[Pleiadian_Prince]

Hey guys, I've recently switched from Tenor to Soprano! - Tenor was causing to many lower back problems (syatica) and it was to loud to play in my condo.
I came across a brilliant sop mp that my sax tech was selling it. He is very knowledgable about vintage mp's, he's both a collector and seller of vintage horns / Mp's. With that being said, he knows nothing about this mp! He spent hours searching online with no avail. I'm hoping one of you may have more information about this rare piece!

It's a vintage Meyer, but it's longer than any other Meyer, and the exterior width is slightly thinner. It has a larger chamber than a modern meyer, and the most baffling part is that it has a Horse Shoe Chamber!?
My sax tech thinks it may be an Early Babbit Meyer (Limited production run) and they may have chiselled the Horse Shoe chamber by hand (Like Selmer did with there Soloists)

Question remains, when was this made? Who made it? Why does it have a Horse Shoe chamber? One of a kind or a limited run?

Opening is a 0.057. It plays like a dream! He has a brilliant vintage Slant mp, and this mp plays nicer! Warm and Fat with a little more focus and edge than his slant.

Thanks for your help guys!

 

[Dr G]

I had a similar piece 20 years ago - it was a Selmer Soloist that had a horseshoe chamber carved by Dave Guardala.

That said, this piece looks a lot cleaner and more like the work of Joe Giardullo at SopranoPlanet.com. I suggest you contact Joe.

 

[Pleiadian_Prince]

Interesting!

Thank you Dr G, I'll reach out to him

 

[Pleiadian_Prince]

Interesting!

Thank you Dr G, I'll reach out to him

 

[Sigmund451]

Also, this EB Meyer talk is a recent invention of ebay sellers running out of ways to hype up pieces that are simply used.

 

[J-Moen]

Also, this EB Meyer talk is a recent invention of ebay sellers running out of ways to hype up pieces that are simply used.

I noticed that too... Early Babbit Meyer... and "Post Meyer NY" have been seen a lot more.

That is an interesting mouthpiece though. That had to come with a chamber like that from the factory right?

 

[Pleiadian_Prince]

I noticed that too... Early Babbit Meyer... and "Post Meyer NY" have been seen a lot more.

That is an interesting mouthpiece though. That had to come with a chamber like that from the factory right?

No Idea! I've sent an email to Joe & I'm awaiting his response.
I just heard back from Theo Wanne and he feels it's a Transitional early Babbit - Mine specifically was an experimental mp right in the middle of the transition? Possibly hand filed to get the Horse Shoe chamber, not a mould.
I'll keep you guys posted if Joe knows what this thing is!

At any rate, it plays well! I'll throw up a sound clip or two when my Vi comes in & I have settled on a good set of reeds.

 

[Pleiadian_Prince]

I heard back from Joe!

This was the email he sent me


******Hi

Well, that’s an interesting looking piece.

I’ve seen that style of throat shape before. I call it a “racetrack” shape, and I’ve seen different versions of them from Babbitt/Link.
Lacy played one; I played one, and I’ve seen maybe a dozen others. No two had the same throat shape exactly. Some were almost oval, others were bordering on square ( kind of like yours).

They were all Links, but some were much smaller than a normal Link Tone Edge. Others were the typical size of the modern Link Tone Edge.

I’ll attach a picture of a comparison of the Lacy Link ( smaller) and a typical Link. The Lacy Throat pic is Steve’s actual piece. The multiple pics are the same model as Steve’s but not his. His was identical in shape and size. The ‘compare” pic shows the typical Link ( left) the “Lacy” link in the center and a slant signature Link on the right. The Lacy Link was narrower and shorter, but the shank was significantly shorter than your meyer.

But, I’ve never seen that shape in a Meyer. I’ve seen Meyers with different shapes over the years, so the slightly narrower aspect could be that.

My suspicion: maybe Meyer needed to ship pieces and had a problem and contracted with Babbitt to do it , if it’s before the take-over. Or, maybe during the take-over. Or maybe immediately after.

When orders have to go out in those big places, what’s actually in the box isn’t all that important, I’m afraid.

It’s conceivable that Babbitt used that short-lived Link style and just extended the shank to be more “Meyer” like. Who knows.


I get a Link feel from the pictures you sent.

As I said, I’ve seen that throat shape in some modern size Link Tone Edge pieces, going back a ways.

Glad it plays so well.

I hope my speculation sheds some light on it. I’d love to see it for real.


Thanks for the pics.


Best

Joe


I also heard from Theo Wanne, and Theo emailed me this

****Hi,

Yes, that is a transitional early babbitt part. Just before that they had larger chambers, then switched to the round chamber. So, I imagine yours was kind of an experimental one right in the middle. Very cool!

Sincerely, Theo Wanne



Whether it's Post Babbit, or Pre-Babbit we may never actually know. What I do know is that it plays freaking fantastic! I love it even more knowing it's one of a kind

 

[B Flat]

Also, this EB Meyer talk is a recent invention of ebay sellers running out of ways to hype up pieces that are simply used.

Like the "Late Babbitt" and "Extra late Babbitt"

 

[Sigmund451]

Funny...and I am refering to alto. I know this is about sop. Id just research hard before I boight into it on sop.

I ilke the extra early late, Babbitts made on the third Thursday of the month.

 

[B Flat]

Funny...and I am refering to alto. I know this is about sop. Id just research hard before I boight into it on sop.

I ilke the extra early late, Babbitts made on the third Thursday of the month.

I prefer the "post Babbitt's" when they make them.

 

[MojoBari]

My suspicion: someone modified it after it left the Babbitt factory. Looks like a neat job but the original small round throat is probably a little better for intonation.

 

[whaler]

It looks like an Early Wabbitt to me.

 

[B Flat]

Are you vewy vewy sure it’s not a Wascally Wabbitt?

 

[Pleiadian_Prince]

lmfao!
It plays superb! so I don't care if it's a rascally Babbitt, Babbit late generation made on the third Thursday or 1973. It rocks!
Whats funny is that this week my sax tech was bombarded by inquires, people wanting to pay top dollar for this thing. I'm so lucky I got my hands on it! I'll never part with this piece!