J.J. Babbitt in Elkhart Indiana is one of (the?) world’s oldest and largest mouthpiece makers, and they make Otto Link and Meyer mouthpieces, among many, many others. In July 2024, my family and I took a 3000+ mile road trip, and along the way we drove through Elkhart. Unexpectedly, thanks to Ryan Lillywhite at Conn-Selmer who saw my Facebook photo of my car and our home-built camper in front of the Selmer building, I was able to tour both Conn-Selmer and the J.J. Babbitt factory. The new owner of J.J. Babbitt, Steve Rorie, graciously took over an hour out of his day to show me around.
I was somewhat unprepared (like I said, this was unexpected) but I did manage to take some photos and videos that I would like to share with you. I also plan to go back!
Click photos to enlarge. Most will have a caption. Best viewed on a large screen.
I also have some videos from the visit on my youtube channel:
Mouthpiece Facing Machine
Molding Rubber Mouthpieces
