Kessler Custom "Handmade"

[blurdot]

Has anyone played one of these tenors? I had the pleasure of blowing through one today in Vegas and it had a nice lush sound (though a little bright with my Berg Larsen) and amazingly fast keywork.

Just wondering what the reliability, craftsmanship, etc is like on them.

Apparently they are made in Vietnam, which I hadn't heard of before, I thought Kesslers were taiwanese? Anyway, any insight is greatly appreciated!

:D

[Joe Jazz]

As Gary would say..."use da search function".....or you could check out the A-M sax manufacturers thread.......:D I have played one of their sopranos and was very impressed with the quality, especially for the price.

[blurdot]

Hehe, I did search, I couldn't find anything on these new handmade models.

I also couldn't find anything about these being made in vietnam, is that a credible location for saxophone manufacturing?

=)

[Joe Jazz]

Seems to me I've read a couple positive comments on the red brass models. Kesslers are reportedly assembled in Vietnam from parts made in Taiwan. Vietnam appears to be one of the next places manufacturers are moving to for relatively cheap labor.

[blurdot]

The sales guy also said something about it being 70% copper? *shrug* The sax keywork felt a lot like a yamaha, who knows...

[Yamahaaltoplayer]

Has anyone played one of these tenors? I had the pleasure of blowing through one today in Vegas and it had a nice lush sound (though a little bright with my Berg Larsen) and amazingly fast keywork.

Just wondering what the reliability, craftsmanship, etc is like on them.

Apparently they are made in Vietnam, which I hadn't heard of before, I thought Kesslers were taiwanese? Anyway, any insight is greatly appreciated!

:D

Hehe, I did search, I couldn't find anything on these new handmade models.

I also couldn't find anything about these being made in vietnam, is that a credible location for saxophone manufacturing?

=)
What's wrong with Vietnam??? I'm Vietnamese and I play sax.:evil:

Just kidding!:D I am from VN though!

The sales guy also said something about it being 70% copper? *shrug* The sax keywork felt a lot like a yamaha, who knows...

70% copper/30% zinc is yellow brass. Standard for most saxes. Gold brass is 85-ish% copper 15% zinc. I'm 100% Vietnamese... I live in Canada though!:D

[blurdot]

I have absolutely no qualms with the vietnamese! =)

In fact, I greatly respect all of the peoples in Asia. And as far as the comments made by people about "cheaper" labor, guess what, the world is starting to discover that America will be "the" source for "cheap" "low quality" labor and the BRIC emerging economies will be very well respected indeed!

Pretty much every emerging economy outside the US is putting "US" to shame in manufacturing, production and work ethic. It is sad to see so many jobs leaving America, but I have no hesitancy using quality products developed outside this country. It isn't anti-american, just pro-quality =)

Also, thanks for the clarification on the metal contents, it reminded me that the salesperson had said it had the higher copper content, and that most use 70%, so that's a good thing yes?

[MoodyChem]

it reminded me that the salesperson had said it had the higher copper content, and that most use 70%, so that's a good thing yes?

Dave Kessler can explain it better (call or pm him), but he said the red brass is a little heavier, giving more heft to the horn. Check out his web site -
kesslermusic dot com

I just bought the red brass custom soprano from Dave - I love it. Nice tone,
well made horn, great price. (No, I don't work for him.) :)

[bradshawm]

Blurdot's original question pertained to the new "handmade" model. This is different than Kessler's others which are not handmade. I too would like to hear from someone who has actually handled and played the "handmade" model. I trust Kessler and have done business with him before and have been very pleased, but hearing from the seller is not the same as hearing from other players.

[DaveKessler]

Our Handmade model (alto coming SOON) and RedBrass models are an 85% copper, 15% zinc alloy. All of our other models use a true 70/30 mix.

[jrvinson45]

I'm 100% Vietnamese... I live in Canada though!:D

Do you play............... HOCKEY?????!!!!

[NissanMarkVII]

I am very curious about these as well. If I can sell 3 saxes I have lying around, I can afford it. I just don't want to make another bad purchase (not that the saxes I have are bad, they just don't "speak" to me like my Mark VII Alto did when I bought it. I'll have it forever!).

Edit:
Nevermind. Life happened, and I had to go a different route. My sig now contains all the saxes I own.

[stevethemusicman]

Hi All,

I just bought a Custom Handmade Kessler Alto. I'll be getting it in a week and I'll post my findings.

steve

[stevethemusicman]

Got the horn yesterday. It feels heavy and a little slower than the Yamaha 62II. I should qualify slower as heavy keys. This might be an advantage. Sound is good. Intonation on the low Bb for me is not good but that is me I belive. I'm going to a music store with it tomorrow to try the 62II vs the custom. I'm hoping it matches the action because the horn is beautiful. Yes, the case sucks but that's minor. I'll get another case to carry it if necessary and it will still be cheaper than the Yamaha.

Steve

[Enviroguy]

Pretty much every emerging economy outside the US is putting "US" to shame in manufacturing, production and work ethic.

I know you were trying to be apologetic and I don't want to hijack this thread, but based on statics, the US worker is still the most productive in the world and has been for a very long time. And I think behind the US are a few western European countries like Luxembourg, Belgium and France. No workers in Asia come close including Japan. It may be hard to believe, but on average, US workers work more and work longer hours too and they are also in the top 10 for workplace safety. The numbers don't lie, our blue collar folks are awesome. It's our white collar bums that got us in all this latest trouble. And they are the ones that have shipped much of our blue collar work overseas.

Now...

Back to the Kessler saxophones!

I'd like to add that Dave is extremely nice and polite for a successful business owner that isn't from the South. You can't go wrong dealing such good folks. ;)

[olhonker]

I know this is a little late but I bought the Kessler Custom Tenor in April, the workmanship is top notch, the ;plating appears to be what we used to say in the Chrome business "triple plated" the quality and tone is superb, the engraving is so good I don't think scratches will show ! Best Tenor except for my revered 1930 Cigar Cutter era Selmer. Yes I had balanced actions, VI's and even a Serieiii. The Kessler is better in every way. Bruce Brennan