Helen has a somewhat sizeable collection of vintage saxophones, and many of them them are quite obscure. If you would like to check them out, you can see them for yourself on her website.
If you have particularly unusual saxophone that you haven’t been able to find any information about, use the Contact page on this site and perhaps Helen can assist you in finding out more about it.
The photos on this page of the bari, and at the Arty Awards, were taken by Jason Brown, the owner Revival Arts Studio. I can say I knew Jason before he became über famous in the photography world! He was my pianist in the Bassic Sax Jazz Ensemble. If you are looking for a photographer who with an amazing eye, Jason is your man.
Hi Helen – I just want to thank you for the info and photographs I came across on your website
http://bassic-sax.info/4images/details.php?image_id=10352
Currently have a Martin Tenor and a year ago I started to play again following a twenty five year break. I guess I didn’t know how much I missed it. Starting again made me look for more info about my Martin tenor, but even the Martin Story, SOTW and other searches could not give me very much detail. I remained unsure about my Martin’s family and heritage until now. My tenor is serial 108638, very close to the alto in the image link above. Feels like they are related in a way. The look, the split bell, the keys, the engraving, the octave key and left hand thumb rest are identical. The only issue is that my tenor needs some TLC and work to get it looking like that alto.
Since playing again with my Martin tenor / Lawton 8*B mcp (a setup that sounds wonderful) I have acquired a Yamaha YTS475 tenor and Guardala MBII mcp and a Venus silver straight soprano with Yanigasawa metal 8 mcp (Venus = PRC – solid and sounds great with the Yani mcp). I certainly know now that I missed playing and I’m not letting it go again. I have just taken delivery of a brand new Selmer Reference 54. I knew that one of the tenors would have to go to cover some of the cost of the Ref 54. Because of your website, I know now which to sell. (I can send pics of my Martin tenor if you want to see it). Thanks again. Grahame
Hello Grahame. Welcome to my website.
I’m very happy to hear that my site was helpful to you. That Phase 3 Handcraft that you linked to is beautiful. So your tenor is similar. Interesting. Yes please, do send me some photos, and yes I understand it isn’t pristine like the one Randy Cole sold. 😉 You can send the pics to my gmail account. Thank you.
When you say you now know which sax to get rid of, which are you referring to? The Yamaha or the Martin? I have a Mark VI and a Martin Handcraft, and I must admit, the Martin is a bear to play ergo-wise, compared to the Selmer, but the Martin has a certain something in its sound, that the Selmer doesn’t. That’s why I like to take it to shows. (I play in an rockin’ blues band.) Before I got my 1950 Zeph—which totally relegated the Selmer to back-up horn—the Martin went to shows more than the VI did.
If I had to part with one or the other of my horns, it would be a really hard choice for me, because they all sound very different from each other.
Hi Helen
Thanks for your reply. Well – was thinking of selling the Yamaha and keeping the Martin. That’s what I had decided to do. But now I’m keeping all three. May be a bit mad, particularly with the arrival of a brand new Ref 54. The Ref 54 is just jaw droppingly good (no pun intended). And I mean unbelievably good. I love the Martin so that’s staying. And errrrrr……….I’m gonna keep the Yamaha too.
I’ll send pics to your email address.
Thanks
Grahame
Having 3 tenors isn’t “mad”, because each of the 3 sounds radically different from the other. Put all 3 out in stands and play them with the same m/p reed set-up and see what you notice.
I have
7, no, make the8, or is it 9? Oh I don’t even know anymore off the top of my head, how many tenors I have. And you know what? Each one sounds different than the others. That’s the rule for a new horn coming into the house. The new horn has to sound radically different than the ones already here. (The only exception to that rule are the JK Toneking and D&J De Villiers I have, but those are for research purposes.) 😈When you get to the point that you can’t remember exactly how many horns you have (I lost track somewhere around 20), then it truly is “mad”.
Until then my friend, carry on, and enjoy the wide variety of tonal palette your tenors offer.
Hi Helen,
I just got a Martin magna tenor. I would like more info on them and your personal opinion on them. Where can I email pictures to?
Hi John.
Welcome to my site.
Martin Magna saxophone are among the most popular Martin models. If you haven’t already checked out The Martin Story, I think you’ll find it a great resource on this amazing brand of vintage, American saxophones.
I actually don’t have personal opinion the the Magna. I haven’t played any. I nearly bought a low A bari a few years ago, but I guess it wasn’t meant to be. I ended up with my B&S Medusa instead.
I would love to have pictures of your horn John. If you could send them to my gmail account, I’d appreciate it. My gmail address is: bassic.sax.ca@gmail.com. Thanks!
What do you think about your new horn John? What other tenor(s) have you got? How does it compare to them?
Regards,
Helen
Hi all,
Has anybody heard of the makers Dupont from Italy,I have an old Tenor sax which needs a service to play,it has a nail file G# but the cup is on the left,not down on the right where it usually is,looks quite sparse 😐 no Bb bis key either,I am happy to take some pictures if it helps?The bell has an engraved shield with “Dupont.Artist Ideal,Milano”So I had thought Orsi stencil?I would appreciate your input please 🙂
Hi Lorraine.
