Conn Satin silver w/golden accents wanted!

[fluga]

Greetings !
I collect C.G.Conn saxophones from the beginning of production until around 1929. I am trying to finish my collection of the Satin Silver finish with golden engraving, golden keys, braces and inside bell of cause. What I have already is the following:
1.Curved Soprano.:)
2. Alto.:)
3. C Melody.:)
4. Baritone.:)

Needed are therefore:
1. Straight Soprano.:!:
2. Soprano in C.:!:
3. Tenor Bb. :!:

I have no expectations on ever finding the Bass, Sopranino and the Mezzo with the golden accents and have decided to settle for the above mentioned. If anybody out there in saxworld knows of any of these available then please do not hesitate to contact me at alto@mmedia.is.
I also have a satin gold Chu Berry Alto for sale in Museum condition if anybody is interested.
Friendly regards from Iceland, Jonas Th. Lilliendahl.

[Randall]

Jonas, these horns are out there...it may take a while to find them.
By the way, do you know Eyjolfur or Oskar? Both are firends of mine in Rekjavic
Eyjolfur plays a Conn 10M (among others)....

Send me a PM for more details....

[tensopbass]

quote; I have no expectations on ever finding the Bass,

Not unless you can prise it out of my grasp! nicko

[bruce bailey]

There is a nice Bari on ebay today (US) and I was tempted.
# 7365415781
It was a buy it Now for about $3,100 US.

[tensopbass]

Fluga, try emailling again. I now have the new email linked doh !
nicko

ps, there's pics on Randy's yahoo group (see above)

[fluga]

There is a nice Bari on ebay today (US) and I was tempted.
# 7365415781
It was a buy it Now for about $3,100 US.

Greetings Bruce !
Thanks for the info. I do have a Bari from around 1916 in original condition. The one on eBay is replated and the problem with the finish on these replated instruments is that the satin finish is far from the look of the original finish. The reason, I am told, is that today Anderson and most other replaters use some kind of plastic beads for blasting that gives a much finer finish. In the old days they used sand. I have often wondered why such a reputable company like Anderson does not find and use the sand and method that would give the original look to give better service to us vintage enthusiaists. It´s like in the classic automobile business - one would not paint a 1950 model Mercedes with metalic paint. Would any of you know if there is a plater that has focused on this issue :?

[paulwl]

It has apparently been found since the heyday of satin finishes that sandblasting anything very big with actual sand is really really super dangerous, as it coats your lungs with fine silicon residue and leads to loathsome, wasting lung ailments. There are cabinets for sandblasting small objects, but no sax will fit inside them.

To ruin your day completely, the eBay baritone referenced above is a retro job. No saxophone made in...let's see...1931 would have had gold keys over silver plating. It was no longer available as an option. Even if it was, they'd have plated the body bands and (on a Conn anyway) the bell engraving. Whoever did this horn didn't know that.

[fluga]

Hi Paul!
Thanks for your info. It is true that the person who rebuilt this sax did not know the facts about the finishes available. To me an instrument like this that has been modified just to make it look more attractive looses all appeal to me. It simply looses the originality and should drop in value rather than raise in value. I also think that one can find a nice original baritone for a far better price than this one.
Regarding the sandblasting then it is right that it is more dangerous to your health than using plastic beads. But today there are professional equipment available that eliminate the danger. I have done a quite a lot of sandblasting through the years (on bigger things than saxophones though) and with the right safety harness then there is no danger at all. Full covering overall, actually from very light but strong material and a head mask with built in oxygen supply does the trick. Also it is not very difficult to build a sealed tank that will take a baritone saxophone. I personally think that it is not a difficult nor expensive thing to set up - I merely think that it is a question of dedication and interest towards these old instruments. But then again I might just be to picky regarding this issue - but that is not about to change. I simply just love this old craftmanship and if a unique instrument needs to be replated to bring it to its former glory then I would certainly want to come as close as possible towards the original look.

