[Carl H2O]

I have a close to mint Buescher, model 155, 308 xxx from around 1946. Bought it 8 years ago for 2K. Played it quite a bit to and fro but never made an overhaul and l have planned to do that now. But doing this will set me back $1500. So, this means that I will have put more than $3500 into this horn. Will it be worth it?
That kind of money will probably get me a modern tenor, P Mauriat, Yani or Cannonball.


C

 

[turf3]

Well, actually, the "that kind of money" you're talking about is 1500, not 3500. The initial purchase cost of 2000 is sunk cost.

I don't think you could buy any of the three you mentioned (Yani, Mauriat, Cannonball) new for 1500, but the two Taiwan/China ones you could probably get used for that. MAYBE you could get one of the old early Yani models used for 1500.

My first question would be why do you think this horn needs 1500 worth of work? My first professional saxophone was/is a Conn 6M that I bought in 1978. I have not had it "overhauled" yet, and believe me I've put a lot of miles on it - probably a lot more miles in 42 years than you have in 8. I'm willing to bet that what you need is several pads replaced, some felts and corks, and a good cleaning and regulation. Far less than $1500.

As to quality the only one of the three "moderns" you mention that's in the league of a 1946 Buescher is a Yanagisawa.

 

[datsaxman]

Wowee. That is a high price. It may not be economically sound when taken in isolation.
But eventually, inevitably, the horn requires attention if you want to keep playing it.

There is no $3500 negotiable item though. The $3500 is over 8 years. The horn is not worth $3500 (probably).
It is arguably woth less than what you paid for it if it is in need of a major overhaul, so no $3500 there.
You cannot expect to sell it and get your $2000 back as is (right?)

So really it is a $1500 question. Is it worth $1500 to do this work?

 

[Carl H2O]

Thanks for your reply. Well, I think that this horn, serviced only a little while I’ve had it would benefit from a proper overhaul. Probably not serviced at all before it came in my possession. Everything is original, snap in pads, Norton springs but it does not really play the way I like it to right now, so I prefer my Barone Vintage at the moment. Overhaul, or sell - that’s where I’m at right now.

 

[datsaxman]

Yeah, I like my Barone as well. What makes you think that it is an all or nothing $1500 or sell question?

 

[Carl H2O]

My techs have kind of hinted that in order for the horn to play perfectly I need a full overhaul. Shall I keep it I want it perfect because otherwise I will probably pick the Barone 9 out of 10 times. Soundwise it is hard to beat, though....the Buescher, ie

 

[datsaxman]

Have you gotten a second opinion? Of course, you have already been able to play the thing for 8 years pretty much trouble free, so maybe it is overdue for the whole enchilada. Still seems like a high price to me.

 

[Carl H2O]

Might be, but overhauling costs that (and even more with some techs) in my part of the world. Perhaps I should settle for a cheaper option

 

[lostcircuits]

Sounds what your tech is proposing is a complete strip down, grinding off the pegs and replacing the snap in pads with standard ones. That will greatly reduce the value of the horn. Most likely, all you need is a little bit of oil and cleaning unless the pads are really frayed but even in that case, snap ins are easily replaced with predrilled pads like the Ferree's tools B58 pads using the original snap resos, it literally takes 30 min to do all pads.

Otherwise talk to JayeLID here, I am sure he can get you a better deal

 

[lostcircuits]

Might be, but overhauling costs that (and even more with some techs) in my part of the world. Perhaps I should settle for a cheaper option

Which part of the world might that be?

 

[datsaxman]

Yes, I saw the flag of Konungariket Sverige .

A full overhaul typically includes the cost of some dent repairs, repairing worn keywork, etc.
If yours is in better shape than that, maybe you need new pads and corks, but not a full overhaul.

 

[Carl H2O]

Yes, that is correct -Sweden. My horn is in really good cosmetic shape, what my tech usually does with snap in resos is that he keeps the resonator and cuts out the reso part in a new pad that he glues to the cups, as I understood it. Perhaps repadding it this way would be sufficient. Could of course bring the horn to the US since I have a son living there but with this virus thing going on this could take some time.

 

[CJ1972]

Do you want to sell it? Is it worth it to you? Those two questions will determine if it’s worth doing for you.

 

[lostcircuits]

Yes, that is correct -Sweden. My horn is in really good cosmetic shape, what my tech usually does with snap in resos is that he keeps the resonator and cuts out the reso part in a new pad that he glues to the cups, as I understood it. Perhaps repadding it this way would be sufficient. Could of course bring the horn to the US since I have a son living there but with this virus thing going on this could take some time.

It's an old discussion topic but my experience - based on half a dozen Bueschers that I have completely overhauled - is that I just clean out the cups from any residual glue and then leave the pads floating, Unless the cups are bent, this works very well regardless of whether the new pads have metal backing or not. And I had a bunch of pro players test play my horns and everybody was like OMG, that's a 🖕 nice horn. And that's the way it was designed.

 

[datsaxman]

Wow ... xlnt use of forbidden image. Semi-forbidden.

 

[AddictedToSax]

The price depends on where you live. In northern California, $1500 to $2000 is the going rate for a complete overhaul. There is a certain mentality in shops around here that certain techs don't want to touch a horn unless they can do a complete overhaul, cleaning and re-pad. So if you're not willing to shell out anywhere from $1500 to as much as $3300 they don't want to do the work. I just had an experience recently that made that clear to me. The few techs who are willing to replace a pad or two and clean & oil a horn are getting few and far between.

 

[datsaxman]

Yeah that is some NorCal all right. No too different here in SoCal.

 

[artstove]

I'm in Northern California, and I have two good techs who will work to a budget - replace just a few pads, etc. It's been a few years since I had an overhaul, but even then the more expensive tech was around $900.

For the OP, I guess it really depends on what horn you want to have, and what your budget is. (And if the Buescher really needs a full overhaul.) If you really like the Buescher, get it fixed to the level it needs for you to be happy. If you really want something else, sell the Buescher and buy the other horn (at least if the Buescher really needs $1500 worth of work - if it only really needs $300 it might be different).

Sorry, I guess we can't really give you a good answer without knowing better what you really want and how much work the Buescher really needs.

 

[Dr G]

It’s not worth it if you are going to sell it. I bought a freshly overhauled Big B tenor on flea bay about 5 years ago - overhaul by Mark Aronson, with fresh Anderson silver plate - for $2000. If you love the tone, and are already familiar with the mechanism, a good overhaul will give you a horn that will last for decades more.

 

[TSax80]

Hi, 1500 really is a lot. You could contact "ToKo" in Pinneberg close to Hamburg in Germany. He is specialized in vintage horns and also ships horns on a regular basis (many other would not). Maybe with a phone call and some photos you could get the Buescher back in playing condition for much less.