Photos would help a lot. If you’d send them to my gmail account, that would be great. Here is a link to a page on my site that explains what kinds of photos allow me to help you the most.
Regards,
Helen
I just got a Runyon Custom tenor mouthpiece with a spoiler. what do you know about the spoilers
Hi john. Welcome to my site.
What, specifically, do you want to know about the spoiler?
This is what Runyon writes on their site, about the spoiler:
I have used a spoiler in my Runyon Custom alto mouthpiece since day 1. This has been my main alto mouthpiece for more 12 years now. I like the extra volume and projection the spoiler gives me. I find that I can manipulate the tone more effectively, and that I can produce a bit more of an “edgy” sound with the spoiler in place. It is an interesting “tool” in my arsenal, and produces the tone I want for alto. YMMV however, and likely will.
Interestingly enough, the tenor Custom didn’t work for me at all. Although Paul Coats hand-picked the piece for me, it just didn’t work for me in the long term. It wasn’t the mouthpiece, it was me. I guess I’m just a Dukoff player at heart on tenor, but not on alto. On alto I’m a Runyon player…. Go figure… :scratch:
This may not answer your question john. Or did it? So back to you, what exactly do you want to know about the spoiler?
Not to change the subject, but they said they would email me within 24 hours of the purchase and i still haven’t received one. :bang:
Hey john, who are “they”? Are you talking about Runyon?
Fill in the blanks a bit for me. I’m not quite sure what you mean.
In reference to the spoiler——for years—-since the early 60’s I have used a piece of modeling clay on the inside of my metal Link–to kind of mimic the inside of say a metal Berg. Once I get a smooth shape (it is wedge shape) I coat it with 3 or 4 coats of clear nail polish. it’s a metal mpc so no harm from the polish there. It can be adjusted in many ways to get the sound you want. Compare it to Bergs—100/0-100/1-100/2 etc. It would fall out every year or so—I would carry a small bottle of clear polish (hey red will work too) in my little fix-it kit (pad glue cork etc). Works for me—should have patent this years ago–Too Late Now (in Ab)
Do you know anything about Ida Maria grassi altos from the 1960s. I have one in very good condition
Hi John.
Grassi saxophones—or at least certain models of them—have a very loyal following among certain members of the saxophone community.
You don’t mention what model you have, so I can’t really tell you much. The best description of the brand that I have found online, is on Pete Thomas’ site. He describes his Grassi page as a:
Which model do you have John? Do you use it? How do you like it?
I don’t know what model it is, it’s in the shop right now to get a few Pads replaced. I use it all the time, and I love it, it plays very well
Looking for information on a Saxmaster De Luxe Tenor Sax made in West Germany SN 9367 :saxy:
Hi Ted.
I’d be happy to try and tell you more about your sax. Right up front, I can tell you that it is a stencil saxophone. However, without some photos, I can’t really tell you more than that. Check out this page on my site, for what kinds of photos allow me to help you the best. Then send them to my gmail account. My address is: bassic.sax.ca@gmail.com
My son plays tenor sax at school–loves it—yesterday I picked up a Henri lavelle-model9450 at a yard sale—it works great–nice rich sound–it has a bob Dukoof mouthpeice-A516..just wanted to know some history on it..Is it really old ?he loves0 it
Hi Pat. Welcome to my site.
Henri Lavelle did not make any saxophones. They ordered their saxophones from existing saxophone manufacturers—a process known as stencilling. Because ordering companies often changed who they ordered their stencil saxophones from, I couldn’t tell you more without seeing some photos of the horn. Could you send me some please?
You can send them to my gmail account. My address is: bassic.sax.ca@gmail.com Check out this page on my website for information on what types of photos allow me to help you the most.
BTW, also send me some photos of the Dukoff mouthpiece. Especially of the underside (the side where the reed gets attached to). The tip and rails are especially important to the condition, but include a photo of the top as well. Depending on the material it is made of, its age, and condition, that mouthpiece may very well be more valuable than the sax.
I hope this helps…helen
Hello, this is a tenor that I found online, and I am thinking of purchasing it. I’m a student, and I don’t know too many sax brands or how good they are. The site says “Professional Tenor Sax Brand New” but I’m not sure because it is the internet after all. Could someone help me by either identifying the brand of this sax, telling me if this is a good or bad buy for $400, or both! Thanks a lot, hope to hear from someone 🙂
Hi Chris.
I’m sorry I didn’t approve your comment before now. I didn’t see it, and for some reason I wasn’t notified via email, that it was there. 😡
Anyways, to answer to your question. There is no way to know what “brand” it is. And really, it doesn’t matter, since the brand name won’t tell you anything anyway. It is an Asian stencil horn made either China or Taiwan. For $400, my money would be that it’s made in China.
I can tell you that it’s definitely not a professional model saxophone. Really, it’s most likely a POS, but that’s just a guess. There are lots of entry-level Asian horns that are of a decent quality. My best guess is that is not one of them. Also, if the horn is not what you expect—if it’s damaged in any way, or if it built badly—how good is the dealer that you’re buying it from? Are they going to stand behind the product?
