[hornfixer]

What improvements have you done to your sax to make it a better player.
I don't mean take out leaks but improved from a stock horn in good playing condition.
There is some custom work being done, which ones are good.

Thanks, Paul

 

[Grumps]

If you tell someone you're improving their horn and charge them for it, they'll likely think you did no matter what, if anything, you do. That's the trouble with broad, subjective notions such as improvement, and it's ripe for the picking.

 

[Enviroguy]

Here's some that I've done or had done:

1. New custom/different neck. The number-one sax improvement item in my opinion.

2. Domed metal resonators in place of plastic and flat resonators or as a replacement for pads without resonators at all.

3. Roopads. I like the solid fill and lack of stickiness. Plus, black pads look COOL.

4. Custom engraving.. Because when you look good, you sound good! Right?

5. Steel needle springs in place of stainless. I believe it makes things quicker. But I also believe in Sasquatch.

6. Foam pad in place of upper octave pad on neck. A tech did this for me and it totally stopped the stickiness.

7. De lacquering. Makes old vintage sax look less like junk and more like an antique.

Oh, and here's one more:

I once had to cut about a half inch off of the the neck of a Winston soprano to get it to play in tune. Later I got an after-market neck that fixed the issue correctly.

 

[TMadness1013]

I recently had my 1926 Chu Alto overhauled by Curt & team at MusicMedic. There was quite a bit of custom work done on it, but the one that has made a lot of difference was replacing the pearls. Being a 1926 horn that has seen a lot of action, the pearls were fairly worn down. I was skeptical when Curt suggested it but trusted his judgement. I'm very glad that I did because the overall feel of the horn is amazing now.

 

[Captain Beeflat]

Enlarging & sculpting the low C & Eb keys to make them un-slipoffable.

 

[DanSax64]

There was an extra front F key added to my 28 New Wonder straight sop - an "almost perfect job...

 

[Ben Marrow]

A thick rubber band around the base of the neck (just above the tenon) gave my tenor more resistance and helped the upper end (palm notes and altissimo). A long, heavy file clamped into the lyre socket also does this, but it looks odd. The octave foam pad is a good idea. I just watched a video where Ben Webster licks his octave pad right before playing. I wonder if synthetic pads on the upper keys helps as it does with clarinets.

 

[Cepages]

Enlarging & sculpting the low C & Eb keys to make them un-slipoffable.

New word of the day "un-slipoffable"

As a Frenchman I am still learning your English.

 

[BOPITY FUNK]

Front F spatula's to replace pearls, Improved 'bis' key design, double key arms,changing right hand hinged octave thumb keys to left hand hinge --Selmer style--moving key touches to fit small/large hands, extra supports on long rods--bari's in particular--raising/lowering palm key levers by cutting/adding metal. Most competent repairers do this stuff--it's no big deal.Just lengthened a neck--at the tenon end! removed tenon s/soldered preformed section replaced in new tenon ( custom made by SOTW'er 'Mikey B' for me)
This stuff is not rocket science--but, dont try it at home!!

 

[SaxTMan]

New word of the day "un-slipoffable"

As a Frenchman I am still learning your English.

+ 1 one for your answer

 

[windman53]

Hard to say any improvements, I would just call it minor upgrade. Change new pads, new thumb hook, add on a liitle more angle to the left hand plam keys, so it fits my hand better.

Nothing unusal just some common thing which almost every one can do.

 

[maddenma]

Different for each horn

Sop -- resin palm and side key risers, white roo pads, added a strap ring

Alto -- nothing -- it's pretty good stock, though there were some teflon bits added where cork used to be

Tenor -- perfect stock. Just wasn't anything it needed.

Big B Bari -- long story on this old girl -- after the complete restoration including a recutting and expansion of the engraving and a complete delacquering of the horn, I had a epoxy resin-based key riser put on palm D only, moved the strap ring 1/4" to the left, moved the r/h thumb hook 3/8" to the right, added an elaborate and very strong pants guard to get the B and C# rods off my leg and knocked 3/8" off a 400 neck to use the horn with small chamber pieces. Also added a flange underneath the G# key so that B, Bb, and C# all worked the G# (curiously, this isn't a feature of a any Buescher 129 baritone, but exists on the late 30's 139 baritone and all other Series 1 and later Buescher tenor and Altos, and also appears on the 400 baritones from 1960 on).

 

[JayeLID]

If you tell someone you're improving their horn and charge them for it, they'll likely think you did no matter what, if anything, you do. .

huh...?

 

[maddenma]

Grumps earning his grinch stripes...

 

[saxmusicguy]

A thick rubber band around the base of the neck (just above the tenon) gave my tenor more resistance and helped the upper end (palm notes and altissimo).

Is this technique a variation on P-Ligging?

 

[maddenma]

New word of the day "un-slipoffable"

As a Frenchman I am still learning your English.

More of a German thing, I'm afraid. Just concatenate words as you go to create a new one. The English are a bit proper for that kind of thing and prefer to create an entirely new work rather than think of mixing them together.

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious comes to mind.

 

[Captain Beeflat]

The English are a bit proper for that kind of thing and prefer to create an entirely new work rather than think of mixing them together.

All of us?....gosh.
Simply a silly word in an attempt to describe what I meant.

 

[milandro]

:shock:[rolleyes]

Is this technique a variation on P-Ligging?

........:faceinpalm:

 

[Steve Stockham]

Redirecting back to the OP's topic, I took my Selmer Model 162 alto and added a MkVI neck and a C* mouthpiece. It took an already good horn and made it great!

 

[piwikiwi]

I have an Ishimori thumbrest but that's only because the normal one on a selmer sucks