[saxdancer]

Hi everyone, I’d like to find a good tech in the Sacramento/Placer County area of Northern California. Just someone who can do a COA and other basic maintenance in the short term, maybe full overhaul in a long term. Any suggestions? Do people ship their saxes for this kind of thing?

 

[AddictedToSax]

I use the techs at Tim's Music for my horns. They aren't cheap, well, they are expensive to be honest. The work has always been good. No complaints. They overhauled my tenor in 2007 and aside from replacing a couple of pads and adjusting it a few times it's held up well. They repadded my R-13 clarinet about 10 years ago. I had a couple of pads replaced this year and just some minor adjustments and it's playing great.

I've heard the guy at Got A Gig is very good but I can't speak from personal experience. I took a very old horn in and he gave me a sky-high estimate to get rid of me then tried to sell me a new horn. I left and won't go back. Others have spoken well of him so who knows.

 

[Chicken 'Lil]

I had an emergency repair done at Tim’s. They are competent and not cheap. They did a good job and I was happy with the result (working horn). Don’t know where in Placer you are, but I had some work done at Blue Note B’s in Reno. They were good and got what I needed done while I waited. It may be worth the drive.
In my experience shipping a horn is only necessary if you have no alternative. Considering that UPS and the post office, do not care about your horn at all, I would rather drive it or fly it than mail it.

 

[Dr G]

I, too, have had some work done at Tim's. They pay attention to my detailed requests and I appreciate that.

My clarinet overhaul and flute adjustments have been good, and they took good care of fitting a sax neck tenon.

My previous saxophone overhauls have been out of state with no issues due to shipping.

 

[saxdancer]

Thanks for all the suggestions. I called Tom’s and spoke with two very friendly folks who explained their own COA process and pricing. Expensive, yes, but sounds like a shop I’d like to support just from the way they handled the phone inquiry.

 

[saxdancer]

I forgot to mention, but Tim's quoted $350 for a COA and $1800 for a full overhaul. Both seem steep, but costs of doing business these days being what they are, maybe that is reasonable. I just hope the quality of the work is worth the price.

 

[saxophender]

You could try Tague Music in Citrus Heights. Should be more budget friendly.

 

[saxdancer]

You could try Tague Music in Citrus Heights. Should be more budget friendly.

Thanks, I’ll give them a call! I’m new to seeking service work in this area, so all referrals are appreciated.