Where did you see this horn? Can you post the link? That would be very helpful.
In general, I would always steer people in your situation towards a reputable dealer with an online presence. Kessler & Sons in Las Vegas has really competitive prices, and also their own brand name of saxophones. Dave Kessler is the fellow how I would recommend you speak with there. He is a really nice guy, and knows his stuff. He will treat you right. The company stands behind whatever they sell. http://www.kesslermusic.com/
The advantage of dealing with a company that has both a online presence, as well brick and mortar store, is that you know that they are who they say they are. There is also a very good chance that they will be around tomorrow. Will you pay more than $400 for a horn? Of course you will, but you get what you pay for, and truthfully, in the saxophone world, $400 for a new tenor saxophone will get you a POS. If anyone can show me something that’s not a POS for that price, and remember we’re talking a new horn here, I’m all ears.
I hope that’s answered some of your questions Chris. Let me know what you think once you’ve had a chance to think things over…helen
I bought a Chinese-made tenor (brand name “Mercury”) a couple years back. It wasn’t expensive ($350) and it isn’t a piece of crap, but I got to PLAY IT FIRST at the home of the importer. That made all the difference. No way I would have bought it sight unseen. The only thing that has ever gone wrong is that one of the touch pearls fell out and I had to hot-glue it back in. The same importer also had a batch of curved sopranos in stock that were quite good, but they weren’t dirt cheap (about $800) and I couldn’t afford to buy one at the time. It didn’t help that my car got rear-ended ON THE WAY TO HIS HOUSE.
One thing about the Mercury is that although it is a pretty horn with a dark, smoky sound and rather good build quality, it WEIGHS A TON. I find it uncomfortable to play from a neckstrap for any length of time. It weighs a great deal more than my Yamaha YTS-21, one reason why the Yamaha gets the nod when I have to play without my high (playing level) horn stand.
I did have to do some relatively minor soft-hacking (I just inserted a piece of plastic into the neck, friction-fit) to get the palm keys to play in tune with my particular mouthpiece setup. This wouldn’t have been necessary if I had opted to go with something less aggressive than the Saxscape Downtown Studio or Dukoff D chamber — but it’s SUCH a dark horn that it needs the brightening up or it can’t be heard in a loud venue (even with amplification).
I actually put up a page about it here:
http://mal-2.com/mercury/
From what I was told, it’s SUPPOSED to be a knockoff of a Selmer S80 III, but it doesn’t play like any S80 (I, II or III) that I’ve ever tried. The Selmers are all fairly middle-of-the-road but also flexible horns. The Mercury sounds HUGE, though I can’t see any physical reason why it should. :scratch: I just play the darn thing and don’t worry about it.
I would go with a Hawk Tenor Sax. It cost a bit more, but it is a very good intermediate horn.
Hi Cody.
I did some checking around, and I can’t find anything out about the brand. I only see cheap, student model saxophones in multiple colors with the brand name Hawk.
Do you know something I don’t? Post a link to where they’re sold, so that I might be able to do something research into this Asian stencil sax.
Thanx…helen
PS: I should mention that the only Hawk horns I’ve seen before were the Jinyin-made bass saxophones. And those seem to have faded into memory.
They are exacty what you were looking at. My friend bought one in 6th grade and his dad said that is was more of a intermediate horn. I don’t know that it is asian, but here is a link to the Hawk acount on amazon.
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=bl_sr_musical-instruments?_encoding=UTF8&node=11091801&field-brandtextbin=Hawk
I played it and it was quite different than my 1970s Conn.
Random: Have you ever played a Mezzo-soprano saxophone before?
Salutations, Cody
I got a purple and gold hawk for school pride and it played ok, but it didn’t have the jazzy tone I was looking for. So, I am borrowing a 1937 conn connqueror 30m tenor sax, what do you know a bout those?
@John
I’ve got a nice shiny Yamaha I could trade you :devil2:
Just kidding. I have played several and still have dreams about them. Please take the time to find a tech who is familiar with them. The mechanism is robust, but an inexperienced tech can ruin the adjustments and make further maintenance much more difficult than it needs to be.
Hi John.
This 30m’s are excellent horns. They are the among the best horns that Conn ever built.
leonAzul has given you some really good advice if you ever have to get this horn serviced.
If you’d like to read more about them, here is a copy of an original brochure about the 30M, here is an interesting bit written by saxophone historian Pete Hales, and here is an more info by Bear at CyberSax.
These are good places to start, and will give you a better understanding of the horn that you’re playing.
Might I also suggest that you give this article I wrote a read. It will go aways towards explaining where your particular sound comes from, and how you might go about changing it permanently. (Sometimes switching horns only changes your sound for a short period of time. Eventually your true sound comes through again.)
How are you Helen? I just want you to know that I went to the nearest music store. The store owner told me that they don’t have available Runyon metal mouthpiece nor Berg Larsen. What they have are Yanagisawa, Ottolink and Beechler custom made mouthpiece. So I tried to buy the third one and it’s really cool. So how about you? What do you think or say about Beechler custom made mouthpiece?
