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Gold plated Mark vi?

6K views 23 replies 15 participants last post by  Mike F 
#1 ·
I think i Just saw and played a real factory gold plated vi...

Can you please check this pictures? How do you know if its gold or not... The pads ware ultra old and the sax was playing better then many overhauled horns. I dont even imagine when it get New pads...

The sound was way more richer then any other vi i tried. And that engravings make it impossible to be an after sell relacquer or GP...
 

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#7 ·
The sound was way more richer then any other vi i tried. ...
That's what matters. How well it plays has nothing to do with the finish, gold-plated or not. But it is also in quite beautiful cosmetic condition.

I'm not convinced from the photos that it's gold-plated. The way to tell is to look closely at any worn areas (maybe on the side keys or palm keys) and if you see silver showing through, that's a giveaway that it's gold plated. Gold plate doesn't adhere well to brass so the horn will be silver plated first, with the gold plate on top of the silver.
 
#10 ·
That's the same thing I saw. I think its just a very nice original lacquer. During that period, saxes would frequently come out with a lighter tint that we call 'blonde'. This happened as lacquer batches may have differed slightly or fewer coats were given. That horn is '65 or '66 if I see the number correctly. My '66, 130491, was a 'blonde'. Gold plating would usually have a darker color but it is not conclusive either way based on these photos.
 
#13 ·
Is your horn Euro or American? I've never seen an American MK VI with this color or type lacquer. The later ones looked more like this, but the Euros have a very distinct lacquer from this time period that is much different than the American lacquer.

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#11 ·
It's a Euro assembled Lacquer Mark VI. That's why the lacquer is that color. It's not GP.

GP is so rare on a VI.

Look at the wear on the guards and the speckling. Gold horns don't wear like that.

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#17 ·
Well spotted! Must have been one of the earlier medium bows! (Not the short or medium- short that came before the long bows). I concur with everyone who has said that it's a Euro lacquered horn. I have a 106xxx alto with very similar colouring. Ive only once seen an original gold plated MKVI (tenor) and interestingly, that had nickel under the gold plate, not silver. Nickel is the cheaper option instead of silver under the gold plate.
 
#19 ·
Looks like a long bow to me. The only way to definitively tell is to measure from the low C# to B tone holes. Don't judge based off the band. I've made that mistake before!

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#15 ·
I used to own a Vi alto like that. It was lacquered, though. I think this one is lacquered as well. Notice the parts that are chipped or worn that don't show any silver underneath.

Selmer had tons of batches of lacquer. Some originals look like relacquered saxes because they found a flaw in the engraving and decided to slap on an extra coat.

As far as I know, only a few USA-assembled VI's were stripped then plated. Douglas Pipher would know more than I, though.
 
#18 ·
Already texted Douglas to see if i can get more info about this horn.

For me this looks like a very customized horn. Despite the f# and the euro engravings (rare on euro horns of this range) there is a detail i forgot to mention that blow me away.

Take a deep look on this photo and check the Low B key.

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It has way more metal than normal... like a lot of extra mass to be easier to go from low B to low Bb. The Low B is just way more ahead with this mass then the Low Bb key... And it works amazing. It's looks like special made for someone who had a little finger or something i don't know but one think i can sure you... That key is original 100% and i have never seen a vi with this special feature for sure.
 
#24 ·
I would say the one in LiAm84's example IS gold plated. The gold will show tarnish like that if it's thin. Over a long period of time the underlying silver can tarnish and show this effect. Anyway, only metal tarnishes, and that definitely isn't what brass tarnish/corrosion looks like under lacquer.

The other thing I see is tiny micro scratches. You see that on gold and silver plate but not, in the same way, on lacquer.
 
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