All Hodge silk swabs are made from 100% silk and come in performer's black, royal blue, burgundy, forest green, and deep purple. We have discontinued swab production in the hot pink and silver colors, but we do have some availability for certain instruments.  Silk is very absorbent, soaking up water in instruments better than any other natural material on the market, including both cotton and chamois.  Most uniquely, silk is also very compressible, making it possible to pull through instruments with large variations in bore size.  In addition, silk is lint free.

Clarinet, Oboe and English Horn swabs are made using a plastic coated straight weight. The saxophone swabs and bass clarinet swabs use a plastic-coated lead weight in a tear-drop shape. Bassoon, bassoon bocal, trumpet, and french horn swabs use a ball chain, which is very effective as a weight and more flexible than traditional straight weights.  The ball chain is non-abrasive and does not scratch the bore or other parts of the instrument when used properly.