Hi Andy.
I’m glad you had a chance to try some mouthpieces in person. I’m not surprised that they didn’t have any Runyons in stock. I don’t know a brick and mortar store that does. Usually I suggest people order them through my friend Paul Coats. He will work with you to make sure that you get the right piece for you. Or you can order them through Runyon directly.
You did however mention metal Runyon. You seem to be drawn towards metal mouthpieces. Like I said before, what it’s made of is not necessarily as important as its tip opening, facing, chamber, etc. For example, Selmer makes metal classical mouthpieces.
Speaking of Selmer, let me answer a question you answered before. You asked:
No Andy, it won’t. That’s because the Bundy is based on the Buescher True Tone body. It will sound like a Buescher, not a Selmer Paris horn of any kind. Selmer Paris saxophones do have a particular sound to them—just like all makes and models tend to have—and a Buescher won’t sound like them.
As far a Beechler goes, I haven’t on one in years, so I couldn’t tell you what they are like now. Like I said, mouthpieces are very personal, and everyone will have to make their own decision based on what kind of music they play, their own personal sound (check out this article I wrote to see what I mean by this), and their own level of development on the saxophone. For example, a Dukoff mouthpiece is not for beginning players.
I would suggest you try lots of mouthpieces. Try all the ones that they have in stock. Try the different tip openings and facings until you find the one that works best for you. Then decide if you like the sound. Then go to another store and try more brands. Play test as many brands as you can. It’s always a good ideas to take a few notes as well.
Going on a mouthpiece hunt is marathon, not a sprint. Take your time, and be sure. I have a few mouthpieces that I bought in a hurry. They’re in a drawer now, and I have never used them again because I don’t like them, or can’t play them. For example, I have a Vandoren Java I bought that I could play great in the store that sounded fantasitic. Problem is, I only tried it with 1 reed. All the other reeds I’ve tried on it sound awful, and the tip opening is too big for me.
Does any of this help?
Hi Helen,
Thanks so much for your informative message. I just already bought the ARB metal mouthpiece which is also another type of Beechler product. I observed that by using the ARB metal mouthpiece, the sound is more brighter and the subtone or the lower register has a huge sound. Do you think that Selmer Bundy H&A has a normal sound identity of having a big sound in the lower register or the first octave of the instrument?
Is this sax a Dörfler & Jörka stencil?
Hi Thomas.
Based on: the shape of the key guards, the mother of pearl (or plastic) buttons on those guards; the shape of the right pinkie keys; and the round thumb screw that fastens the neck, I’d say “Yes”, this is a D&J stencil.
What name is stencilled on the sax Thomas? Is it your horn? Are you thinking of buying it? Details man. Details. I live for details. 😉
Hi Helen,
The sax is stamped “Diamond” and it was imported and sold here in Sweden by a firm called Eric Petersson, Stockholm.
I’ve not yet bought the saxophone but I might do. The sax is in very good condition. Playing well. Just some minor adjustment to do.
I always consider myself as an “American Saxophone Man” with Martin saxes as my main saxes, but the last saxes that caught my interest are German (BRD) built. Toneking (Keilwerth), Wikena (Keilwerth), Hohner, Kohlert (Winnenden), Klingsor (Hammerschmidt) …. . You get good saxes for less money.
Thomas
That’s interesting Thomas. So that’s another new name for the Dörfler & Jörka stencil name directory. I don’t know if you’ve checked out the D&J page on the main portion of my site lately or not, but towards the bottom of the page you can see a photo of the unique key guards of a Ravoy tenor. This tenor is owned by someone in Sweden. Until Kjell contacted me, Ravoy was a name I had not heard of before. I suspect like the Diamond you are considering buying, it was stencilled specifically for a store or company in Sweden, or perhaps another Scandinavian country. Have you heard of this brand before in musical instruments?
It’s funny what you say about being able to get good saxes for less money when they’re German, as opposed to American-made. Here in North America that’s not really true. Until the fall of 2008 German horns would have cost more than American ones. Since the stock market crash, and the economy going to hell, the prices on all saxophones has come down. Overall it seems to me that the German saxophones are not really much more now than American ones.
I don’t know if you know this, but I finally got the Toneking that I’ve been looking for. It is a JK-stencilled Jubilee. It’s in the shop right now getting restored. When it comes back it will be good as new, and will have the strange customizations that the previous owner had made on it, removed. The fellow who sold it to me has owned it since new, and it was his baby. Once I get it back, it will likely be my main tenor. It is just that good, and will knock my Zephyr into back-up position—something that I didn’t think would ever happen.
If you do end up buying the Diamond Thomas, please let me know. I’d like to get some photos of the engraving. Also knowing the serial # (or at least part of it) would be great.
Hi Helen,
I bought the sax. I’m going to pick it up next weekend. The brand “Diamond” is quite common here in Sweden. It was imported and sold by the firm Eric Pettersson in Stockholm. Eric Pettersson was a clarinetist and manufactoried clarinets “EP” under his own name in Stockholm. In 1974 the firm Robert Marlene took over the clarinet business. I think Eric Pettersson was the importer of the Beuscher saxes as well.
