Planning on buying a new sax

[RAKBEATZ]

Hey guys i really need help i want to play the saxophone so bad but i read online that it needs to have maintenance daily and that is manageable like swabbing and cleaning the horn and etc

But how do i deal with annual repairs if there are no woodwind repair shops in my country ? How do i deal with that are there any solutions ? Can i do a yearly maintenance that is supposed to be done by a technician by myself ? What does a yearly maintenance consist of ? What if i dont do yearly maintenance ?

Im kind of confused but im really ready to buy my first saxophone

Help pelase and thank you

 

[Greg Strange]

You ask many questions. The first thing I would do is ask any local music stores about purchasing saxophones and if the stores sell them ask them what they do about setting up the sax, repairing the sax, etc. If there are no repair technicians in the Saudi Arabia or the UAE area your nearest repair tech might be in Israel. There is a guy that posts on Sax On The Web website who is based in Jerusalem that repairs wind instruments. I don't know how realistic or easy for you to send an instrument to Israel to get serviced or repaired though...good luck...

Greg S. .

 

[Targa]

Buy the sax and worry about maintenance and repair when you need to.
I've had one of mine ten years and the other five and neither have been near a technician.
I knew nothing about them when I bought the first and do the maintenance myself.

 

[Zugzwang]

Buy yourself a Haynes manual for the sax - and you can plan become your country’s first tech as well as a sax player…

 

[Wade Cornell]

If you buy a decent student sax, like a Yamaha that's new, or in very good condition and keep it in good condition, then there is no need for annual maintenance. Keeping the pads in good condition and being gentle with the instrument are the keys. It's possible to go ten years or more without needing any kind of adjustment if you start with a good sax in good condition. It's up to you to keep it that way. Some of the minor adjustments are easy to learn...if ever necessary. There are lots of members here who have done their own repairs. I also live part time in an area with no technicians (Far North Queensland Australia). The closest technician who know what they are doing is in Brisbane...that's a two hour flight by jet or three days driving away. So I do all my own repairs (but that's a job seldom needing to be done).

 

[saxyjt]

As above, if you start with a good student sax that's been setup by a pro (even a new sax should be) you can go a long way without visiting a tech.

But since you live in a country that's rather dry (I would imagine), you'll have to ensure pads don't dry out. That's where a padsaver might be useful.

In any case, I'd go for it. It's a great adventure. And you'll find all the help you need here. Of course a teacher is always a good idea, but if there are no techs, I doubt there are many teachers around...

 

[Clivey]

I would put the cart in front of the horse and buy Stephen Howard's sax repair book and then the horn after I had read the book. Aye get a Jap Yamaha.

 

[Phil]

I agree...if you take good care of a good instrument you can learn to make minor adjustments to it. When the time comes for a big repair...which should be years if there really is no one you can ship it somewhere for a repad. If there is a will, there is a way.

 

[nigeld]

I would get a new Yamaha or Yanagisawa and expect it not to require much servicing initially.

 

[JayeNM]

Well this is interesting, this is the second new member from Saudia Arabia to post here in the last few days.

Beginner - If this sax can be repaired - CafeSaxophone Forum

Hello everyone I’m new here and I found this saxophone thrown next to my house and I want to know if I could be repair it. View: https://imgur.com/jYR3XWa View: https://imgur.com/zW0MJE4 View: https://imgur.com/7i1v6F0 View: https://imgur.com/VGHZNSs Imgur

cafesaxophone.com

Perhaps the two of you could start a woodwind repair business together ?

All advice given is good. Although, honestly, you need not necessarily buy a BRAND NEW sax. You could buy used if the seller is a reputable seller and he/she has a return policy and assures the sax has been serviced and will arrive in good playing shape. This, for example, would be a wiser course of action if someone has a tight budget for a sax and would prefer to avoid the ubiquitous budget-priced brands with a spotty reputation or little reputation.