[Chu-Jerry]

My blast cabinet is just big enough to get a tenor in there and have enough room to work. A bari wouldn't make it though.

Regarding plastic beads, they can clean but they won't give anything like a sandblast finish. I use glass beads which leaves a satiny finish. Nobody really uses real sand these days though except for outdoor industrial jobs where the abrasive is lost. A good fitting dust filter mask will suffice in this situation, no need for pumped oxygen. Breathing a small amount of sand dust won't kill you. The sand is organically inert and the body has natural ways to expel it in. There's often a small amount of silicon dioxide dust in the natural air we breath just from the environment. It's really a problem mainly in an occupational situation where one is repeatedly exposed to it.

There are other man-made abrasives used though in "sandblasting" such as aluminum oxide or silicon carbide which you definitely don't want to breath. These are much heavier than sand (silicon dioxide) and tend to maintain sharper, more cutting surfaces.

I regularly use glass bead basting to help with the cleaning process on original satin finished plated saxes. It also helps to freshen up the texture in spots that have been over polished or subjected to rubbing, so that the satin texture is once again uniform. But it leaves a non original looking too-white somewhat matted sheen which needs to be toned down. To do this I use a fine wire brush in a rotary tool to burnish down the surface.

[paulwl]

I personally think that it is not a difficult nor expensive thing to set up - I merely think that it is a question of dedication and interest towards these old instruments.If you were right, I would think that Anderson Plating, which does almost all the instrument replating in the USA, would try to copy the old technique more closely.

[fluga]

If you were right, I would think that Anderson Plating, which does almost all the instrument replating in the USA, would try to copy the old technique more closely.

Well Paul, Conn did this in the old day´s with less technical knowledge/methods than we have today so I am sure that this can be done. It must be a question of expense and most likely how big the market is. But what I will do I will contact Anderson and asked them about this issue and I am sure they can give me a logical explaination. I have been in contact with them before regarding some goldplating and they were very thorough and helpful and did a great job and I have great respect for them. What I am actually looking for is that I would like to know if this is being done somewhere with the result of the old finish so I can use the resources. Anderson´s finish is quite beautiful but I strive to make the saxophones I am restoring as close to original as possible so if the method is practiced somewhere then that would make me one happy guy.

[bruce bailey]

I use Anderson for flute keys and my take is that the satin finishes are in so little demand that it isn't worth investing in. Keep in mind that in addition to the outside work, they do all of Gemeinhardt's flutes and most non-Selmer US plating. 100K+ instruments brought to them each year would not warrant setting up for a few of us. Of course there are people like Jerry who can get the item set up and then have it plated which seems to be the best way for now. The finish I wish we could get is the gold plated thick one that Conn had in the 20s. Nice color too.

[fluga]

Hi Bruce !
You are right. The market is not big enough. I will most likely start with building my own blast cabin and make some tests and try to find the right sand, air pressure and the right nozzle and so forth to get as close as possible to the old sandblast finish. Might take a while but seems the only solution for me. I have some old scrap horns that I tore for spare parts that I can use to practice on. Maybe my wife is right when she says that I am to stubborn sometimes !!! Hate to admit it though !!! Thank you all for your input on this matter and if I succeed in any way I will let you know. BTW - Does any of you have a time travel machine I can borrow for a day or two ?????

[bruce bailey]

As I recall, when sandblasting, the distance of the object has something to do with the final result so you may want to try holding the gun at different angles and distances along with various sand/substances. I wounder if there is a chemical solution for etching the finish?

[fluga]

Greetings again !
Just wanted to let you know that this "Wanted" post of mine gave great results. A nice gentleman in California has the Tenor I was looking for and we have already closed the deal. Also Tensopbass has sent me pictures of his Bass and I am waiting for some more - I only have to convince my wife that every Icelandic home should have a Bass Sax OOPHHHHH!!!!!
Thank you all for your input and help.

[bruce bailey]

You can always boast the Iceland has more Bass Saxes per square kilometer than any country in the world.