Hey,
Yesterday I finally got a clarinet to use. It is essentially free, but then again, it has been sitting in an attic for a while. I looked it over, and saw that it would need a few new pads, and I polished it, but that was about it. I figured I'd get it adjusted too, and oil it up. I also ended up purchasing a new Vito mouthpiece from a friend of mine for a good price, and maybe one day I'll get the one recomended to me.
Anyway, I assembled the beast and stuck the mouthpeice on top, but when I picked up the ligature, I saw that it was pretty majorly rusted on the inside. I want to get a new one (I figured it may be my only good option) but I'm very confused. I have seen many styles of ligatures, and I'm not sure what to get. Which style is best? How much do ligatures impact the instrument/sound/ease?
Oh, and one last thing. Will my newly aquired antique clarinet really crack if I don't oil it? I read with a clarinet that was old and un-oiled in a long time you would need to oil it very lightly every week or so. How true is this? I can't afford to take the clarinet to a shop every week to get it oiled. I looked into oiling it myself, but I have no idea where to get "wood alchohol" to mic with the oil so I can oil it. Is there another way?

oops! Mic= mixs

As regards the ligature I suggest you buy a Rovner (about $20). A clarinet that has not been used for a long time should be played only for a few minutes each day for the first two weeks or so. Say, five minutes on day one, then add an extra five minutes each day. To oil the bore you can buy bore oil from a music shop, or get almond oil from a drug store or grocery. To keep the oil off the pads put some kitchen foil under each closed pad until the oil dries, or you will ruin the pads. Do not use bore oil on the keys it will go sticky. Motor engine oil is ideal for this, applied on the end of a cocktail stick or piece of wire, one drop at a time.
Go for it and enjoy.

my clarinet is too an antique, (only just though) i don't know about ligature's but with my clarinet i use almond old on the inside, and then i use bees wax polish to polish the wod on the outside and my flute polishing cloth on the keys (it is a yellow duster thing) but i use cling film and an old rag(clean and lint free) when doing the oil inside, put the cling film over every hole (that way it can drip out of the open ones and get the pads of the other keys) then damp the rag with the oil, and pull though the clarinet (like when drying out a flute) several times then leave for a while (i do it after a practice then i leave it till the next practice time) then get another cloth and clean it out again (to remove the excess) remove the cling film and you are ready to go again, i do mine every couple of months.

As for the keys - it's no different from your flute or bassoon. Key oil that you can get at the music store is perfectly fine. For ligatures - even a cheap metal ligature will be fine for a good while, but I'd recommend taking your mouthpiece and a reed to the store and make sure it fits will and is easy to use. You'll be doing a lot of taking reeds on and off and testing and retesting and adjusting, so get one that's easy for you to work with. Also make sure it holds the reed flat on the plate. Some of the cheapest ones I've seen don't let the reed sit perfectly flat and it ends up leaking! If you want to get a Rovner, go ahead. They're good.

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Oh, right, you were talking about oiling the wood. Like somebody else said I think, if it goes from sitting in an attic for 5 years to being played for 90 minutes a day, it'll probably crack. If you oil it, it might help a little. What the oil is for it to protect the wood from all the junk in your spit when you play. The oil soaks up into the wood and that way water can't get in. Water does damage because besides carrying bacteria from your mouth, it lets the wood swell more with temperature changes. Swelling equals probable cracking. So that's why we oil it. It's called bore oil and your music shop SHOULD have it.

I personally use a Rovner Mk III on my clarinets. They definitely affect my tone. Plus they're harder to break. This site seems to have some of the lowest prices and best service.