Now, the reality is....a sax really is NOT going to stay in regulation for 3+ years of moderate playing. It will play, but over time leaks will develop and regulation materials will compress, etc...and the player will not really notice any of this as they compensate for what begins as very subtle changes to how the horn is playing. So...eventually if you keep playing an unserviced horn over a period of 3, 4, 5 years the player will be compensating quite a lot without realizing it.

Is THAT the end of the world ? No, not really. But what might happen in there somewhere is something develops at some point which the player cannot compensate for and 'blow through/past' any longer...

So yes, try to investigate the CLOSEST instrument repair shop near you. It may well be you have to send the horn out to a repair person, as in ship it to another city or even country.

Learning some repair basics (via the book mentioned above for example) is probably a good idea given your (OP) context. This would require, over time, the investment in some basic repair tools and supplies. Nothing outlandish, but probably a good $200usd worth of basic stuff.

Best of luck to you !

 

[Lone Wolf]

As has already been mentioned, if you buy a quality sax, and look after it, it shouldn't be too much of a hassle. When it does eventually need a service, you could then look to courier it / take it to someone near enough (Israel sounds like it might be it). But if the instrument is good quality, in good condition from the start, this would be rare.

 

[Pete Effamy]

Now, the reality is....a sax really is NOT going to stay in regulation for 3+ years of moderate playing.

I’m pleased someone said it first. It really won’t. The changes from air con to outdoor temperature will do it no favours for a start.

 

[Wonko]

Buy yourself a Haynes manual for the sax - and you can plan become your country’s first tech as well as a sax player…

That was what I was going to say! I find it a very good manual.
you can get it direct from the writer The Haynes Saxophone Manual or through Amazon .....
...
Some people have suggested that a well set up yamaha would not need any maintanance. I don't think that is correct. I have a Yamaha (YTS32), my first teacher recommended that I get it serviced about once a year. I did so for quite some time. And 2 years agoI started playing again after a few years pauze. The sax was without a service for those few years + a bit before I stopped playing. After about a year I noticed that the bottom notes were getting rather difficult.So I got it to my repair technician, he looked it over, replaced a few pads, new neck corck, did some regulation work. After that I felt like I had a new sax.
If you ask me, you need to learn how to do those minor adjustments yourself.

 

[Halfers]

That was what I was going to say! I find it a very good manual.
you can get it direct from the writer The Haynes Saxophone Manual or through Amazon .....

It's even better to have a copy of The Haynes Saxophone Manual on the shelf, to browse through on occasions, and @Stephen Howard just a 30 minute drive away. Saves getting the hands dirty...

I've had a couple of smallish issues with my Yamaha since I've had it. A bit of fettling has certainly improved the situation on each occasion, so from my experience, I'd say they're not guaranteed to run perfectly without some maintenance needs.

 

[JayeNM]

Some people have suggested that a well set up yamaha would not need any maintanance. I don't think that is correct. I have a Yamaha (YTS32), my first teacher recommended that I get it serviced about once a year. I did so for quite some time. And 2 years ago I started playing again after a few years pause. The sax was without a service for those few years + a bit before I stopped playing. After about a year I noticed that the bottom notes were getting rather difficult.So I got it to my repair technician, he looked it over, replaced a few pads, new neck corck, did some regulation work. After that I felt like I had a new sax.
If you ask me, you need to learn how to do those minor adjustments yourself.

Yes, this is exactly what happens and what I was referring to in my earlier post. The likelihood of even a very good model of sax keeping in regulation for more than a year or so of fairly consistent use...is not great. It is the player who will bend to the horn to keep it speaking for a while, until the player can no longer massage the full range out of the instrument any longer.

Of one has a sax which has not been serviced for 2+ years or more, and they claim it plays perfectly, I would place a bet that if they took it to a tech... the tech would find a good couple hours of servicing/adjustments needed to the instrument - and afterward, indeed the owner would agree it played noticeably better than before.

Just the nature of the saxophone....