I’ll take some picture of the sax when I got it. The seller has a Diamond alto as well for sale.
I use to have a couple of tenors to try out on my Rocksax Workshops. Andrew Clark, Boston is coming over in March 2012 for clinics and workshops.
That’s really interesting Thomas. This is the first D&J stencil name that I have any really history of. I’m looking forward to the pics.
It will be interesting to find out what you think about the horn compared to the Toneking or The New King you have. I won’t tell you my impressions, because I don’t want to colour your perceptions.
I took some pictures an uploaded them to you. About AB Eric Pettersson; he imported and sold R Marlene clarinets as well.
The Diamond tenor is a good player. I played Dukoffs D- and X- chamber, Berg Larsen 0 and 1 with M facings and even my current Rovner Deep-V D40 tenor mouthpiece is blowing fine on the Diamond. So the sax seems to get along well with new type of mouthpieces.
The condition of the sax is good. One of RH side keys are bent and just a few minor dings on the tube. Some pads/keys needs som adjustments so they are sealing proberly. But I think I can do these adjustments myself.
A good sax for less money. I can buy three Diamond tenors like mine, for price as one new YTS 275 or JTS “700” ! So why buy new studentsaxes? Ok, the design of the keys are a little better on new saxes.
Thomas
Hi Thomas.
Yes, thank you I got them. I was working on an email to you, but you beat me to it with this comment.
This Diamond is a D&J, as I was 99% sure it was. How does it compare to the JK horns that you’ve played or own? I find that my De Villiers (D&J) doesn’t have quite as a good a key layout as my Toneking. The right thumb hook in particular is not very comfortable. We know that D&J always designed their own keys, and then copied The New King & Toneking body tubes. I wish that they had switched to copying some of the keys as well. This would have made their horns a bit more ergonomically friendly.
My Toneking is currently away in the shop getting an overhaul. When it comes back, I’ll be properly able to compare the 2 horns, but tone-wise, there really is no difference that I could hear. I use a Dukoff S chamber normally, and the D&J seems to like that mouthpiece quite fine.
I’m on my laptop right now, and the photos of the Diamond are on my other computer. I can’t remember what kind of pads your sax has in it. The original ones would have been red.
I agree that these saxophones are very good value for the money. I wouldn’t classify them as “pro” horns per say, but upper middle class for sure. I would be curious to hear what some European techs say about them. I wonder if any of them would call them “pro” saxophones.
Hi Helen
The New Toneking -68 I have is louder but it has bigger bell/flair compared to the Diamond. Otherwise the tube looks the same. I find the ergonomics ok but the palm keys should be more close to the tube. The pads are not red and they have a small resonator/reflector. Something in the style of Ferree’s B44 pad. The pads are ok and workable, so I’ll keep them.
I don’t think I can call Diamond a pro sax. I think it’s an intermediate sax but lot’s of sax for the money. But it’s wellbuilt and it feels like the tolerances are lower than it use to be on stencil saxes. Beside that the Döfler & Jörka company had an interesting story. I didn’t know until I read your blog.
Hello Helen i just wanna know what’s the difference between a red painted logo of a vintage Selmer Bundy H&A to an engraved logo of other Selmer Bundy H&A? I noticed that they have the same brand but different logo style. Was there any significance about the logo thing? Hoping to hear from you.
GOD bless and have a nice day!
Hi Andy.
Well I did some digging, and I can’t seem to find any references to any changes that occurred in the Bundy saxophones. The only difference—which 99.9% of of the sax playing public knows about already—is the creation of the Bundy II.
If you’ve not read it yet, there’s an interesting post by Ralph Morgan, who at the time worked for Selmer and designed the Bundy II. He posted on Saxquest’s discussion board in 2006. He mentions the Bundy, but doesn’t note any changes that may have occurred over their production run.
Have you seen the Bundy category in Bassic Sax Pix? There you can see the various engraving/painting/stamping patterns that seem to have taken place over the course of the Bundy’s production run. Serial #’s tell the tale to some degree.
It appears that the red painted logo was perhaps the 2nd incarnation of the logo. But did any bore changes, key work changes, etc. occur? I can’t say for sure, but it seems doubtful.
The Bundy was of course based on the Buescher True Tone, and for many years the Bundy was made by Buescher. I haven’t found any information on when exactly (serial # or year-wise) Selmer USA took over the production of the Bundy.
Did Selmer change things when they took over production? Probably, but likely not a great deal. The earliest Bundy horns do tend to be a bit more desirable because they are really True Tones in Bundy clothes. But hey, with the price of horns having fallen through the floor, you can pick up a TT for cheap now a days. Players don’t have to necessarily settle for a cheaper version… The Bundy.
