[SaxforDrew]

I can't find anything about this brand of saxophone. Can anyone help? Says made in Baltimore, MD. "Lowpitch" is stamped on body. Has a S#112XXX with Patent date of 12/8/1914. Bell has split keys. Thank you. P.S.-yes, I did try the Search function first. Admittedly, I'm not very good at these things. I offer my apology.

 

[lydian]

Kranz Smith was a piano company in Baltimore. So you probably have a Conn stencil, considering that patent stamp, New Wonder vintage 1923. We'd need pictures to confirm.

 

[milandro]

Next to be a Conn stencil there is ALSO the possibility that this may be a Buescher in order to find out read this thread about a Carl Fisher (also a stencil like yours ).

As for the search much depends where and how you search, searching for Kranz Smith won't give any other result than this thread however looking for the patent date ( 12/8/1914. here https://www.saxontheweb.net in the Google custom search box top of the page in the MIDDLE) will give you many results. Among those I chose this thread for you to exemplify your situation.

https://forum.saxontheweb.net/showthread.php?45008-Carl-Fischer-Alto-Sax

 

[lydian]

Milandro nailed it. Buescher Is more likely since Low Pitch is spelled out rather than just L.

 

[SaxforDrew]

 

[SaxforDrew]

 

[SaxforDrew]

Here are a couple of pix. Thank you for the responses. They helped a lot giving me information about this horn and how this board works. I'm a newbie. I just started mid-October when I bought my first sax and started practicing. I'm 70-years-old and am accepting the challenge of the saxophone and am having a great time and starting to learn more and more about them. Thank ya'll again. --Drew

 

[milandro]

Certainly Buescher, the typical serial number in a bow

The pads seem to be original from the late ’20 and certainly needs an overhaul. I can hardly believe that it closes with those ancient pads , while the tech is at it a serious clean up would be mandatory.

Good luck!

 

[SaxforDrew]

Thank you, milandro! Thinking this might be a good start to acquire and develop some COA skills for horns, if the price is right.

 

[milandro]

Sorry Drew, I am not familiar with this acronym.

If you mean that you may want to perform your first ever overhaul on an oldtimer like this, well, this bite may be just a tad larger than you can chew at this stage.

I think you would have a lot higher success rate with something more modern.

This horn ( given the fact that it has the same pads it came with when it was made nearly 100 years ago) may take some advanced skills.

Of course it is your time and your money.

Like many other times ( you are not the first beginner whom has acquired a horn at some garage sale or has been given it) people who think that they will be fixing an ancient horn and then playing it, aren’t always prepared to accept the fact that their time and money would probably better be spent differently.

 

[nigeld]

If that is a Buescher serial number, then it was made in 1922 - a Series II True Tone stencil.
A picture of the left-hand pinkie key cluster (the group of 4 keys for G#, C#, B and Bb) should confirm it.

 

[lydian]

Thank you, milandro! Thinking this might be a good start to acquire and develop some COA skills for horns, if the price is right.

Sorry Drew, I am not familiar with this acronym.

If you mean that you may want to perform your first ever overhaul on an oldtimer like this, well, this bite may be just a tad larger than you can chew at this stage.

I think you would have a lot higher success rate with something more modern.

This horn ( given the fact that it has the same pads it came with when it was made nearly 100 years ago) may take some advanced skills.

Of course it is your time and your money.

Like many other times ( you are not the first beginner whom has acquired a horn at some garage sale or has been given it) people who think that they will be fixing an ancient horn and then playing it, aren't always prepared to accept the fact that their time and money would probably better be spent differently.

I think he means Certificate of Authenticity, or the ability to identify antique horns.

Follow Milandro's advice. Chasing vintage horns at this stage would be counter productive to developing your skills as a player. This horn has very little value and would require an expensive and extensive overhaul to get in playing condition. It would make a great lamp, but a terrible instrument for a beginner like yourself. Now if you're buying it to learn how to repair horns, this would be quite a challenge. Realize that many old horns like this are beyond repair, or the repair costs would exceed the value of the horn.

Craigslist can get you into trouble if you don't know what you're doing. Many sellers are clueless and delusional. I'd been hunting for a particular vintage horn on and off for about 20 years. So I went to check out one horn that was listed for $500. The pictures looked ok, and it was described as playable. When I got it in my hands, it was completely unplayable. Pads were missing and falling out. The few that did work wouldn't even close. I offered the guy $50, he declined, so I walked away. That was 20 years ago. It's still listed for $500. In the mean time I found the same model, same vintage, completely overhauled to beautiful playing and cosmetic condition for $200. So be patient and don't jump on the first thing you see. And make sure you know the sax inside and out and know how every linkage and key is supposed to work.

 

[SaxforDrew]

Thank ya'll for the additional comments. They are appreciated, especially coming from veterans who "have been through the fire". Clean,Oil,Adjust----I'm prolly stupid for even thinking about it on this horn. "Overhaul", I guess, would be a better term, prolly requiring pad/cork/felt replacement First, I'm going to try to develop some COA skills on a very cheap flute I already own and see how that goes. Thank you, again, for your help. Drew

 

[turf3]

I'm going to disagree with several things that have been said here.

First of all, I will agree that this instrument has very low market value as is and not much more in good playing condition. I would guess it's worth $100 as is and $400 in good playing condition.

That said, it will play just like a Buescher True Tone of that age, which means superbly. The keywork design is older, which means it differs in a few minor details from the current style, but it takes at most a few weeks to adapt to it.

Also, the fact that it's still got those old white pads is a good indication that it hasn't been played much, which means there's a real good chance that the keywork is all relatively unworn. It's very likely that instead of an extensive "overhaul", what's really needed is all new pads and corks and felts, a good regulation, and a polish. I would rather have this than a Yamaha 50 series that's been used in marching band for the last 20 years.

There is no earthly reason why a beginner cannot start on a Buescher True Tone.


A horn like this is not "lamp material", it is a high quality instrument that needs all new soft components. If you are thinking of a saxophone as an investment, this one certainly isn't that, but if you're thinking of a saxophone as a musical instrument to play rather than worrying about how much you have in it and how much you could get out of it, it's just fine.

I would say that I wouldn't start learning saxophone repair on an instrument that needs all pads corks and felts; start with simple stuff.

 

[sdpeters]

I 100% agree with turf3 with one possible exception:

Also, the fact that it's still got those old white pads is a good indication that it hasn't been played much, which means there's a real good chance that the keywork is all relatively unworn. It's very likely that instead of an extensive "overhaul", what's really needed is all new pads and corks and felts, a good regulation, and a polish.

I have a Holton C-mel with the original white kid pads and it plays beautifully as is. So as long as the pads are not ripped, all present, and relatively soft, all other things considered, this still might be a good player. Sure a complete repad will make it MUCH more playable and confidently so. But I would look at the corks and felts first on this one, then at the overall state of the pads. The corks will be the first things to crumble with age and will certainly affect the way the horn plays. The felts may not degrade with time like the corks, but they should receive attention. Replace them, make sure the springs have proper tension and the corks are new and you might have a great player for far less than a complete overhaul. And tarnish cleans up with silversmith gloves and a little investment in time and elbow grease. Good luck!

 

[SaxforDrew]

Thank you, turf3 and sdpeters!

 

[JayeLID]

May I mention something ?

Are we sure this isn't a C-Mel ?????