Saxophones Buy cheap - or repair

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[Admin note - I've split these posts off from the oriingal B&S thread, Kev Saxophones - B&S saxophones




Sooooooo, are the Boosey & Hawkes Powertone Baris made by B&S ? . and how little would you have to pay for one to make it worth buying (assuming it`s cosmetically tatty but playing well) given that a new G4M is £950 and an Ex-Dem JP is £850 ? ..

The problem in general with even thinking about a B&S thesedays (and the Czech made Cortons etc) is that cheapo chinese horns from the likes of G4M and the SMS Jericho have got so good and so cheap . I`d have loved something as good as a G4M or Jericho when I started out (I got a really awful B&S Champion) .
 
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Re: B&S saxophones

Saw it too and instantly dismissed it with Elkhart 300s & JPs about at the same price . this is my issue with the Baris, hence my question above . IMO a B&S made Sop at £200 or Bari at £500 is no longer a a bargain for certain, but are they even in the running ?
 
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A pal of mine has decided to "try" the £186 Chinese straight sop from eBay. Arrived last Friday, he said it was one of the best sops he has played! He is a gigging professional. He said he would use it for gigs and report back on how robust it is and how consistent. He said he spent an hour on it before playing her just tightening screws, etc.
 
Re: B&S saxophones

ProfJames said:
A pal of mine has decided to "try" the £186 Chinese straight sop from eBay. Arrived last Friday, he said it was one of the best sops he has played! He is a gigging professional. He said he would use it for gigs and report back on how robust it is and how consistent. He said he spent an hour on it before playing her just tightening screws, etc.
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Which eBay seller, do you know?
 
Re: B&S saxophones

this has nothing to do with B&S but:


If one decides for whatever reason to buy one of these cheap Chinese saxophones, come the time of a re-pad (which yes can take many years indeed ) or repairing any serious damage or defect, then the cost of the repair in any western country will be higher than the cost of replacing the horn.

In a few years time the market will be littered with saxophones needing work and worth less than the cost of the repair.............before or after the repair!
 
Re: B&S saxophones

Ads said:
it`d be handy if someone could link it to a UK model such as G4M or whatever ...... someone (like Stephen Howard) needs to review the current sops and find the good from the crud . a decent cheap and easily buyable sop would be very welcome I`m sure..... SMS could do with getting Jericho Baris made too
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Absolutely agree with you.
 
Re: B&S saxophones

milandro said:
this has nothing to do with B&S but:

In a few years time the market will be littered with saxophones needing work and worth less than the cost of the repair.............before or after the repair!
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This is where the home repairer will come in .. in the Squeezebox world, a large number of players fix their own boxes including re-waxing & tuning of reeds, "re-pads" (pallet facings etc) and even structural repairs . it`ll get to that stage with Saxes too when the flood of dead Jerichos, G4Ms and BWs hits E-Bay , they`ll make great projects and ultimately provide a cheap horn . a set of usable pads can be £15-£20 or so, probably from the factory who made the horn in the first place ...

IMO these "Future" Projects, especially the BWs and Jerichos will be a FAR better proposition than the GDR/Czech fixer-upper clunkers of today ...... the Rubbish chinese horns will make lovely Lamps
 
Re: B&S saxophones

I think Stephen can only review what comes into his workshop, or what he is sent. With makers with variable quality control, it would be difficult for him to pass judgement based on one example.

I think we have to pay our money and take our choice. Only time will tell. If we choose to take a chance on the cheap option, before it has enough buyers to see general reviews, it is a gamble and could turn out really well or badly. That's the trade off.
 
Re: B&S saxophones

Ads said:
This is where the home repairer will come in .. in the Squeezebox world, a large number of players fix their own boxes including re-waxing & tuning of reeds, "re-pads" (pallet facings etc) and even structural repairs . it`ll get to that stage with Saxes too when the flood of dead Jerichos, G4Ms and BWs hits E-Bay , they`ll make great projects and ultimately provide a cheap horn . a set of usable pads can be £15-£20 or so, probably from the factory who made the horn in the first place ...

IMO these "Future" Projects, especially the BWs and Jerichos will be a FAR better proposition than the GDR/Czech fixer-upper clunkers of today ...... the Rubbish chinese horns will make lovely Lamps
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Pisoni pads (which most Taiwanese and few Chinese saxophones sport) to fit a complete saxophone ( a so called set) are more around £40 than £ 15 to £20, and good luck with ordering AND GETTING the right size (don’t ever trust anyone selling “ sets”) for your saxophone.

While a straight re pad might be involving, besides the experience, only the cost of pads and glue or shellac, cork and felt, both in several thicknesses , any other form of repair asks for a lot of experience and several specific tools acquiring which will not be cheap.

I have conducted two repads with the assistance of a repair person in his workshop (where all the tools where readily available). I am not sure of how things would have gone at home.


Anyway, I have gained enough experience to know that it is better to have any good work done by a professional. I have seen a fair share of half finished saxophones coming from the hands of wannabe technicians to know that most who think they can do it......can’t.
 
Re: B&S saxophones

If we continually had that attitude Milandro then we would never attempt anything!!! You can get a cheap set of pads for £20 you can learn about your sax by trial and error, you can then appreciate the strengths of your techie but you can also have some fun trying to do your own repairs, and getting better at it by trying!

Bring it on!!
 
Re: B&S saxophones

This was my thought, want a cheap sax, grab a G4M cheap on Fleabay in a few years when its leaky, some cheap chinese pads and some Shellac glue and you could turn a junker into a player of a second horn or for a relative with no money. I`m not on about doing it to sell on or for a living so no need to be perfect with new fancy cork (trim bottle corks instead) . I`m on about kicking something old and leaky back into playable shape for a knockabout. people do it all the time with melodeons

Lets get real here - SH saw fit to produce the Haynes manual exactly for this purpose - Joe Public fixing their own horns
 
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Re: B&S saxophones

ProfJames said:
If we continually had that attitude Milandro then we would never attempt anything!!! You can get a cheap set of pads for £20 you can learn about your sax by trial and error, you can then appreciate the strengths of your techie but you can also have some fun trying to do your own repairs, and getting better at it by trying!

Bring it on!!
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I have seen and see too many botch jobs on saxophones to appreciate the joys of pear shaped DIY done enthusiastically from poorly skilled people.
 
Re: B&S saxophones

We're all doomed!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Appreciate your view point Milandro but in what way will attempting our own repairs and maintenance affect anything at all? It's called enjoying yourself and learning.
 
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it is exactly because I do a fair bit of ordinary maintenance of my saxophones and because I do buy and sell the occasional saxophone that I think I know what I am talking about. It has nothing to do with a defeatist attitude but all to do with field experience.
 
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Milandro - ditto. Appreciate your concern for sax players but we have to learn! There is also a great sense of achievement and enjoyment. Stephen Howard's book would never sell if it wasn't for us guys!!
 
Re: B&S saxophones

milandro said:
I have seen and see too many botch jobs on saxophones to appreciate the joys of pear shaped DIY done enthusiastically from poorly skilled people.
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I appreciate this but the Context was about rescuing Cheap chinese horns which otherwise would have been landfil material once the pads wear out - not quick buck merchants botching collectible Conns, Selmers, Martins, Kings etc or Pro Yamahas & Yanis to sell to the unsuspecting public .. Massive difference .

lets face it, a G4M fixed up in 20 years is going to be pretty worthless moneywise anyway botched or otherwise, in fact worth LESS than B&S clunkers are now .
 
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