[ironmountain]

Just joined the forum today. Wrote an intro post in the new people section. Signed up for my 10yr old (she's our saxophonist) so she could get the most out of her playing. Didn't want to come here and just jump in with a "what is it" post, but...what is it?

Wife's grandmother's house is now our hunting camp. Which is great, 80 acres plus acres and acres of private land we have access to. (makes it hard to find only one spot to bottle dig or metal detect). We were cleaning the attic out so that we could clean it up and make room for beds and such for all of the nephews/nieces who want to hunt with us.....

I came across a sax case that said Conn on the side. According to the engraving on the front of the bell it just says:

CG Conn Ltd and under that in very lightly engraved letters Elkhart, Ind.

Where the serial number is, it reads:
pat'd, Dec. 8, 1914
119954
T
M249936
L

...Just wanted some info about it. From what I've read during my research, according to the serial number etc... 119954 is the patent number, T=Tenor, M=designates saxophone, 249936=Serial Number. L= low pitch/low register?

I've seen countless serial number identifiers and from what I gather, this sax is one of the Transitional saxophones from 1932?.. I'm sure I'm wrong...

that's why I come to you experts. My knowledge of saxophones is horrid.

Thanks to anyone who replies or pm's me!!!!

btw..great forum so far! been reading for a few days and tons and tons of info on here.

 

[BarrySachs]

Seems as if it's a Conn 10M tenor saxophone. Photos would be of help. It probably has art deco style engraving, right? My alto is from that era, #245xxx. Let's assume for now that it's a transitional type from 1932 or so. That would make this a real player's horn assuming a proper overhaul is put in. Please post pictures.

 

[bruce bailey]

It IS a transitional (tranny) tenor, low pitch which is standard today (A=440). I actually have an alto #249526 in silver. These were some of the best saxes that Conn made so get it fixed up and keep it. A customer of mine who is a top pro tenor player came by with some horns and we compared the sound of a Selmer I had, two Kings and his tranny tenor and the Conn won. 1932 is correct.
Post a photo if you can. It is easy to set up a flickr account, post your photos there and put a link here. Example here of a 1945 Conn I have:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/tags/conn6msil/
Welcome to SOTW!

 

[ironmountain]

Thanks Barry and Bruce! I'll get some pics up tomorrow.....

 

[14470]

Manny "trannys" have no engraving except for the CG Conn Ltd. Nickel plating wasn't rare either. This frugality was perhaps a reflection of the times. The workers at CG Conn responded by making some of the best sounding horns ever made. Lucky you.

 

[ironmountain]

Thank you everyone for the warm welcome and the great info! Here are some pics (linked to my picasa album).. I'm not a great photog, so bear with me.

https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/115588954568920674273/albums

Yeah, no cool engraving on it. Just the script style wording and the faint Elkhart U.S.A...almost looks like someone took a hand engraving pen and put it on..

 

[cvsimson]

The engraving is faint because it has been buffed and re-lacquered. This reduces the re-sale value of the horn.
I second Bruce's advice. Fix it and keep it for it is a great horn.

 

[ironmountain]

I'll have to take a better pic of the front...the CG Conn Ltd shows up fine, except for the scratches around it..other than the Elkhart U.S.A. light engraving, there's no evidence of other engraving..As far as being relacquered, no idea. But it has been sitting in grandma's attic forever...I'll have to pull out the loupes I use for coins and bottles and double check.. was about to pull the loupes out and check and saw above the CG Conn "Made By" in the same type of engraving as under the CG Conn Ltd script....Didn't see anything else with the 10x or 20x...I love researching stuff like this..

 

[ironmountain]

hopefully a better pic.....I have some OCD tendencies (diagnosed), so sometimes I'm obsessive. Especially when it comes to knowing/learning all I can about something new..aka...this horn.

https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/...lbums/5678204220702243633/5678232267425736546

 

[bruce bailey]

Interesting that it is the New Wonder style and not the 10M style. My alto is 99% the same as my 6M VIII. It is a relacquer based on your photos.

 

[BarrySachs]

Interesting that it is the New Wonder style and not the 10M style.

The altos went to same-side bell keys before the tenors.

Anyway, this horn is not a beauty from a cosmetic standpoint. The lacquer looks as if it's over nickel plate? I can't really tell from the photos.

The good news is that is a great vintage for Conn tenors. The bad news is that it may require an extensive and expensive overhaul, you'll have to have it examined by a good repairman. It may be possible to get the horn to play without a full overhaul.