Wide rim)
Rath 1 1/4W (wide rim)
Hammond 20BL (huge throat)
Griego GP (bigger overall)
Greg Black 1 1/4G (DEEP Cup)
Thein BME (wider rim and Germanic design)
Griego 1(bit bigger)
Bach 1 1/4G (different style)
Warburton 1 1/4 JW(bit bigger)
Shires 1 1/4 MD (thinner rim)

I have everyone of these mouthpieces and my favorites are the Greg Black 1 5/16ths, Griego GPL (lighter version), Doug Elliot 112/K/K8, and Schilke 59. You mileage may vary. A pattern I notice is that there a lot of great mouthpieces that are just slightly bigger but never exactly like a 85MD. I think that is a good thing. Plenty of options out there but it is expensive to try them all out.

Good luck!

[tbonesullivan]

Now here are some that are close but have a feature that make them very different from the rest:
Ferguson/ Minick L (Wide rim)

I went a bit nuts and got the entire Ferguson set, except for the V. The JR was the first Minick replica, and it's just a hair bigger than the L, with not quite as huge and cushy of a rim. It's also definitely less heavy than the L or LS.

I currently use the L, but before that, my main mouthpiece was the 85MD. I still use it for orchestral playing, as I feel I get a bit rounder of a sound with it.

[TheBoneRanger]

I play in this size range (28.5 rim) and never found anything I liked.

Over a decade ago, I ran the gamut of 1.25-sized pieces, and also owned a similar amount of mouthpieces in this ballpark size. I felt like I just couldn't find the silver bullet. Then I saw Doug Elliott's advice to someone else on the forum. He said something like:

"If you can't find something you like after trying that many mouthpieces, then you're playing the wrong size."

Some time later, after moving up a rim size, I found that statement to be correct...

Andrew

[BigBadandBass]

Looking to revive this thread quick. Would a Greg Black 1GS be similar then to the 85md, or at least not as deep as the 1G?

[Jbeckett]

Greg Black 1-5/16 is extremely close. Backbore and inner rim size, but much more comfortable. I am in between that for commercial/light symph and an Elliott LB116/L/L8.

[BGuttman]

An Elliott LB 116 / L /L8 is more like a Yeo in size so don't consider that an equivalent to an 85MD. Marcinkiewicz GR would probably be close. The Black is more like a Bach 1 1/4G ish piece (tending a little toward 1 1/2G). I think the 85MD is supposed to be comparable to a Bach 1 1/2G but maybe a little bigger.

[Burgerbob]

Looking to revive this thread quick. Would a Greg Black 1GS be similar then to the 85md, or at least not as deep as the 1G?

Judging by Laskey nomenclature (I don't have an 85MD on hand), it's pretty different. The 1GS is similar but not quite as shallow as a 90D.

[BigBadandBass]

Looking to revive this thread quick. Would a Greg Black 1GS be similar then to the 85md, or at least not as deep as the 1G?

Judging by Laskey nomenclature (I don't have an 85MD on hand), it's pretty different. The 1GS is similar but not quite as shallow as a 90D.

Excuse me, I met 1.25GS not 1GS

[Burgerbob]

Judging by Laskey nomenclature (I don't have an 85MD on hand), it's pretty different. The 1GS is similar but not quite as shallow as a 90D.

Excuse me, I met 1.25GS not 1GS

Probably a bit closer in that case, but I'd go for the smaller throat and backbore option as well

[TheBoneRanger]

I play a GB 1 5/16g, and can confirm it's a very close match in all round specs.

Andrew

[Jbeckett]

An Elliott LB 116 / L /L8 is more like a Yeo in size so don't consider that an equivalent to an 85MD. Marcinkiewicz GR would probably be close. The Black is more like a Bach 1 1/4G ish piece (tending a little toward 1 1/2G). I think the 85MD is supposed to be comparable to a Bach 1 1/2G but maybe a little bigger.

Bruce
I wasn’t saying that he should, just giving my parameters of pieces that I play on. Those are the 2.
The 1-5/16 (ZDT would know more) is extremely close, and in my opinion, a better blowing piece. Slightly wider, more comfortable rim, with the same size backbore and a similar cup. When I stopped playing large pieces for commercial gigs, this worked the best. My last orchestral audition was won on a 1-5/16. As our chops evolve, different pieces work differently.

[eatanick]

I realise this is an older thread, but it's always interesting hearing others' thoughts on these. Although I now use a bigger DE mouthpiece, I played an 85MD for about a year and own too many in that size range. For me, the Laskey 85MD has an unusually accessible extreme low range, and the high range sounds good and feels easy.

I agree with modelerdc that the 85MD's rim is very flat. In that sense, there are similarities to the Thein BM and BME (which are relatively flat, but wider) and the Griego Taylor 1.25 (which feels smaller in dia.), but neither sound similar. The Theins slot fairly loosely by comparison (particularly the BM), and the Taylor mouthpieces are super snappy.

The Greg Black 1 5/16ths I own feels a little larger on the face (maybe down to its rounder rim), slots a little more loosely and generally takes more effort to play. The trigger range speaks very easily, but the upper range is more work. Something about the resistance of the GB doesn't sit right with me, but if the Greg Black sound was what I had in my head, then I may well have played it instead. Given how much others like it, I imagine that this is a "me problem".

In terms of some other mouthpieces I own:
Griego GP - bigger on the face, but blows and sounds more tenor-y.
Schilke 59 (short shank) - feels tighter, sounds a bit more "old school" and doesn't help you out in the extremes like some newer designs. Works great for many.
Hammond 20BL - feels way more open and a little bigger on the face.
Ferguson L - feels, plays and sounds to me like a smaller mouthpiece, plus the rim is very wide.

I play in this size range (28.5 rim) and never found anything I liked.

Over a decade ago, I ran the gamut of 1.25-sized pieces, and also owned a similar amount of mouthpieces in this ballpark size. I felt like I just couldn't find the silver bullet. Then I saw Doug Elliott's advice to someone else on the forum. He said something like:

"If you can't find something you like after trying that many mouthpieces, then you're playing the wrong size."

Some time later, after moving up a rim size, I found that statement to be correct...

Andrew

Since moving to a DE 114 rim, I would agree!

[modelerdc]

I might add to this the Doug Elliott K cup with 10 backbore. It's not listed on his website, at least yet, but he made one for me, and it plays about as close to the 85MD as about anything out there. The Elliott has a bit more center and a little more color to the sound than the 85MD. The only thing else I have that reasonably close is a very old long shank Schilke 59, That goes in further than most of the long shank ones, and has a rim that is less rounded than anything I've seen from them in decades. It's a good mouthpiece, one of my favorites, but my example really needs to be re plated to be played!