So all that long-winded explanation to say… I don’t think that painted/later engraved versions of the Bundy horns are different. However, there is a chance that the earlier engraved versions (Buescher-made) differed from the red logo’ed versions (Selmer-made). Unfortunately, because there is virtually nothing concrete known about student horns of the past, all of this pure speculation, based on the limited info I could find. 😕
Thanks so much Helen for the information. It’s nice to hear some history about Bundy. The only Bundy I have, is that a red-painted logo with a name of H&A which is made by Selmer in Elkhart, Indiana. Im sorry that I got confused about their logo and I was curious if there’s a difference in terms of sound quality. I tried to blow my Bundy horn, and it really has a full sounded tone. I don’t know if you agree with me that it’s a little bit stuffy when I used an ordinary plastic mouthpiece for my Bundy. By the way, what kind of mouthpiece that you will recommend to me for my Selmer Bundy H&A? Is metallic like Larsen or Otto Link good for Bundy? Hope to hear from you again and thanks so much for the reply.
GOD bless and have a nice day!
Andy
You don’t have to apologize for getting confused by the logos Andy. It’s completely understandable. It is confusing.
I agree with you. The older Bundys have a rich, full sound—they are based on the Buescher True Tone bodies after all, so that’s not surprising—and are a great horn. My first tenor was a Bundy. I really quiet liked it. It was a new sax in 1976, when my parents rented it for me when I was in grade 8. By this time I’d played alto for 2 years already, and really wanted to switch to tenor. I played the horn for 2 years, before my parents bought me my first sax: an Orsi stencilled La Monte.
As far as mouthpieces go, almost anything will work on a Bundy. Do you live near some music stores Andy? I’d suggest you take your horn and try out a bunch. There are lots of choices. Yes, metal ones may work, but what a mouthpiece is made of, is not nearly as important as the tip opening, facing, chamber, etc. Ultimately, it’s what you’re going to use it for that will determine what kind of mouthpiece you’ll need to buy.
I use a Runyon Custom 8 with a spoiler. I have for years, and I use it on all my horns, in virtually all situations. I do have lots of other mouthpieces that I might use for other occasions, but for me, the Runyon Custom works. However, that’s not to say that it will for you. Mouthpieces are very personal. That’s why I always tell people they have to try lots for themselves.
A good generic mouthpiece that I always recommend to my students is the Rico Graftonite. It comes in a variety of chambers and tip openings. It is cheap, and a very good, very under-valued piece. They were designed by the legendary Arnold Brilhart.
Does any of this help Andy?
Bottom line: Play test the pieces, if at possible, before you buy.
Let me know what you’re thinking, and if this has been helpful.
Take care…helen
Hi Helen,
Thanks for the reply. I will take note of your good advise. I will try to go to music store one of these days. Music store is not so far from where I live. I will try to ask to the music store manager if they have mouthpiece like the one that you have. Incase they don’t have, then I will try other metal mouthpieces which is best suited to my taste. Do you think that Selmer Bundy H&A can immitate the sound quality of Selmer Mark VI if I will use the best metal mouthpiece?
Till then hope to hear from you.
GOD bless !
Andy
Hello everyone. More on unusual saxophones. I looked and didn’t see any section for C Melody Saxophones on the right-hand column of the webpage. Would it be alright if we covered C Mel’s for a while?
Hi Chris.
Sure, I’d be fine with that. I traditionally haven’t discussed them, because I was hoping that Alan would write something about these horns on my blog. However, since he hasn’t, I’d say it’s fair game now. I’ll do a post on them today and we’ll let the conversations go from there.
Chris, you did see my replies to your comments (1 & 2) earlier about the contra you played while in Seattle I hope. I wouldn’t want you to think I was ignoring you. I’m not that socially inappropriate. 😉
What do you know about older Brilhart mouthpieces? I have an ivory colored Brilhart Tonalin 3 star with serial number. Is there a way to find out the age by the serial number?
Hi Jeremy. Welcome to my site.
I don’t own any of the old Brilhart mouthpieces myself, and have very little experience with them. I am not familiar with a serial number chart for the old Tonalin pieces, just the newer Level Air ones.
Have you checked out the Brilhard history page on Theo Wanne’s site? You might fire off an email to them, and see if anyone there might be able to offer up any insight.
If you do find out any information, please check back in and let me know. Thanks!
Regards,
Helen
Hello,
I have a vintage saxophone that I would like to know more about – including the current value. It is a King low pitch serial #48451. I brought it in to a music store once upon a time and they told me it was from around 1910 and that it could be worth “a bundle” because it has gold plated keys. It is in relatively good condition, a few minor dents here and there. All of the keys seem to work. I don’t play the saxophone myself, but I was able to get a few notes out of it. I believe it has the original case as well, at least it looks really old. My parents bought this instrument for me about 15 years ago by replying to an ad in the paper from some guy who picked it up at an auction. We paid $80 for it. I’m guessing it’s worth more than that. Any thoughts or information you could provide would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks for the help!
HI Kallie. Welcome to my site.
I be happy to tell you more about your King saxophone. But in order for me to do so, I’d have to see some photos. At this point I don’t even know if it’s a soprano, alto, tenor, or baritone.
Check out this page on my site for information about what kinds of photos are most helpful to me, and then send them to my gmail acc’t.
Hope this helps.
Best regards,
Helen
Thank you for the great photos of your tenor saxophone Kallie. I hope you got the email that I sent you with all the information. I hope you found it helpful.
