The jj Babbitt Company Gallery

Jesse James Babbitt started the jj Babbitt company in 1919 in his two-stall garage in Elkhart, Indiana. Jesse, who worked at Buescher Band Instruments in Elkhart, designed a mouthpiece for a B-flat clarinet at the urging of a co-worker who believed Buescher should have a better mouthpiece for the instruments they produced. Not long after, Holton Company in Wisconsin offered to buy all of their mouthpieces from Jesse if he could provide a steady supply. With that offer, the jj Babbitt Company was born.

In 1939, Jesse's nephew, Bud Reglein, joined the company at the age of 19. At the time, five employees and a bulldog named Chopper occupied the cramped quarters of the garage. Bud's natural talent for machine design and blueprint work in high school served the company well. He  designed several machines, some of which are still in use today.

In 1951, when Jesse Babbitt died of a heart condition, Bud became a partner in the business with Jesse's wife and brother. In 1959, he purchased the company outright. During his 67 years with the company, Bud worked every station of the manufacturing process including lathe, buffing, inspecting, shipping, sales, design, and delivery. He is a born problem solver who is known for making special accommodations so that everyone can enjoy making music. Bud once developed a mouthpiece that would allow a stroke victim to play a saxophone even though a portion of his mouth was paralyzed. Bud Reglein retired three years ago but remains active in the business which is also owned and managed by his son, Bill. The younger Reglein, who was a delivery driver while in high school, official joined the company in 1971 after a tour of duty in the Air Force.

Like his father, Bill Reglein has worked every operation in the company and problem solves with special mouthpieces for special circumstances. "Helping people keep playing their instruments is what jj Babbitt is all about," Bill emphasized. The company moved from its garage location in 1950 and again in 1981. Today, jj Babbitt employs 42 people and produces over 300,000 mouthpieces annually, using process that, for the most part, have not changed in 80 years. When it comes to quality, craftsmanship and value, jj Babbitt is legendary. The company is the only  mouthpiece manufacturer that molds its own hard rubber mouthpieces in-house in order to maintain complete control over the quality these products.

The majority of jj Babbitt's mouthpieces are made of plastic, although rubber and metal models are also produced under the brand names of Guy Hawkins, Otto Link, Meyer, Wolfe Tayne and jj Babbitt. The company's wide range of easy-to-blow mouthpieces are available in over 2,000 varities to satisfy virtually every style and level of play. "Mouthpieces are all we do," said Bill Reglein. "We do that one thing and do it well." Although the father and son pair have dedicated their careers to producing millions of mouthpieces, neither of them play saxophone or clarinet.

Through the years, jj Babbitt Company has been an active supporter of music and music programs. In addition to the company's involvement in the Museum of Making Music, jj Babbitt supported VH-1's Save the Music for Inner City Kids in New York and sponsors a different well- known group or musician each year at the internationally known Jazz Festival in Elkhart, Indiana.