POLL: shorty/fatty (York-like) Holton B-flat tuba with 19-inch bell...

[Kirley]

Wow, that is a tight fit under the bell! Very "efficient" use of space.
Nice work, Bloke. Thanks for taking the time to post photos for us voyeurs.

[bloke]

I'm swapping out the King top/bottom valve caps for some found-in-my-junk Fullerton-Olds top/bottom caps, and stripping chrome from some Olds GG contrabass bugle bodies' bow guard wire (same as Olds O-99 guard wire, but long and - in this instance - undamaged) to use on the upper and lower bows, as (again) I don't like feeling tall bow guard wire against my thigh muscles.

One of the four found-in-my-junk bottom caps is an Olds GG contra cap (found only four, total)...so I'll be stripping the chrome off of it, as well.

[bloke]

These remaining smaller bows were somewhat beat-up, but I've managed to get all of these still-assembled bows nearly dent free WITHOUT taking them apart.

The bell has been sent off to be re-engraved, and the Olds chrome-plated bow guard wires (which I pulled from old 1970's contra carcasses) have been sent off to have their plating stripped...along with ONE (chrome-plated) Olds bottom valve cap (as I've completely substituted Fullerton-Olds top/bottom valve caps for the original valveset's King valve caps, which allows for some wider-diameter Yamaha 621 m.o.p. finger buttons).

...so I'm temporarily going to leave all of this as it is (in it's original top-action orientation), because it's easier to "store" it this way (all together, without losing track of parts) while I'm waiting for those other things to be serviced and returned.

Of course, when I'm able to continue with this project, I'll un-solder these bows, remove the old lacquer, and remove the last traces of any denting.



Right now, it's time to - once and for all - finish the barn project, repair some damaged fences, take care of a few customers, look at a nutty (busy/notey) overture on this next weekend's concert (thank goodness for these gigs), and also TRY to coax myself into cleaning up my workroom.

In the meantime...It appears as though Wade's getting busy (again) with his 186 cut-down job, for your continued entertainment pleasure.

[bloke]

The cool little NEW old-old stock MTS case (sold to me by a good friend) arrived today via Greyhound.
Based on the style of latches - and the lack of wheels, I would guess that it's decades old.

The bell is off being re-engraved, but the width/depth flare measurements (as promised) appear to accommodate a 19" diameter bell...and (more importantly) was TESTED with a 19" bell tuba, prior to being sent.

It's lightweight. I believe that some of those old top-loading cordura bags...(brand?..."Dolly"?) - with the sheet of plastic woven in - weighed nearly as much).

It measures 20" X 25" X 37". Surely, it would fit in most any vehicle. I like it very much. I will NOT be additionally seeking a bag for this tuba.

[Yorkboy]

Lookin' good, bloke!

[bloke]

re-engraved bell:



Here's a higher-res. version of the same picture:
https://i.imgur.com/H5PQfUF.jpg

...and no: I'm not interested in buffing away tuba to remove scratches.

[bloke]

just received back the two L-O-N-G 1970's pieces of F. E. Olds GG-contra bow guard wire (stripped of their chrome and nickel - down to bare brass) back from Anderson - along with the chrome-plated Olds (fits King) bottom valve cap, which was also stripped...

...so I now have FOUR Olds (no King felt "donut" retainer wall) top caps and FOUR Olds bottom caps - all which fit King, but offer more spartan (better) styling than King (in my opinion).

This guard wire is VERY low profile, and features NO interior hollow space, thus
- doesn't press into my front thigh muscles, in playing position.
- isn't prone to denting, if lightly bumped by clumsy colleagues.

[bloke]

LOTS of fingerprints...but note that the re-engraving job (bell) made it - round-trip - damage-free (packing strategies)...
...No matter WHAT zoom/angle picture-taking strategies I employ, the two bottom bow ferrules APPEAR (in pictures) to be non-parallel. They ARE parallel, so whatever...





I'm really not seeing much point in continuing to document progress past this -
the reason being that this final Holton product is going to be so similar (...possibly a 5th valve...??) to Yorkboy's current York project...

that SUPER-nice new/old-stock small MTS case:
It's an incredibly snug fit, but the lid should shut down with no struggles, once the padding is compressed.

...but - once I get the last few imperfections out of these inner bows and strip their old lacquer,

THIS (above) is how far I'm willing to go to help others with their projects.
Probably the most expensive thing would be fitting old damaged bow caps to lower and upper outside bows.
I'm not sure that I would be offering to solder on guard wire, because the lengths that I would arbitrarily choose might not suit the client.

...so
- probably not any valveset work
- no assembly
- no mouthpipe fabricating
- no parts-supplying


I'm just offering to be a dent-removal subcontractor for YOUR projects, and neither a designer/advisor nor builder.

...and I really don't get why putting limits on the depth of services related to "project horns" seemed to "trigger" a couple of people...people who probably will never even build "project horns"...(??)

I'm glad to accept all sorts of REPAIR WORK related to tubas (stuff that I can do in an hour to a long-days work)...but I just not willing to stick tubas together for others out of "stuff they're rounded up".

[Yorkboy]

I'd like to see updates on your project

[bloke]

OK...
I’m now in the process (it’s COLD today, yes?) of carrying the parts out there one-by-one, with the goal being assembly. I have turned the heat on out there…

[bloke]

ok then...

It took longer than I had hoped to get this low-profile/does-NOT-look-like-it-was-made-for-a-sousaphone guard wire on to this bottom bow...

...but it's on, and I'm happy with it.
(I'll pick over the last little bit of solder clean-up when I get ready to put some sort of finish on the instrument - with the magical sanding stick, which will be the only sandpaper-like thing which will touch this instrument.)

