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Saxophones Bauhaus Walstein Alto

The Blaw

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My friend is offering to sell me her Bauhaus Walstein alto. Neither of us knows anything about them (she had it as a gift) It is silver and gold if that helps work out what model it is. Does anyone know anything about them, in particular what it might be worth. (Ballpark) I want to establish a fair price for both of us obviously. It seems in good condition and is definitely playable. I'm not looking for anything amazing, I'm just a beginner looking for a reasonable horn and I'm scared of buying blind on eBay.
 
I don't know anything about them but it may help if you could find a serial number on it - the magic of Google will then help you identify the model and you might then find a market value.
 
Thank you all for the links. I had seen them but didn't know if M2 series was the only thing it could be. The new price would be beyond my budget and I don't know how old it is or if it needs a service etc. Do any if you know how new price compares with second/third hand prices? Is there some rule of thumb? From what you say it looks as if I should try to buy it so price is the only issue.
 
The saxophone should have a model name on it - worth checking that it is an M2 series before you pay.
Or you could post a photo.
 
Pricing is always tricky - a lot depends on how old the horn is, but the smart buyer is more interested in how much (or little) use it's had. A hardly-used horn that's ten years old will be a better bet than a two year old horn that's been used almost daily.

The horn is around £1600 new. The moment you walk out the shop it's worth 10% less. After a year or so you can knock another 10% off it, maybe 15-20% if it's a bit grubby. After a couple of years the price becomes more dependent on the condition of the horn.
Let's say it's 5 years old, in tidy condition with not much use. I'd say it would be worth around the £1000-£1200 mark...but someone might be happy with £800-900.
That's a very general guide (I don't really doing buying and selling) but hopefully it givs you a rough idea.

If the horn is more than two years old and has never had a service, it'll could probably do with one. Might not need much (or indeed any) work - but it's worth budgeting around £60 for a service. Add 10% for every year of age thereafter and you shouldn't go far wrong.
 
I do loads of buying and selling, and generally I'd apply the following rule of thumb for pricing a used sax:

Top end sax in mint condition - 2/3 of the new price
Good sax, in very good condition - 1/2 new price
Anything else - 1/3 of new price downwards.

Some saxes buck the trend if the demand is strong - Yamaha 275 and 280 series are always in demand, for example, and classics are a law unto themselves. I'd say for something like a BW in good nick about half the new retail price would be right for a private sale. In a shop, with overheads and the added protection you get you'd have to pay more. Any sax bought privately should have at least a light service factored in.
 
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