Posts made by MasterWannabe

https://www.ebay.com/itm/115613723760

I really appreciate all the comments, it is interesting what one simple question can evoke and maybe I should be a little clearer. My question as 'why cheaper' was specifically referring to the Martin Committee cornets referenced in the title. I know there are many different styles and qualities of cornets and my experience has lead me to believe that cornets as a whole are not as popular as trumpets because they are not as flashy as trumpets especially to the younger players. I am trying to find out why the Martin Committee Deluxe cornet doesn't command a price closer to the price of the Committee trumpet. Personally I subscribe to the thoughts of I think "Rowuk" of the old TM forums when he answered a question about the difference between a student mouthpiece and a pro mouthpiece -" it's more about the software than the hardware !".
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@administrator said in Martin Committee Cornets - Why So Cheap, comparatively ???:

Those are wonky cornets. The trumpets are perfect for jazz. What are the cornets perfect for?

I have a Shepherd's Crook cornet for the occasional brass band style playing I do. I do not like American-style cornets. They play and sound just like trumpets.

Excuse me if I sound impertinent but how do you define "wonky" ?

I have come across a Martin Committee Deluxe cornet with a serial number less than 200,000 with an asking price of less than $1,000. In some extensive research several years back I was told that the Martin horns with serial numbers less than 200,000 were the best quality horns an serials higher shoud be more closely scrutinized. I have a Handcraft Imperial trumpet #12xxxx and it would appear that advice/knowledge seems to hold true. In watching Martin horns a lot I am puzzled as to why the cornets seem to be less desired/valued. I have actually seen some Committee cornets sell for $500.
Can anyone educate me on this ???

Could anyone give me an honest opinion re: Cannonball trumpets from student line to pro models ? I have no experience with them, I know they make good saxes but beyond that I know nothing.

@flugelgirl said in How Do I Date A King 2055T:

Try this, from Conn-Selmer: https://www.conn-selmer.com/en-us/resources/serial-numbers/king-instrument-serial-numbers

Thanks for the help Flugelgirl but this list seems to have the same problem I run into with other lists and that is that this serial number (352xxx) x refs to between 1956 and 1960 and I have been told that the 2055T didn't start production till after 1979.

I can't seem to get Conn-Selmer to respond to me with any help either.

I am mostly an old Conn man so I don't know much about King instruments. In some rudimentary research I have discovered that most people when referring to a King Silver Flair are actually talking about the 1055. I have also learned that the serial numbers on a 2055 won't jive up with the King serial # list that is the most commonly found. Does anyone know how to date 2055T (SN 352xxx) ?
Thanks,

This certainly sounds like a good deal and I don't want to rain on anyone's parade but I think I did pretty good a few years ago. I actually found a 5 digit serial # Strad in a pawn shop, silver plated #37 that was basically perfect (no work needed) for $299, they didn't know what they had.

@kehaulani said in An Interesting Situation I ran Into Today - Wonder if anyone Else Has Or Your Thoughts:

So, your information is second or third hand?

How do you figure that, I was communicating with the parents ?

@kehaulani said in An Interesting Situation I ran Into Today - Wonder if anyone Else Has Or Your Thoughts:

But make sure that is actually what the teacher said and the student "heard".

It is my understanding that this was told directly to the parent(s).

I have been fixing up older horns for about 12 years now in order to get quality horns in the hands of students cheaper than renting. I had a parent call me looking for a trumpet. I had 2 available (a 1971 Olds Ambassador that looked almost new and a 1956 E K Blessing Standard). The parent said they were trying to find something in the $100 range (i was asking less than $200 for either of mine).
The parent contacted me again and told me the middle school teacher said that the students could only bring Yamahas or Bachs.
Has anyone heard of any schools putting this kind of restriction on the students?
does anyone have any suggestions on how to handle a situation as this.

I saw a youTube video some time back by Charlie Porter demonstrating the difference between a $200 Chinese trumpet, a $2000 Bach Strad and I think a $20,000 Monette and using three different mouthpieces. Now I am not going to claim that I have the most discerning ear but I noticed very little difference in the sound of the 3 horns themselves but I did notice a big difference between the three mouthpieces, I don't remember what the 2 lower end were but the high-end was a Monette. This demonstration brought to mind a thread I saw on the old Trumpet Master started by someone asking about the difference between a student mouthpiece and a pro mouthpiece. One of the responses (by ROWUK I think) that has stuck with me said "it is not so much about the hardware but the software".

I have had several Martin trumpets, I currently own a 1934 Handcraft Imperial converted to 'C'. In the course of finding older instruments to repair/rebuild I have run across numerous Martin trumpet. In trying to learn more I sought advice from numerous folks and in summary the consensus I got was to stay from Martin instruments with serial numbers higher than 200,000 and of course that Martin Busine and other closely named instruments were not real Martins.

Any opinions/comments are appreciated.

@j-jericho
No I haven't, didn't know about this site, I will look, thanks.

I have seen the number '9' near the bottom of the 2nd valve casing on several horns, and heard people refer to it as the model number, I have a 1929 Buescher True Tone with the the number '212' near the bottom of the 2nd valve casing. Does anyone have any info on this horn/model as I don't know enough about Buescher instruments.

Thanks,

@trumpetsplus
Ivan, I do wish to get as close to a 45 degree angle as I can and I probably try to bend as slowly as I can so as not to break. I guess I can deal with losing the plating if there is no choice and I will just have to re-plate as needed. I do have a wooden pulley that I have modified the groove to follow the flair for, I think, the required distance of the bell for the bend.

@trumpetsplus
Ivan, I have had it suggested that annealing was necessary but an issue I ran into when annealing a silver plated bell is that the plating at the spot beaded up, did I get too hot ?

does anyone have any experience bending the trumpet tubing ? I have played around with making "Dizzy" style bells but with limited success, I hope some of you can help me increase my success.

I have watched videos of the Conn factory bending tubing filled with a mixture of soap & water frozen but I don't know what percentage of soap to water works best. My results have been anywhere from great to minor rippling to 2 bells actually breaking in two.

I have also tried Cerrobend and had a bell break in two.

The bends I am attempting are just forward of the 2nd valve and just under 45 degrees.

Any advice would be appreciated.
TIA,

Ray Z

@rowuk Thanks for your opinion, I do respect it.