Need help: is this neck missing on my new alto?

[queperknuckle]

I finally got the horn I've been looking for for so long in fine condition, and it was worth it. What a sweet tone on this horn! But I was disappointed in the neck at first. Now I don't know what to think. Take a look at these pics. The first attachment is my Pierret Competition alto and neck...The second is a picture of a stencil that Pierret made for olds of the exact same model...

The neck on my alto doesn't have the little bar going across it. It's missing! I can't figure out if that's the original design of the neck or if the neck was damaged. Did Pierret just get lazy and make some necks like this, or was the bar broken off during the life of the horn? How would you be able to tell? I was sure the bar was broken off when I first got it since every other Pierret Competition I've seen has it, but now, I just don't know.

[AhCheung]

If the horn plays in tune I think you shouldn't worry too much. If the fit is not good, the intonation poor, and the finish quite different from the body then the neck is not original.
Indeed all the Pierret Competition stencils I have had in hand or seen pics of (Parisian, Parisian Ambass, Reynolds, René Dumont) had the neck brace. If the brace was unsoldered (to repair the neck) you'd have evidence of the original attachment points.
Good luck with the horn ; non original neck doesn't necessarily mean disaster, though, from a player's perspective.

[queperknuckle]

If the horn plays in tune I think you shouldn't worry too much. If the fit is not good, the intonation poor, and the finish quite different from the body then the neck is not original.
Indeed all the Pierret Competition stencils I have had in hand or seen pics of (Parisian, Parisian Ambass, Reynolds, René Dumont) had the neck brace. If the brace was unsoldered (to repair the neck) you'd have evidence of the original attachment points.
Good luck with the horn ; non original neck doesn't necessarily mean disaster, though, from a player's perspective.

Thanks for your response. It's definitely the original neck. I'm not so much worried about it, just curious to what Pierret's design philosophy was with respect to this neck...i.e. was the neck made without the neck brace and what would give Pierret the idea to do that. I love the sound of the alto, and the intonation is very good. Here's another competition alto without the neck brace http://cgi.befr.ebay.be/saxophone-pierret-competiton_W0QQitemZ130173408565QQihZ003QQcategory Z620QQcmdZViewItem. When my tech sees the neck, maybe we can piece together the story and possible scenarios.

My tech and I both laughed when I brought the horn in...lol. Because I had brought the other alto I brought - the artiste competition - in not to long before that. He said they were the exact same horn but it was almost like Pierret just jumped on the bandwagon and decided to go "modern." But what were they thinking with these necks? Lol. I'll see how it plays later this week, when it returns from my tech (needed a couple pads replaced and had more than a few leaks).

[Sigmund451]

Plenty of horns dont have a brace incorperated into the neck. Dont sweat it but treat it kindly.