This is a fairly rare Army bugle (field trumpet) that was manufactured by the Frank Aman Corporation from a plastic material called tenite, produced by the Eastman Corporation of Tennessee. Tenite was used as a brass saving measure in the later part of the war. It’s missing the plastic mouthpiece, but I have an old metal bugle mouthpiece that fits it. Old tenite has an unpleasant odor, so I won’t be playing this one much…lol
I played with a brass quintet in a church service yesterday morning. We played along with the the hymns and then a couple patriotic numbers for the offertory and the postlude. That evening we played for a BBQ dinner and recognition of veterans. No other playing planned for the 4th.
Yes, I have a rotary valve cornet, and there are return springs. Not on the valves themselves, but springs are involved in returning the valve to the straight through position. I was just responding to the bad joke Dr. Go was making a few posts ago.
I took a couple photos on the way home from an orchestra rehearsal tonight. My trumpet case fits in the center recess of the trunk, and that’s about it…lol
@GeorgeB said in Caring for Silver Plate Horns:
Yeah, my horns are always on display on stands in the music room. But I now have a satin cover that just slips over the two silver horns . Hey, they are pretty and I like to look at them...
What brand of silver polish are you using ?
Wright’s liquid silver polish. This trumpet is 44 years old, and I’ve played (and polished) it for the 40 or so years I’ve owned it. No silver loss from polishing, but a little wear where I’ve held it.
@Dr-GO said in Future survival of this forum:
@tjcombo said in Future survival of this forum:
Of late, life has been getting in the way of browsing this and other social media (both good and not so good distractions). At 67y.o. I’m contemplating retirement from a rewarding job that I love, to do other things, musical and other, that I love a little more.
I contemplated retiring at 65. Did so, and within 2 months started a new career. I am now 68 and no where near planning on retiring.
I retired at 67 and never looked back…I’m 71 now and don’t miss working at all. I enjoyed the nuts and bolts of my work (I was engineering manager for a fire suppression contractor), but the decline of the quality of the construction industry and increasing governmental red tape every year made my job a daily headache. After retiring, I bought a sports car, we upsized to a nicer home, and now I’m trying to get back into good playing shape and making good progress. 
Wal-Mart sell plastic cases in the crafts department. Perfect fit for mouthpieces…lol
Here’s a photo I took today. It’s random and pretty creepy, too…
I’ve barely touched a horn for the last couple months. I was in pretty good shape in preparation for Easter, but since then, I’ve probably dropped to the “unwashed masses” level of playing. I suppose I’m not too motivated to practice if there’s nothing to play for. It will come back pretty quickly when I hit the practice room regularly, though.
I took a few photos today of my 1993 Bach 184 cornet. I’ve owned it since the early 2000s, bought it used. Gold brass bell, large bore, ‘Stradivarius Deluxe’ engraving. It’s a very pretty instrument, even though I’m gradually wearing through the lacquer in spots, and it plays beautifully.
The first person that tells me my trumpet needs a mask will be looking for another trumpet player. At rehearsals, we already have to sanitize our hands and have our temps taken before entering the rehearsal room, in addition to wearing a face mask when not playing.
@tmd said in Arriving next week - Bach 184 Cornet:
@dale-proctor said in Arriving next week - Bach 184 Cornet:
Nice! I have a large bore 184G from the early 1990s and really enjoy playing it.
A 184G large bore is pretty cool. I had been looking for a 184 at the right price for a couple years.
Mike
Well, we both have a 43 Strad and an Olds L-12, so why not get a Bach 184?…lol
Years ago, I needed a good cornet for the brass band I had recently joined. I wanted a large bore 184 with the gold brass bell and the fancy Bach engraving, but the local dealers wouldn’t order a new one for me. I eventually found a used one, sans engraving, and bought it. Later on, I had Sherry Huntley lay that engraving on it and I’ve been a happy camper ever since.
A trio of 1960s Conn short cornets. Left to right - 1962 Conn 9A Victor, 1969 Conn 76A Connquest, 1962 Conn 5A Victor customized with copper-plated bell.
The reason older cornets sell for less than their trumpet counterparts is that significantly more people play trumpets than cornets. Lower demand equals lower prices. The people who really want a cornet for performance use are generally in the market for a modern one with intonation aids and a richer tone than many of the older ones from the mid 20th century. Those older cornets are primarily American wrap instruments and are mainly bought by hobbyists and casual players who aren’t willing to spend a lot for an instrument.
Of course, there are exceptions to my diatribe, and a good example is the Conn 9A cornet from 1962 that I own that’s an exceptional player. If a person is educated on which older cornets are the really good ones and is diligent, there are models out there that are nice deals for those looking for a relatively inexpensive cornet that plays without compromise.
@bobmiller1969
Thanks! The oval ports allow the rotors to be a smaller diameter, which makes the valve action very fast. As far as I know, only a few makers used them in the 19th century, and they were found only on their top model instruments.
1968 Olds L-12 flugelhorn, restored by Southeastern Musical Services.
@richard-iii said in Vintage Horn Eye Candy:
I just had to dig out my Conn 77A. Sorry no picture. It is a standard configuration for a cornet. The 76A, which replaced the 77A is quite a different design. The tuning slide, I'm guessing, is on the bell tubing? Anybody know of any other Conn cornet with that feature?
In that era, the 15A, 17A, 76A, 5A, and 9A all had a “reverse flow” design with a slide in that position, but I believe the 76A was the only one that used it as the main tuning slide. The others had a longer slide in the leadpipe for tuning. Here’s the 9A for comparison.
BTW, the 76A had a very similar wrap to the Olds Recording cornet.
Yes, I measured the normal playing distance from my eyes to the music stand and had a pair of single vision prescription glasses made to focus correctly at that distance, with a decent +- distance tolerance. They work great, and I keep them in the case with whichever horn I’m using at the time. Like you, I had progressive lenses that were pretty useless for reading music.
1969 Olds L12 flugelhorn with GR/Melk leadpipe. Restored by Southeastern Musical Services.
Have any of you ever seen one of these mouthpieces? It’s a G. LeBlanc “Kenny Baker” signature model cornet mouthpiece. I picked it up on eBay years ago, but could never find any info on it. It plays nice, with a mellow edge to the sound, if that makes any sense.