I’m sorry that I wasn’t able to be more positive in my outlook, but after doing an eBay search myself (after I sent you my email) it confirmed my estimation of price.
Bottom line: A vintage saxophone is worth whatever a buyer is willing to pay or it, and a seller is willing to sell it for. That agreed upon price, is what a horn is worth. Buyers are pretty savvy, and have a lot of choices.
Good luck in whatever you decide to do with your sax Kallie.
Regards,
Helen
I have acquired an alto sax. It is a silver ‘The Elkhart’ with serial # 5939. It has a very good finish. All pads are complete. It is missing one small roller and has only a couple bare spots on satin finish. The bell and front engraving are polished. One small dent at bottom. The case is in excellent condition. The serial # indicates a 1906 year model. Just wondering the value. Can anyone help me.
Hi AJ. Welcome to my site.
The Elkhart was Buescher’s second line horn, and as such, there are no serial number charts on the ‘Net that I know of. The production year you give of 1906 doesn’t really make sense. At the time Buescher wasn’t making—to my knowledge anyway—student model horns. They were only making True Tones, and those serial number charts don’t apply to the Elkhart. Off the top of my head I don’t know when the Elkhart production started. I would have to do some research.
I would be happy to provide you with some more info, but first I would need to see some photos of your sax so that I can comment intelligently. Check out this page on my site for what kinds of photos are most helpful. Send them to my gmail acc’t.
Hope this helps.
Regards,
Helen
Greetings! I am having trouble locating info about this sax which I purchased about a year ago in a trade. It is a “Rene Dumont” baritone, sn: 15358, Made in Western Germany. From what I can gather it is a D&J or Keilwerth stencil…but I keep coming up empty handed online when referencing the baritone. Any idea what the value might be for this (it is shop adjusted and ready to play, just have not had time to actually play!)? I realize this is less of a collector’s instrument and more of a player’s instrument.. Any info would be greatly appreciated! I have hi res photos if you are interested in taking a look, I did not want to spam your site though and it won’t let me post them..!
Hi Kyle. Welcome to my site.
I’d have to see photos of your Rene Dumont before I could give you any kind of informed comments on your horn. Rene Dumont contracted most of their stencils to D&J, but did have deals with other companies as well. D&J only made altos and tenors. For baritones they got the raw materials from a saxophone manufacturer in France and assembled the horns in Germany. D&J never made any sopranos. However, as I said Rene Dumont did have other companies make horns for them including a very few horns by J. Keilwerth and even Pierret.
The best way to get the photos to me is to send them to my gmail account. This way the photos can be large, and I won’t have a problem with them overflowing my inbox.
Thanks for stopping by Kyle. I’m looking forward to seeing the shots of your horn.
Later….helen
PS: Great website…I haven’t had a chance to poke around all that much in it, but I really liked what I saw. Where are you guys based out of?
:2cents: who would like to sell me a subcontrabass :2cents:
I’m sure Orsi would gabrial. (It would look something like this.) But you’d more than likely have to take out a mortgage. :devil2:
The old LA Sax company sold the Orsi contras, and they did have a mortgage calculator on their site. I once figured it out. It was going to take me something like 15 years to pay off the horn! 😯
i recently aquired a wagner 6 bari mouthpiece. any info?
Hi jomo. Welcome to my site.
Do you have any photos? You can attach one here in the comment, or even better, send me some photos.
Did it come with a ligature by chance? What is it like?
The Wagner mouthpieces were made in Germany, and some came stock with some of the German saxes of the 50s and 60s. I’d have to do some digging in the German sites to see what else I can find. I’m not sure if they still exist, but I doubt it.
I’m curious to see what it looks like, because I’ve not seen a bari version before.
What does it play like? What does it sound like? Are you liking it?
Regards,
Helen
that is a extravagant mouthpeice and cost around 200-400 dollars $$$
Hello gabrial. Welcome to my site.
Do you know anything more about these mouthpieces? I searched for information about them when jomo posted his comment in March. However, there wasn’t a lot that I could find about them. I’d be interested in anything you might now about these Wagners.
Thanks for stopping by.
Regards,
Helen
I know it’s a bit off topic but, I recently inherited a Kohlert’s Sohne Bb Clarinet, It belonged to my great grandfather’s brother, Only I would like to know exactly how old it is, I would apreciate any help its serial number is 273321. The most incredible thing is that after at least 40 years without being used, I only paid for a basic tune up and it is still playable!
thanks for the help
Hello David. Welcome to my site.
I’m sorry I’ve taken a couple of days to get back to you. I’m usually a bit quicker, but I’ve had a family emergency to contend with.
I don’t know if you’re still looking for info on your Kohlert’s Söhne clarinet, but here is some info for you…
According to the Kohlert serial number chart on Saxpics—which applies to all instruments, not just to saxophones—it appears that your clarinet is circa 1936. I say circa, since the data in the chart are estimates based on research, because there are no existing Kohlert serial number charts. Pete Hales, the man who compiled this chart through a variety of sources, notes at the bottom of the chart:
If you’d like to know more about your clarinet, I’d recommend you join the Woodwind Forum. We have a number of vintage clarinet specialists there as Content Experts, and Pete Hales is one of the site’s Administrators. These people will be able to help you get more information about your vintage clarinet.
