MW 32 / 33 5 rotor 4/4 CC tuba $4000, free shipping

[martyneilan]

Vintage Meinl Weston model 33 five valve rotary CC tuba. This is the detachable bell version of the model 32 tuba that won lots of auditions back in the day. This has the compactly wrapped body similar to a 188 but more "core" and does not break up or edge out like a 186 or 188. Sound is dark but very focused and with excellent projection. Low end projects twice that of a Chinese 186 clone. .768 bore through all 5 valves, 5th has the flat wholestep straight slide.
About 38" tall and bell has zero pancake at 16 3/8”. This is a very solidly built horn that weighs between 24 and 25 pounds per the bathroom scale.

Intonation is good, not quite 186 but pull 1st for F and push in for D; use 3rd valve for low E like on most German horns.

This is somewhat similar to the Bill Bell model but one size larger and with better intonation and a more open low register.

Receiver takes a large Euro shank but I am including an adapter for standard aka American shank. This horn likes deep bowl mouthpieces. Tuning slide is Euro pitch but can be pulled to make A440. Includes an Altieri bag with a brand new bell hat.

Horn was just chem cleaned and had many dents pulled, a missing brace replaced, and valves adjusted. They are now fast and quiet. There are still some dings on the back (see picture) and overall finish is worn, this is a player and not a looker. This may be the infamous horn that was rebuilt by the West Point repair tech some years ago and came out an excellent player.

$4000 firm, cash, PayPal or Venmo with free shipping (lower 48 only) for serious buyers, but I would still prefer you come in person. I am in Hermitage which is just East of Nashville; I have a vault ceiling in the living room and a pullout couch. Come out and toot on it all you want, if you like take it home.

This is a fantastic rotary CC tuba that has a dark German sound that projects like crazy and doesn't break up, with a very powerful low register. Works well from quintet to symphony orchestra. Only selling because I need the money - currently in grad school and I just bought a car for the 16 yr old and 2 computers for the kids. So I need the cash more than I need a second CC.

Pictures are at https://photos.app.goo.gl/Rj2xs8JDPvguwMjE9
I can email high res photos if you have difficulty with the link.

[matt g]

The photos aren’t showing up for me. Link is working and the photos look great.

Regardless, I used to own a MW32. They are everything @martyneilan is saying. I bought one out of a pick of a few at Dillon Music about 18 or 19 years ago. I traded in a VMI Mel Culbertson piston Neptune for it. The Meinl Weston had a much better low register and way better (almost zero slide pulling) intonation.

It’s not a big pillowy sound, it’s something in between an Alex and a Miraphone. A good all-around tuba.

[martyneilan]

it’s something in between an Alex and a Miraphone.

That is an Excellent way of describing it, wish I thought of it ;)
Thanks for the kind words, Matt!

[bort2.0]

I had an MW-30 for several years. It was great. No doubt that Marty's horn is a really good playing tuba, too.

[HumbellHouse]

Good Morning!
I'm having a bit of an issue opening the photos as well, but from what I can see, it could be a horn I worked on a few years back... I'd like to clarify one of the seller's statements, if that is the case. I was/am the repair tech at West Point, but this horn has no connection to that organization... lol... I have a fully functioning shop at my house... This horn had quite a few leaks, and ended up being a great player once it was tidied up a bit! If we didn't have two young children at the house and a full time job I would have taken it further apart and rebuilt it more extensively...

[martyneilan]

Thanks so much for the clarification!

[martyneilan]

Sorry that the picture link works for some and not others. Here are a few of the pictures shrunken, especially showing the dings.

[martyneilan]

Since the tuba disassembles, I have decided to offer the option to ship it to the "lower 48". This tuba would be easier to ship without major damage risk compared to most other tubas due to using two boxes instead of one giant box. I am not offering a trial, I would need you to be 99% sure that you would keep it - I hate seeing horns sent all over the place back and forth because that greatly increased the chance they will sustain some kind of damage.

I have tried to be honest in the description and showed the issues in the pictures - some dings left by repairman could be pulled by disassembling the fourth slide (he estimates 150) and a few others here and there. Intonation is good but needs 3 for low E as with most German rotary horns, pull 1st for F and push in for D, some 23 combinations need to be steered up or down a little without pulling required. Again, nothing out of the ordinary for a German CC (much better than some older German CC tubas I have tried including the Bill Bell models, B&M, Weimar, and one Marzan 4 valve CC years ago that was nearly unusable (their BBb are spot on.) A trick I have used on some 5 valve CC tubas with 23 issues is to tune 15 for the notes that lean sharp and 23 for the notes that lean flat, or vice versa. I even saw Jake play the York using that combination once. I have not found the need to employ that trick on this tuba.

This is a killer compact wrapped 4/4 horn that bests a 188 in every way (in my opinion) except ease of intonation, but it is very manageable once you get acclimated to the horn.

[bort2.0]

Great looking tuba!

If this was 6 months ago, I may very well have bought it for myself!

[martyneilan]

Now offering free shipping to the "lower 48"

That is, to anybody except Bort...

[bort2.0]

Now offering free shipping to the "lower 48"

That is, to anybody except Bort...

"But I'm not in Alaska or Hawaii..."

[martyneilan]

If we ever see that Alex up for sale, the entire TNFJ® is holding an intervention.


(Now if you want a second horn, that is another discussion entirely...)



TNFJ = Tubaforum dot Net Freak Jury

[bort2.0]

If we ever see that Alex up for sale, the entire TNFJ® is holding an intervention.


(Now if you want a second horn, that is another discussion entirely...)



TNFJ = Tubaforum dot Net Freak Jury

Forget that, Mrs Bort would shred me first. By the time that's over...

That Alex is going nowhere.

Second horn, perhaps. But with the shutdowns, even a first horn gets little use...

[jtm]

Is it TFFJ now?

[martyneilan]

Bump.

[martyneilan]

I took it back to the shop for additional dent removal, he will pull the fourth loop to get all those little dents out and see what else he can do. The first round of dent removal came with a "no desoldering" request to keep the price down. Valves were also quieted and a replacement brace was fabricated to replace a missing brace in back. Seprately I had Altieri make a custom bell cover to replace the missing part of the bag. The horn should be available again in a couple weeks. Unless I decide to keep it