From Brass Bar to Finished Mouthpiece: How a Pickett Mouthpiece Is Made

Every Pickett Brass mouthpiece begins in a form that does not look very much like a mouthpiece at all: a solid, lifeless bar of brass.

Turning that raw material into a musical tool requires precise machining, careful measurement, patient hand-finishing, and repeated inspection. Some operations happen quickly. Others depend on the practiced eye and touch of the people making the mouthpiece.

Every stage contributes to the consistency a player ultimately feels.

It begins with a design

Before any brass is cut, the mouthpiece must exist as a precise digital design.

The rim, cup, throat, backbore, shank, exterior profile, and all transitions between them affect how the completed mouthpiece feels and performs. Those shapes must be defined accurately before they can be machined consistently.

At Pickett Brass, we design our mouthpieces in-house using proprietary CAD/CAM software and manufacturing processes developed specifically for our mouthpieces.

The design determines the finished geometry. The manufacturing program then defines how our equipment and tooling will create that geometry from a solid piece of material.

This connection between design and manufacturing is important. We are not simply sending a generic shape to a machine. The software, tooling, machining process, and inspection methods have all been developed to work together - constantly refined over almost 20 years.

Starting with solid brass

Pickett mouthpieces begin as brass bar stock selected in the appropriate diameter for the mouthpiece or component being produced.

The bar is loaded into the machine, where it's cut, shaped, and bored. What begins as a simple brass cylinder will gradually become a trumpet top, backbore, one-piece mouthpiece, trombone underpart, tuba mouthpiece, French horn mouthpiece, or another component.

Starting with solid material gives us control over the entire shape. The exterior profile and internal geometry are created as part of a planned manufacturing process rather than assembled from generic parts - we can make any mouthpiece at any time.

Machining the exterior and interior

As the machine runs, cutting tools remove material from the brass, like a knife whittling away at a piece of wood.

On the outside, the blank begins to take on the recognizable profile of a mouthpiece. On the inside, specialized tooling creates the rim, cup, throat, backbore, and other internal features appropriate to that particular model.

Depending on the mouthpiece, these operations may happen in multiple stages. The component may be automatically repositioned so another section can be machined, threaded, or finished.

The volume of brass removed can be surprising. A finished mouthpiece represents only part of the material with which the process began. Much of the original bar becomes chips as the interior and exterior shapes are developed - up to 90% is removed in the case of a tuba mouthpiece.

Those chips make for a dramatic photograph, but they also illustrate an important point: the mouthpiece is not formed around an empty space. Its playing surfaces are cut directly into solid material.

Specialized tooling for specialized shapes

A mouthpiece contains curves and transitions that may appear simple to the eye but are difficult to reproduce accurately and repeatably.

The cup must flow into the throat as intended. The throat must transition into the backbore. The rim contour and bite must be created consistently and smoothly. On modular components, the threads and connecting surfaces must fit precisely.

Producing these features requires specialized tooling and carefully developed, intentional machining routines.

The goal is not only to create one excellent mouthpiece. The process must be capable of producing the same design reliably again and again - over years and years.

A player who replaces a familiar mouthpiece—or adds another component of the same model—should receive the design that was intended, not an approximation of it.

Why repeatability matters

Musicians are remarkably sensitive to small differences in equipment.

A change in rim contour may affect comfort and articulation. Variations in a cup, throat, or backbore can influence response, resistance, sound, and intonation. Even when a difference appears small on paper, it may be noticeable to the player.

That is why consistency matters so much.

Precision equipment allows us to manufacture complex shapes repeatedly, but machinery alone does not guarantee a finished product. Tools wear, material behaves differently, and every manufacturing process must be monitored.

Repeatability comes from combining good design, controlled processes, accurate equipment, appropriate tooling, measurement, and experienced people.

Measurement throughout the process

A mouthpiece is not judged only by its appearance.

