After greasing the mandrel again, fasten the ring of it into the vise and place the reed on the mandrel. With a waxed cord, begin to bind the reed as tightly as possible, starting downwards from the second wire ring. The tighter this binding is made the less opportunity the two reed blades have to slip. If the reed does not come off the mandrel with ease, gently squeeze the cheeks of the reed and it will slip off readily. With the reed held at the binding between the thumb and forefinger so that the flat part rests on the base of the thumb, and using a slender pen knife, carefully peel the bark off from the area 'f' and 'g'.
File smooth any unevenness which remains.
Dampen the blades of the reed and place them upon a flat chopping block. Using a razor pressed against the tip of the blades, separate the halves of the reed by hitting the razor with a small hammer. The reed's tip will now have the shape of Fig. 4. If the two halves are more open than is illustrated in Fig. 3, correct this by squeezing the first wire ring.