[Bubba06]

Can you remove engravings?

I was reading about the engraving being into the actual horn, but is there any way to get rid of it without damaging a horn/finish?

Thanks
-Bubba-

 

[Dr G]

No.

It's the tattoo of the saxophone world.

 

[Stephen Howard]

Can we ask why you'd want to do such a thing?
Not out of a sense of horror, or anything as flakey as that - but is there an aesthic reason?
If it's the case that you simply prefer a plain bell (as I do) then there's no way to remove the engraving without levelling the metal...and from a structural point of view alone that wouldn't be a good idea.

If you just don't like the engraving but have no other preferences, you could have it recut. Obviously you can't just 'walk' over what's already there, but you could have it 'enhanced'...rather like a bad tattoo can be disguised (to follow on from Dr G's analogy).

Regards,

 

[Bubba06]

Well, there's a horn with the previous owners name engraved in it. It has a rather nice price. Firstly I considered "enhancing" it to my name, but it's really not possible.

-Bubba-

 

[Stephen Howard]

Can you not change your name?

It might be possible to 'block' it over with a series of geometric patterns - but I would think the best person to ask would be an engraver. I'd be surprised if there wasn't something that could be done about it.
It's seldom worth filing it out - I've seen it done before (especially with serial numbers!) and it's never pretty.

Regards,

 

[maddenma]

Well, there's a horn with the previous owners name engraved in it. It has a rather nice price. Firstly I considered "enhancing" it to my name, but it's really not possible.

-Bubba-

Well, depending on the name, it could add a great deal of value to it. Does it say "Charles Parker" by any chance?

 

[Bubba06]

Well it's some "John William Coltrane" fellow. Unfortunately, I can't fit my name in there. Oh well!

-Bubba-

 

[maddenma]

That one probably wraps all the way around.

 

[Pete Thomas]

I can understand why you would want to do this.

If it was my horn, I would consider having a plate made up with my own name which could be soldered over it.

This would only really viable if there is either no/little lacquer over that engraving or if you didn't mind losing whatever lacquer is there.

Or if the name was somewhere inconspicuous, e.g. the back near the serial number.

A soldered plate could be removed if you ever sell the horn, but of course then you are back to the stigma of have Coltrane's name there.

 

[vintage bundy]

Could one not fill the engraving with solder/liquid metal and do some light buffing to make the filled engraving level with the rest of the metal around it?

 

[maddenma]

That wouldn't exactly make it disappear if it were solder or another low-melt temp metal like solder. Liquid brass is pretty hot -- somewhere between 1650 and 1750 degrees Fahrenheit and you run the risk of putting a hole in the horn with a torch if you want to braze it in, and you have to buff when you're done. Might as well just buff and skip the heating part, eh?

 

[vintage bundy]

Wouldn't buffing without adding material make the bell really thin and flimsy?

 

[maddenma]

Probably not. Depends on how deep the engraving is. You see lots of "refurbished" horns out there with new lacquer that don't look like they were ever engraved -- and they were. Or it's so light now from repeated buffings that you really don't notice it. My baritone's engraving was so faint from repeated relacquers I had it re-engraved, and the bell hasn't collapsed yet. Doesn't weigh like it's very thin either.

The easiest horn to take engraving off of is, of course, a vintage bundy. Know why? Because it was a decal. :joker:

 

[griff136]

I personally would leave the horn as is. Your getting it at a decent price, I would spend the money that you have saved and the money it may have cost you to remove the engraving on having the horn set up so its playing and feeling the best it could be.