Critical dimensions must be measured and verified. Depending on the component, our team may inspect diameters, lengths, throats, shanks, threads, connection points, and other features.

Inspection helps confirm that the part matches the design and that it will function properly with the instrument or modular components for which it was made.

Measurement also gives us information about the manufacturing process itself. If a dimension begins to move away from its target, we can identify the issue and make an adjustment before it affects additional parts.

Quality is easier to maintain when it is measured during production rather than considered only at the end.

The mouthpiece comes off the machine unfinished

A freshly machined mouthpiece is accurate, but it is not yet ready for a musician.

Small tool marks may still be visible. Edges may require attention. The surface needs to be prepared for its intended finish and, in most cases, silver or gold plating.

This is where hand-finishing becomes an important part of the process.

Each mouthpiece is inspected and carefully finished by hand. The goal is to remove manufacturing marks and prepare the surface while preserving the geometry created during machining.

This distinction matters. Finishing should improve the surface without casually changing the rim, bite, cup, shank, or other features that define the mouthpiece.

The person doing the work must know where material can be safely refined and where the designed shape must remain untouched.

Preparing the surface

Surface preparation affects both the appearance of the mouthpiece and the quality of the final plating.

The component is progressively refined until the desired finish is achieved. Depending on the product, that may be a polished or brushed surface.

A polished mouthpiece reveals imperfections rather than hiding them, so scratches, tool marks, and uneven areas must be addressed and, ideally, prevented in the first place - before plating.

The mouthpiece is then cleaned thoroughly and prepared so the plating can bond properly to the surface.

At this point, it already looks much closer to the finished product—but it is still bare brass.

Silver or gold plating

The majority of our brass mouthpieces receive silver plating, with gold-plated options also available.

Plating provides the surface the player touches and protects the underlying brass. Because plating follows the surface beneath it, careful preparation beforehand is essential. A flaw left in the bare brass will not magically disappear when the mouthpiece is plated - plating hides no sins!

The prepared mouthpieces are sent through the plating process and then returned to our shop for final inspection.

When they return, their appearance has changed dramatically. The warm color of bare brass has been replaced by a bright silver or gold surface—but the manufacturing process is not finished yet.

Final inspection

Every completed mouthpiece is carefully inspected before it is packaged and sent to a player.

We inspect the finish, plating, overall condition, engraving when applicable, and threads on modular components. We also confirm that the mouthpiece is the correct model and configuration for the order.

A mouthpiece can pass its dimensional checks during machining and still require a careful visual and functional inspection at the end. Handling, finishing, plating, and transportation between operations all create opportunities for an imperfection or damage to appear.

If something does not meet our standards, it does not simply move forward because a great deal of work has already gone into it. The finished mouthpiece must represent the design and quality we intended.

Technology guided by people

Modern manufacturing is sometimes described as though the machine does all the work.

The machine is certainly essential. It allows us to create detailed internal shapes and repeat them with an accuracy that would be extraordinarily difficult to maintain by hand alone.

But the machine does not decide what the mouthpiece should be.

People develop the design, write and refine the manufacturing process, select and maintain the tooling, monitor production, measure the parts, finish the surfaces, inspect the plating, and make the final decision about whether a mouthpiece is ready for a player.

Precision machining and hand craftsmanship are not opposing ideas. They are two parts of the same process.

The machine gives us repeatability. Experienced hands and eyes make sure that precision becomes a finished musical product.

Made in Lexington, Kentucky

Pickett mouthpieces are designed, machined, measured, hand-finished, and inspected by our team in Lexington, Kentucky.

The process has changed considerably since Pickett Brass began, but the purpose remains the same: to create equipment that supports musicians reliably and consistently.

A finished mouthpiece may be small enough to fit in a pocket. However, the design decisions, specialized equipment, developed processes, and human attention behind it are far greater than its size might suggest.

It begins as a solid bar of brass.

It leaves our shop ready to make music.