topic: steampunk American-made baritone saxophones
Posted: Wed Oct 09, 2024 3:34 pm
Conn and Buescher USA-made baritone saxophones were similar, but not the same.
As the title to the thread suggests - and as the pictures below demonstrate - they were very "industrial" in their aesthetic designs.
They both featured longer necks than French-style baritone saxes, whereby the octave key - on the American ones - was located on the neck.
The Conn one - in particular (shown below) - always seemed to sound "gruff/coarse".
Jerry Mulligan played Conn baritones, and it was his Conn instruments which - primarily - were responsible for his trademark sound.
Even one made this late (1970's and nowhere near Indiana) was made of all the same parts (even with the same quirky pivot screws - which featured secondary lock screws).
We took this one in on trade for some repair work.
Prior to me spending a couple of days straightening it out, the best thing about it was the like-new-condition wood case.
Notice that the bell is shorter than most all of those made today. The range was the same as with sopranos, altos, and tenors (to low B-flat), vs. those made today which most all offer range to low A (concert C).
It was quite distressed and (as the final factory wasn't known for the most attention to detail), I felt compelled to move a few of the posts...and sure: other posts had been knocked sideways or even loose.
I'm leaving what remains of the original lacquer. Perhaps 30% of the lacquer was missing, and much of those areas featured a dark brown patina.
With saxophones (particularly LARGE saxophones and particularly LARGE and SCHOOL-OWNED saxophones...and - even more particularly - LARGE, SCHOOL-OWNED saxophones which do NOT feature European-style "rib construction" (whereby several posts are brazed to reinforcing ribs together, rather than being individual soldered to the instrument's body), there's much more to do (pre-repad jobs) than remove dents.
Posts must be aligned and checked for how well they fit the keys, the keys then need to be laid in place to make certain that their pad cups line up with tone holes, tone holes must be round and planar on top (hopefully NOT relying very much at all on a wide tone hole file). Octave mechanisms (towards the top of the instrument) are going to need to be able to fit on the posts and line up properly with the vent holes, guards must be straight...a nearly endless list (oh yeah, and most necks are pretty distressed).
This is ready for me to go over a few remaining isolated tarnish and solder-repair places, final-polish all of the random areas where lacquer was missing, and then (matching the o.e.m. bronzy-gold lacquer as best I can) spray all of those areas.
After that, Mrs. bloke will shine up the (in this case: nickel plated) mechanisms, replace pads (about half of them look great and seal well, and - at today's pad prices - there no reason to tear off great pads "just because"), adjust/voice the instrument, and offer it up for sale.
Neither files nor sandpaper will touch this instrument. Mrs. bloke and I are not a horn-wrecking "overhaul shop". We do repair work.
Of the instruments we took in on trade, we're doing this one first, because it should bring us the closest to being paid for the repair work we did in trade (though selling it won't pay us for the work we shall have done on this instrument).
Through the 1960's, these featured the engraving (shoulders up) of a "naked lady" (just as with the sousaphone bells). In the 1970's they went with this 1930's-style Art Deco engraving pattern.
STEAMPUNK: Check out the industrial wire key guards and the huge/stout "X" bell brace:
Prior to me monkeying with these posts, the super-long upper stack rod was NOT sliding effortlessly through them.
Besides some pretty good dinks in this top bow, this lower J was smushed in pretty badly against a brace on the back side (which is not seen from this angle), so I removed this J bow from the instrument, repaired it, and reinstalled it. Also, the water key screw rod was broken off in one of the two supporting posts, so I fashioned a vintage King tuba water key saddle (one piece assembly) into something which would support the o.e.m. Conn baritone sax water key. (The repair work on badly-abused baritone saxophones - prior to handing them off to the woodwind person) can seem endless...well, unless the person doing the metal repair work doesn't give a $h!t and/or lacks attention to detail.
As the title to the thread suggests - and as the pictures below demonstrate - they were very "industrial" in their aesthetic designs.
They both featured longer necks than French-style baritone saxes, whereby the octave key - on the American ones - was located on the neck.
The Conn one - in particular (shown below) - always seemed to sound "gruff/coarse".
Jerry Mulligan played Conn baritones, and it was his Conn instruments which - primarily - were responsible for his trademark sound.
Even one made this late (1970's and nowhere near Indiana) was made of all the same parts (even with the same quirky pivot screws - which featured secondary lock screws).
We took this one in on trade for some repair work.
Prior to me spending a couple of days straightening it out, the best thing about it was the like-new-condition wood case.
Notice that the bell is shorter than most all of those made today. The range was the same as with sopranos, altos, and tenors (to low B-flat), vs. those made today which most all offer range to low A (concert C).
It was quite distressed and (as the final factory wasn't known for the most attention to detail), I felt compelled to move a few of the posts...and sure: other posts had been knocked sideways or even loose.
I'm leaving what remains of the original lacquer. Perhaps 30% of the lacquer was missing, and much of those areas featured a dark brown patina.
With saxophones (particularly LARGE saxophones and particularly LARGE and SCHOOL-OWNED saxophones...and - even more particularly - LARGE, SCHOOL-OWNED saxophones which do NOT feature European-style "rib construction" (whereby several posts are brazed to reinforcing ribs together, rather than being individual soldered to the instrument's body), there's much more to do (pre-repad jobs) than remove dents.
Posts must be aligned and checked for how well they fit the keys, the keys then need to be laid in place to make certain that their pad cups line up with tone holes, tone holes must be round and planar on top (hopefully NOT relying very much at all on a wide tone hole file). Octave mechanisms (towards the top of the instrument) are going to need to be able to fit on the posts and line up properly with the vent holes, guards must be straight...a nearly endless list (oh yeah, and most necks are pretty distressed).
This is ready for me to go over a few remaining isolated tarnish and solder-repair places, final-polish all of the random areas where lacquer was missing, and then (matching the o.e.m. bronzy-gold lacquer as best I can) spray all of those areas.
After that, Mrs. bloke will shine up the (in this case: nickel plated) mechanisms, replace pads (about half of them look great and seal well, and - at today's pad prices - there no reason to tear off great pads "just because"), adjust/voice the instrument, and offer it up for sale.
Neither files nor sandpaper will touch this instrument. Mrs. bloke and I are not a horn-wrecking "overhaul shop". We do repair work.
Of the instruments we took in on trade, we're doing this one first, because it should bring us the closest to being paid for the repair work we did in trade (though selling it won't pay us for the work we shall have done on this instrument).
Through the 1960's, these featured the engraving (shoulders up) of a "naked lady" (just as with the sousaphone bells). In the 1970's they went with this 1930's-style Art Deco engraving pattern.
STEAMPUNK: Check out the industrial wire key guards and the huge/stout "X" bell brace:
Prior to me monkeying with these posts, the super-long upper stack rod was NOT sliding effortlessly through them.
Besides some pretty good dinks in this top bow, this lower J was smushed in pretty badly against a brace on the back side (which is not seen from this angle), so I removed this J bow from the instrument, repaired it, and reinstalled it. Also, the water key screw rod was broken off in one of the two supporting posts, so I fashioned a vintage King tuba water key saddle (one piece assembly) into something which would support the o.e.m. Conn baritone sax water key. (The repair work on badly-abused baritone saxophones - prior to handing them off to the woodwind person) can seem endless...well, unless the person doing the metal repair work doesn't give a $h!t and/or lacks attention to detail.