Now, I have to repeat all of this for the TOP bow...hopefully, in considerably less time.

I've got a rehearsal and two Christmas shows Friday evening through Saturday evening...
I doubt that this thing will make it there...(??)

[bloke]

This bow guard rib wire sure went faster than the one on the bottom bow...

...and I picked over the dent removal job on this upper bow one last time (as this bow requires much more "by hand" work to remove dents than with any of the other bows).

now...
If my *alignment/symmetry brain works well - and the just-the-right-braces gods shine their light upon me, I might get some body parts stuck together, today.
It appears to me that many people "wind" (long "i") their tuba assembly jobs from the inside out, but I've always tended to assemble tubas from the outside in...whatev'.

Mostly, I'm just delighted that (a week or more ago) I managed to "convince" this King upper bow CAP to fit on this Holton upper bow, as (originally) their contours had very little to do with each other.



_______________________________
*I goof up with this occasionally (requiring backing up), but I suspect I inherited something from my Mom (a student of Grant Wood, and commercial artist) in regards to the ability to view symmetry/alignment...plus several decades of putting stuff back together, and (during these processes) staring at the progress from all angles.

[bloke]

OK...
I'm finally to the "stick stuff together and see if it will all fit" stage.

Again...
Most people seem to build from the inside out, and I tend to build from the outside in.
I guess I prefer that the body (if making it up as I go along) be pleasing to the eye, and that the valveset accommodates it.

This stuff is just barely tacked together, but (if it proves to be viable) it will all be hardened up.
If not viable, it will be pulled back apart (with not too much effort).
AN EXAMPLE: Even if everything looks "perfect" (to me), it might end up being that (based on how the valveset goes on, etc...) the bell engraving needs to be barely re-oriented around the 360° "clock face". Well...As long as the bell is only barely tacked in place, I can loosen and rotate it without too many headaches.

Mrs. bloke gave me the 10-minute warning for dinner, so (being somewhat tired...as I'm an old guy) I guess I'll stop, eat her wonderful home-cooked/home-grown/home-smoked food, take a bit of a break, and (maybe...??) look at my tunes (Saturday concerts) before climbing into bed...and this is REALLY cool:
The HVAC-guy came by...
...but this is really not so great news:
The system worked PERFECTLY for him, which means (yup) it's likely to mess up again.

ADVERTISEMENT:
Something that offers me a bit of control of these situations is that - when repairing severely-damaged bows - I understand that there is a tendency for the legs of the bows to "take off" in NON-parallel/NON-coplanar directions. If you send me your bells and bows (for your projects) I'll be aware of those tendencies - when straightening out your parts.

[UncleBeer]

I like! I'm a big fan of big-bell, squat tubas. Keep posting, Bloke.

[bloke]

ok then...
========================
anyway...

Check THIS out.

I've NEVER seen it before, but (if you're familiar with the plain/smooth convex bow ferrules on Holton tubas) I found this in my junk TODAY when scrounging for braces to use.

It's the PERFECT size, the PERFECT shape/style, and the PERFECT inner diameter for when I cut the top-action-oriented "dogleg", and turn it around for the new front-action valveset.

bloke "...weird..."

[Yorkboy]

Most people seem to build from the inside out, and I tend to build from the outside in.
I guess I prefer that the body (if making it up as I go along) be pleasing to the eye, and that the valveset accommodates it.

I too find outside-in to be the most logical way to do it. Only once did I go the opposite way, and only because on that particular project, the valve cluster fit so tightly inside the last branch that I had to be dead certain of that fit first.

Having come across that Holton ferrule is a YUGE break! I usually have to find a larger one, cut it open, and then painstakingly remove material until it's the right diameter (at both ends), then silver solder it back together, clean and file it, and put it back in round (just typing it reminds me of how tedious it is to actually do it - in fact, I did just this a few days ago.....I think it took me about two hours total).

I'm thoroughly enjoying your progress!

[Doc]

You're getting closer to the finished product. Sure hope you'll post pics of it when it's done.

[bloke]

My metal scrap guy came by, today..."Floyd".
I handed him some scrap steel, and three boxes of absolutely-useless-to-me (nor to anyone, at least not that I could imagine) musical instrument scrap brass.
A wrecked piston rolled out of one of the boxes and put a tiny dink in the bell.
It pissed me off a little bit, but it was really easy to rectify.

[bloke]

I had to do some other stuff, today.
THANK THE GOOD LORD, it was some mouthpieces and instruments sales...

...but (OK...I see how it can, now) the "posting pictures of progress on projects" thing, here, can motivate me to get SOMETHING more done on the tuba.

It seems like "not much", but - seriously - getting ALL the dents out of a bow, getting the lacquer off, getting the surface (light tool marks) scratches out, and then (again) messing with the bow "legs" until they are parallel and coplanar, well...That's a bunch of work.

fwiw...
I'm avoiding "contact" bracing (where two bows touch each other, and - simply - they're soldered together where they touch). Those joints - over time (at least on mishandled instruments that I have to repair) seem to fail before "real" braces fail.

OH YEAH...and (if anyone else is old enough to remember...) the LAST MODEL of tuba that Holton designed and built (before they went belly-up, and were shuttered) was touted to be "computer-designed"...
...Well hell...THIS one is TOO !!!



...and isn't it CURIOUS how SIMILAR those "Harvey Phillips" tubas (even the same oddball .665" bore size) were to these 1960's "student model" Holton tubas, eh...??
https://www.norlanbewley.com/holton331.htm

Candidly, I've never done a top-action-to-front-action "flip", before...but this is much more "inside my wheelhouse" than was the cimbasso-build...and that gig turned out just fine, so...

Anyway...
Here's today's (snail's pace...??) update...

[hrender]

That is going to be a great horn when it is done.