Braces and ferrules look like Conn to me.

I’ll second the elephant and Sousaswag - they are very well made valve sets. I’ve used two on two projects of mine in the past. Unfortunately I don’t think they are in production anymore, or I would be seeking out more of them.

B&M made some mighty fine tubas back in those days.

I hooked into Bloke’s method some time ago and have never regretted it.

I would bet $$$ that horn was built by Buescher. I own a Buescher bass saxophone, and they look almost identical. From the quality of the photos, It doesn't appear have the usual hallmarks of a Conn. If I could see the other side of the horn, the tell-tale sign of a Buescher would be a little tone ...

Both of those horns seem to feature fixed-brazed downward facing knuckles into the port of the 1st valve. Maybe the builder didn’t want to cut them? The E flat appears to have a Conn 4J set, which has an exceptionally tight bend there. Cutting that one would be inviting trouble, as I see it. On the C ...

That E flat tuba looks familiar to me. I wonder if it ever sold.

I’d be interested but it’s just too far a trip for a Facebook marketplace purchase……..

Interesting how he mentions the front bell is engraved with the Sinatra info, yet doesn’t show a picture of it.

I’m thinking of the bell on the horn from the original posting.

Very interesting instrument - looks like CC to me. Anybody with knowledge of this horn know the bell diameter? The 5th looks like a true “change” valve, like found in a Bb/A cornet (“set it and forget it”). The lack of a thumb-activated linkage points to that theory. That would also be evidence to pu ...

Bloke, I’d love to be able to help you answer your question, only if I could lay my hands on some 4 valve .728 valve sets. I think it would be a good fit on several different horns. I don’t think Weril is in production anymore, and even then I don’t think they were of the greatest quality (?) I think ...

I find the cimbasso I built to be plenty convenient: - I’m not proficient enough with a slide to play with other musicians, especially the caliber of these particular ones - baritone horn/euphonium is not the sound we are looking for. I’d just as well play it on any of the tubas I already own (which ...

Ironically, Conn/King could make a pretty good parts bin cimbasso with 5J or 2341 valves and a 8b bell or similar. Too bad that company seems to not care at all. Yep. Just used mine today for the first time in a quintet rehearsal and, to my great relief, it was a hit. It works quite well on the ...

The part lies pretty well on an E flat. I’ve done it that way a few times.

In kolij 40+ years ago I played it on a King 1241. That’s all I had. It worked just fine on that too.

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My last correspondence with Peter Hirsbrunner (buying parts) was in 2019, and at that time he informed me that he was retiring from instrument manufacture. Herr Hirsbrunner struck me as being a very upstanding, kind and helpful gentleman (“on the level”, as my generation used to say), so I have no re ...

When playing bell-front, I use a KM stand. Usually I’ll be also playing bass saxophone, and the stand makes it easier to switch back and forth while playing and uses up less space on the bandstand. Otherwise, upright bell horns rest on its bell propped up against a wall or a chair. On breaks I will a ...

IIRC, Helleberg had two sons that also played tuba, and with Sousa as well. Could be one of them.

I had the photo in question, the three Hellebergs, but can’t find it. Steve Dillon has a copy of it on the wall in his store.

None of those fellows looks like Luca del Negro particularly.

Back in “the old days”, a young prospective kid could audition for (and succeed in admittance to) a top-echelon Northeast city music conservatory using a 3 valve Couesnon E flat tuba - and then, play his first two years on a BBb King 1241 - and then, as his “upgrade-to-professional-standards-instr ...

“I like tuba players a whole bunch, but I'd rather be chatting with them at a restaurant or a while repairing their instruments“