Vintage curved bargain

[Perfect Pitch]

Well you know, I really would like a solid silver Yani, but the budget restricts me to a vintage cuved soprano.
Best choices would seem to be 30ish Conn, Buescher or Martin .
I am used to Mk VI keywork and intonation.
For which soprano should I most wisely seek?
Thank you 8)

[Perfect Pitch]

This is one I am bidding on -

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2567589526&category=16 203&rd=1

How much do you reckon? Is the intonation so bad you have to block the octave keyhole? :oops:

[Bootman]

Could be worth chasing, it has the separate Palm keys. Intonation problems can be overcome on these Sops by using the correct type of mpcs and learning to come to terms with the keywork. The horn will have the sound, this is something that the Yani's just don't have.

[Perfect Pitch]

Do you think these Bueschers would be better? Not curved but I suppose I should be focusing on tone :!:

http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?query=buescher+soprano&sosortproperty=1 &ht=1&from=R10&BasicSearch=

[Dave Dolson]

Perfect Pitch: I looked at the link you provided. I would avoid the "new" Buescher. It is nowhere near the quality of a vintage Buescher.

The others looked like possibilities but you should probably figure in the price of a complete overhaul (except maybe for Dave Kessler's horn - it looked nice from the photos, albeit a lower serial number).

The choice between a vintage curved sop and a vintage straight sop is a personal one. Contrary to other posters, I don't think there is that much difference between the two designs, especially to an audience. I've had a negative experience with a curved Conn, but my straight Conn and two Buescher TTs are wonderful horns. I favor my TTs over my Conn, but that's only three horns. A lot depends on what you can buy, how well it is regulated or set up, and how you can make it play. DAVE

[Perfect Pitch]

Thanks Dave and Richard. The curved Conn with ser # P9058 would seem to predate 1905 according to saxgourmets no. list!

http://www.saxgourmet.com/serial.html#conn

[rrex54]

This is only the second reference I have seen to a horn with the Conn name engraved on it but a "P" serial number.

In the early days Conn used the "P" prefix to indicate a Pan American or other stencil serial number. The sequence was separate from the main sequence, hence your problem in dating it. The Pan American and other stencil horns also never had rolled tone holes even after Conn started using them.The best I can say is that I believe that Conn started using drawn tone holes (using the Haynes 1914 patent) around 1917. (Check www.saxpics.com.) I have a Pan American branded curved sop with a P58xx number with drawn body tone holes, soldered ones on the bell that's probably around Conn's first use of drawn THs on a curved sop.

I have responded with my assessment of three sops in your vintage sop characteristics thread. However, I will add that my curved Pan Am has an excellent scale. It even drew comments from my tech when he worked on it. The horn itself has been buffed (with a little tone hole damage) and played a lot (unusual repairs like silver solder on the arm near the touch point for high E, and an odd helical spring on the G# needed because of a silver solder on that arm). Despite all this and a lot of lacquer wear, the horn can play up a storm. It can actually be too much in-your-face with the brown domed resonators. Still it is a GREAT player. Please see my comments in the other thread.

My Pan Am was an eBay acquisition from a couple of years back that ran around $550 as I recall. It was supposedly in top playing condition (despite poor cosmetics and inadequate disclosure on the repairs). When it turned out not to be in top playing condition (the pads WERE, however, virtually new), I squawked and the seller picked up the tab for a trip to the shop. Four pads and a couple of adjustments later and it was an incredible horn. From what I have seen on eBay, prices have definitely risen since then. However, if you are patient -- and chasing the Conn you referenced does not work out -- there are still some potential deals to be had as there is frequently no rhyme or reason to selling prices on eBay.

Two notes: 1) The Conn on eBay is an after-market lacquer. Conn did not go with clear lacquer until around 1930. 2) Other comments on the forum suggest that Conn dropped the ball on intonation in some years -- a bit like the variation noted in the Mark VIs, I suppose.

All in all, I think that the Conn you referenced is, as Bootman commented, worth chasing.

[Perfect Pitch]

Missed it :( - still looking tho