Hope this has helped David.
Regards,
Helen
I have purchased a Milophone Alto saxophone labeled Meliphone Paris. This is written in cursive but below this is printed The Woodwind Co, New York, N.Y. I know the name from mouthpieces labeled Meliphone, but who made the sax? It is in shipment but I can send photos when I receive it. I know the company had clarinets marked Meliphone. Any ideas who made it?
Hi Bill. Welcome to my site.
Yup, photos once you get the horn will be helpful. The name doesn’t ring a bell for horns. I’m guessing they had someone stencil saxes for them perhaps (?). With photos if I don’t immediately recognize it, at least I’ll be able to research it.
Did you buy it online Bill? Any guess on its age?
Thanks for dropping in. I always like a mystery.
Regards,
Helen
Hi Thomas.
Thanks for the comment on my site. It has been, and continues to be a lot of work, but I am enjoying it. The stuff I’m getting from Uwe is really interesting, and certainly challenges a number of beliefs that people have held over the years. For example, that Richard Keilwerth built the Weltklang baritones. That is in fact incorrect, but is something that is repeated all over the Internet. The next European horn history that I’m going to tackle in English is the conglomerate that built the Weltklang. That will take a bit of time, since there is quite of information to go through.
Now to your horn… Wikena does not sound familiar. I entered the name as a search into the files that Uwe sent me, but the name does not appear in the documents. So apparently Wikena is not a stencil name that Uwe has identified so far in his research. Do you have any photos of it? If you send me some I might be able to identify it. Or maybe you already have some photos posted somewhere?
Hello,
I have a sax that I thought was a Keilwerth stencil until I read more about the German saxophone manufactors. You are doing a fine job with your website. The sax is stamped “Wikena” and it’s also stamped with a triangle below RH thumbrest that says “Trade – Mark – Made In Germany”. In the triangle it’s stamped WK. The Serial number is 25XXX. A good sax, built like a tank, with rolled tonholes. Nice dark tone. A Rocksax ballad comes out fine on this one.
I haven’t played in almost five years. My husband just bought this one for me. It’s pretty good. Some times you have to make several adjustments before you can hit some notes. Mostly I just wanted to get back into music again. 😛
Well this sax will certainly let you get back into music again. I do have a suggestion however. I don’t know where the sax came from, or if it’s new or not, but regardless, it sounds like you might want to get it checked out by a tech to see if they can help with note issue. You shouldn’t have to fight the horn to have it play certain notes. There are quite likely some leaks somewhere that are causing the problems that you describe.
Getting back into playing after a number of years off is always challenging, so you don’t want leaking equipment making it more difficult for you.
Enjoy your journey back. Check in now and again if you like and let me know how you’re progressing.
I don’t know if you’ve seen these, but I’ve got some exercises on the main section of my site that might be useful for you. The Pivot Around Middle C is especially good. If you want some help, you can also fire off an email to me.
I just got a Soul Instruments Alto Sax. I can’t seem to find any information on it any where. Is there any one who would know?
Hi Amber. Welcome to my site.
No, I can honestly say I had never heard of a “Soul Instruments” sax before. I can tell you a couple of things however: 1) It’s a stencil horn of some kind (meaning someone, or some company ordered it and had their name engraved, or “stencilled” on it). 2) It’ll be from Asia somewhere.
I did a bit of Googling and didn’t turn up much on the name. If you go to the Sax On The Web Forum you’ll see a Google search bar in the top left side of the page, just beside the sax logo. Enter Soul Instruments and you’ll get a few hits. (You don’t have to be a member to do a search, but if you want to ask a question there, you will have to join.) I found 2 posts that actually apply. The most recent was from 2008, while the other was from 2003. Unfortunately that’s not much to go on.
So what do you think of your new sax? Do you like it? What kind of music do you play? How long have you been playing? Tell me a bit about what you’re doing musically…helen
Has anyone ever heard of Spencer brand?
I know a lot of brands out there, but this one looks like a 1960’s knock-off from Selmer. Got any ideas to which STAPLE brand this belongs to?
Thank you.
Also, does anyone know how much I can sell this 9* opening Berg Larson tenor saxophone mouthpiece for? it’s metal……
I have a Spencer alto saxaphone. It’s been in my family since 84. It’s actually a great Saxaphone (to me that is). I started playing last year in beginning band and about a week after I got into concert band (I had only been playing 4 months at this time)I became 1st chair saxaphone (which there were people that have been playing alto sax for at least 5 years). The teacher said my saxaphone had a nice dark, rich, rounded sound. It may be a knock off of a Selmer but it’s still an expensive Saxaphone. But not as nera as expensive as Selmer. It’s like guitars. Epihone has guitars that look and sound like Gibson guitars but there a hole lot cheaper than Gibson. I know nothing about Tenor though. Sorry.
Hi Caitie. Welcome to my site.
You don’t have any pictures of the horn do you? Would you be able to either email me a few, or upload one in another comment. Thanks!
helen