how do i find the value on a conn alto sax?

[veronica]

i recently came in possesion of a conn ser #99xxx it is silver in color .i am not a musician and do not no where to go to get an appraisal. i believe it belonged to my great uncle. it was found in the origanal case with an instruction book copyright 1945. i went to conn site and serial #dates between 1921-22 i am trying to settle an estate that was in much debt and am looking for an accurate value. thanks

[morgan]

If you're not near a major city or one of the handful of known vintage dealers you might have trouble finding somebody competent to do an 'official' appraisal.

Simple approach:
If it has an "A" above the serial number, appraise it at $300
If it has a "T", $800

[stitch]

It may also have a "C" above the serial; I'll leave others more qualified than I to value it.
It should also have an "L" beneath the serial no - if it has an "H" it's next to worthless ... :cry:

[veronica]

thanks .. but it has a "C" above the # and a "L " below it . also i am near a major city. what does an appraisal run?

[stitch]

Afraid I can't answer your question on appraisals (being in the UK), but it might be an idea to search eBay's ended auctions for C-melody saxes (which yours is, hence the "C", alto has "A" and tenor "T") to get an idea. Actually, it might be better just to search for "Conn sax*", since many sellers don't know exactly what they have. Good luck!

[morgan]

thanks .. but it has a "C" above the # and a "L " below it . also i am near a major city. what does an appraisal run?

Appraise it at $150.

[Pete]

We're being a little simplistic, folks.

First, both C melody tenors and C sopranos were marked with a "C". Veronica, if the horn looks "saxophone shaped", it's a C melody tenor (http://www.saxpics.com/the_gallery/conn/new_wonder1/c_melody/straight_neck/gold/108xxx_gold_cybersax/). If it looks like a clarinet, it's a C soprano (http://www.saxpics.com/the_gallery/conn/new_wonder1/c_soprano/gold/11725x/).

Veronica, there were literally hundreds of thousands of C melody and C soprano saxophones that were produced in the early 20th century. What this means is that C instruments are not especially valuable, UNLESS:

a. It's in shockingly pristine condition, you have the original mouthpiece and you have a good case or
b. It's in gold plate (and in good condition) or
c. It's heavily engraved (and in good condition) or
d. It's got additional pearl keytouches (sometimes called a "Virtuoso Deluxe" finish) -- and it's in good condition.

So, if you take your standard C melody in "average" condition, morgan is near enough correct not to make any significant difference. If it's pristine, you might get up to $500 US for the horn. The base price on an "average" C soprano is about $500, with pristine examples selling around $800. The additional engraving/finishes add 15% or more to the value (for each).

If you don't have an original mouthpiece, subtract $25 on the C melody and $100 (at least) on the C soprano.

Now, "value" does not equal "someone will buy it at this price". That is determined by how many people are selling them on eBay (or whereever) at the time and what condition those horns are in.

Finally, the fun thing is if you can document that someone really famous owned the horn, the horn is far more valuable.

If you want to go to a saxophone shop and have them do an appraisal, the cost is generally whatever the shop charges as an hourly minimum. This varies widely from $25 to $100.

You can take a look at some pictures and commentary on these horns at www.saxpics.com/conn There are a lot more C nuts (and possible buyers) at Wade Walker's C Melody Forum (http://home1.gte.net/wwalker/cmelody.htm).

[veronica]

yes this sax is in great shape with im sure some fine tuning ,for it has been sitting in its origanal case for decades now. the thing is i became very suspicious when a high school band teacher offered me $800 right off the bat telling me it was a tenor sax and the next day told me it was an alto sax and he defintly wanted it ...therefore i thought i might look into this myself without spending too much money to find out it wasn t worth anything?...it has a staight neck .. and the pearl keys and very very shiny silver color if that hels anyone out their.. i m not doing such a great job investigating for there is a whole universe of sax info ...altough i am truly enjoying this interesting journey -v

[morgan]

We're being a little simplistic, folks.
... both C melody tenors and C sopranos were marked with a "C".


oops. good catch.

[Pete]

NP, morgan. I've gotta always remember that you and your wife brought me kicking and screaming into the world of SML.

Veronica sent me an e-mail regarding this horn and will be sending pics at some point so I can make utterly sure, but I've told her that based on the description of her horn, she should drop reading my e-mail and take the $800 for this C melody tenor.

[Pete]

... and I got the e-mail with pictures.

This is a Conn straight-neck C melody in nickel plate. The pads look decent and I can't see any apparent damage.

Conn platings were in the following order of value (lowest to highest): bare brass, nickel, silver, etc. Nickel plate has gotten somewhat more valuable over the years, but not overwhelmingly so.

If the horn doesn't have any damage and the pads are new, the horn will definitely be worth in the $500 US range. If there are broken, missing or non-working springs, subtract about $50. If it's got some major dents someplace, subtract at least $150.

That's about the best I can tell you! As said before, go to the guy that wanted to give you $800 and have him buy it.

[stitch]

... As said before, go to the guy that wanted to give you $800 and have him buy it.

..... though he'll have a hard time playing it once you've bitten his hand off
:lol: