Seeking King K90 G Contrabasses
In particular, those with 1981 production models starting with serial #850XXX.
AND the following modification:
The pipe coming from the second valve going to the main bugle has a ferrule joint and from that joint the tube is straight, not conical. See pic.
Also, file marks on the tuning slide.
What makes these K90's different from the others? They are Blue Devil horns (1982-1991) and the first production models.
At least PM me if you have one. They have some history.
Thanks!
KING K90s
Forum rules
When making a listing for large or expensive items, please include your budget and location. That will help you match with a seller that might have the item you are looking for
When making a listing for large or expensive items, please include your budget and location. That will help you match with a seller that might have the item you are looking for
-
the elephant
- Posts: 3400
- Joined: Thu Aug 13, 2020 8:39 am
- Location: 404 - Not Found
- Has thanked: 1901 times
- Been thanked: 1345 times
Re: KING K90s
I marched with the eight original prototypes, which were actually four pairs of slightly different horns. The production horns came from the second best pair we had. The best two were too expensive, using fewer off-the-shelf parts than the horns the Devils purchased in 1981 and marched with in 1982. (In 1981 BD used DEGs as that was the best you could buy at that time.)
I got your PM. I don't have any historical gems, just two beaters. One is from the first production run in late 1981, but it was owned by one of the other two corps who snapped up the first 24 horns. Mine was owned by the San Jose Raiders. It has the Larry Minick "spring braces" on the bell, added two years after the Devils made this modification. That one has the original straight pipe with the flare at one end to step up suddenly to the bugle bore. All eight of the Sky Ryder prototypes had this, as well. (They could not easily lake the tapered tube that was intended to go there without some expenditures, so the straight pipe with the pressed-in flare was used for the first few years. (Probably fewer than 60 of these were made.) Once they had the tapered tube issue fixed they were installed instead of the straight pipe. In all truthfulness, the straight pipe played a lot better. I never really got as big of a kick out of playing the 1983 and later K-90s with the tapered pipe.
I wish you luck finding a few of these old horns. Many today exist in DCA (senior, or all-age corps) but many have had third or fourth valves added. I have come across a few that have been cut to BBb (Nooooooooo!!!!!)
I am keeping the best parts and making my straight pipe 1981 horn into a four-valved GG contra, using the other horn's valve section. I play for a living in a symphony orchestra and the other horn will become one of the horns I use at work. It is becoming a very nice five-valved CC tuba. (Sorry, but at least this means the horn will be used to make music at a high level and not sit gathering dust.) I am hoping to march in DCA again once I have the 1981 K-90 fully restored to new condition with four valves. I may even keep the cool half-step slip-slide for fun. I never saw many groups use that thing because the design was flimsy. Ours worked really well, though, as all eight horns had been hand-built by their top prototypers. Our book called for that slide to be used at least 20 times when I marched in Sky Ryders.
I used to know two guys who each claimed to own a horn used that first year (the 1982 show). I think they came across them in suspicious circumstances, and both were "liberated" from the bad guys. I am not allowed to say who these guys are, as they might have other horns from that era that disappeared off the inventory.
Best of luck in your search!
I got your PM. I don't have any historical gems, just two beaters. One is from the first production run in late 1981, but it was owned by one of the other two corps who snapped up the first 24 horns. Mine was owned by the San Jose Raiders. It has the Larry Minick "spring braces" on the bell, added two years after the Devils made this modification. That one has the original straight pipe with the flare at one end to step up suddenly to the bugle bore. All eight of the Sky Ryder prototypes had this, as well. (They could not easily lake the tapered tube that was intended to go there without some expenditures, so the straight pipe with the pressed-in flare was used for the first few years. (Probably fewer than 60 of these were made.) Once they had the tapered tube issue fixed they were installed instead of the straight pipe. In all truthfulness, the straight pipe played a lot better. I never really got as big of a kick out of playing the 1983 and later K-90s with the tapered pipe.
I wish you luck finding a few of these old horns. Many today exist in DCA (senior, or all-age corps) but many have had third or fourth valves added. I have come across a few that have been cut to BBb (Nooooooooo!!!!!)
I am keeping the best parts and making my straight pipe 1981 horn into a four-valved GG contra, using the other horn's valve section. I play for a living in a symphony orchestra and the other horn will become one of the horns I use at work. It is becoming a very nice five-valved CC tuba. (Sorry, but at least this means the horn will be used to make music at a high level and not sit gathering dust.) I am hoping to march in DCA again once I have the 1981 K-90 fully restored to new condition with four valves. I may even keep the cool half-step slip-slide for fun. I never saw many groups use that thing because the design was flimsy. Ours worked really well, though, as all eight horns had been hand-built by their top prototypers. Our book called for that slide to be used at least 20 times when I marched in Sky Ryders.
I used to know two guys who each claimed to own a horn used that first year (the 1982 show). I think they came across them in suspicious circumstances, and both were "liberated" from the bad guys. I am not allowed to say who these guys are, as they might have other horns from that era that disappeared off the inventory.
Best of luck in your search!
