Seeking: Opinions on a 1988 B&S 3097 CC Tuba

[sidenius]

I'm going to test play a 1988 B&S 3097 CC Tuba this week.
Any opinions on this particular model?
Good sides, weak sides, model related tuning tendencies, anything to watch out for etc.

This is the PT-3 model and a 4/4 size - right?

Bertil

[bort2.0]

I played one in college. Nice tuba, very capable, does more than you might think based on appearances. It's a 4/4 tuba. No more, no less. Well, maybe a little less. But not much more. And that's meant to be a good thing! If the price is right, then it's a nice choice for a 4/4 sized tuba.

[bloke]

One thing I don’t do is to ask others opinions on what makes/models I should buy. Only a handful of models - in each key - play remarkably well (in my view), but nearly every model is going to be championed by most of those who own a particular model.

general advice:
Warm it up really well, systematically set the slides all in their best compromise positions, and use your electronic tuner with careful scrutiny.
Oh yeah… Mostly test mezzo forte, and mostly in the range in which you mostly play.

With any for-sale tuba:
Be prepared to walk away, regardless of how much of a bargain any particular tuba is. If any particular tuba is showing itself to offer quite a few potential problems (problems BEYOND the mechanical, which can obviously be fixed), it’s not going to be a bargain. Music is supposed to be pleasurable and fun.

[daktx2]

I've played 1 older 3097 and own a same era but larger B&S Tuba (a PT5, which has some similar tendencies).

I personally found the 3097 to be a nice blow, super quick response and very easy to play quietly or loudly. Tone quality to my ears was quite "American," fluffy and pretty. Intonation can be challenging, depending on the particular horn and what you plan to use it for. Here's 2 issues I've seen in these:

1) Some of these are built a bit short, close to A=442 or even 444 at room temperature with the slide all the way out. It's a fairly easy fix (lengthen the main tuning slide), but something to be aware of.
2) These sometimes ride sky high on top space G, 15-20 cents or more sharp. This makes alternate fingerings/slide pulling 100% necessary in the entire partial. My PT5 has this particular issue, which makes it not much fun as an all around / quintet / solo horn. The 3097 I played did as well. But according to some 3097 owners, the issue doesn't exist in every 3097, which would make it a really fun all around C.

The podcast below starting from about 16 minutes, contains some in depth discussion of the history of 3097's of this era by a couple of brass instrument builders, including one who has a good 3097. It's pretty interesting and informative if you like brass instrument history.