Some modifications I have had done to my Besson 983 Eeb

[Wilco]

Hi

I wanted to share some modifications I have done to optimize the playing of this Besson.
- doug elliot screw rim made to fit a Wick 3L. I do not like the Wick rim and with the full DE setup it was tricky to play very soft and the lower was not as open as I would like. To me this mod is the best of both worlds

- trigger on the first slide. There is not much room to pull by hand, so an auto return trigger was the solution here

- 3rd slide was out alignment

- slides 2, 4, mts and comp slide where to loose, they have been expanded. That greatly impacted response and fullness of sound

- shortened the MTS for pitch

- glued a piece of cork on the 4th valve finger button for easier fingering from for example from 2/4 to 2/3

[bloke]

The four valve front action E flat tubas (both Besson and Eastman) are good playing tubas, but I just can't manage to physically embrace the "pinky anchor" fingering system - when it comes to four valve compensating.

With the four valve compensating system, the fourth valve becomes more of an F attachment (with the adjusted slide positions being automatic, rather than hand-adjusted - as with a trombone), and I just prefer to be like a trombonist and operate the F attachment with the other hand (per the traditional setup).

It may be more of a mental thing than anything else. I've own so many tubas in all four of the customary lengths with all sorts of fingering systems. Maybe it's just that I'm old and crotchety and don't want to learn yet another fingering system at point in my life.

All of those modifications you've done look useful to me. I've never purchased a factory-built tuba that didn't need several things done to it to make it better. (Had I done all the things to someone's else tuba that I did to my model 98 Miraphone, I would have charged them a ton of money, because each thing I did took a considerable amount of time, YET - were that instruments suddenly back to the way it was when I first had it, my first reaction today would surely be ""YIKES!".) If they did all that stuff at the factories, they would have to charge a lot more and most people probably wouldn't like all or any of the built-in features that they would include.

[Wilco]

Thanks :). I got the inspiration for the trigger from your modifications to that big BBb! Nice and simple & light weight!

Cost where ok…
100 for the mpc rim and 200 for the other mods

[anadmai]

I don't think I could ever get used to having the pinky control the 4th valve.

[anadmai]

.

[Wilco]

I have not seen other 983’s with a thumb ring. That I noticed…. To me it sounds and plays better (fuller sound) than without a thumb ring. Was the thumb ring an extra or did everyone ditch theirs??

[shovelingtom]

I have not seen other 983’s with a thumb ring. That I noticed…. To me it sounds and plays better (fuller sound) than without a thumb ring. Was the thumb ring an extra or did everyone ditch theirs??

I think most people ditched theirs. It’s a clamped on mechanism with a wing nut that’s easy to move/remove. My friend and teacher Phil has 2 983s, one of which didn’t have one when he bought it. He prefers to play with it on, and apparently had fits trying to find one to replace it.

[Wilco]

Thanks! To me the horn sounds fuller and weighter with the thumb ring. In itself is quite substantial. When I bought it the cork was allmost completely gone. I recorked it and it stays put just fine.

[Bob Kolada]

I like that slide kicker, it looks like you could adjust it to either return out or return in depending on what the horn calls for.

I don't think I could ever get used to having the pinky control the 4th valve.

Besson, or Boosey, or ?,... made basically a 3+1 front valve Eb tuba, I believe called the Cavalry model. Right hand plays the 3 front valves, left hand works the slightly offset 4th. I can only guess they played it as a 3 valve horn while moving with the left hand on the reins and as a 3+1 when standstill, if the horses agree with the players of course.

Wessex had a recreation of that in either Eb , euphonium or both.

[Kingconn]

The best thing I did to my 983 was have the 4th slide aligned. The low F and E natural are SO much more solid. I did put a thumb actuated rod and a stop on the tuning slide. Depending on the mouthpiece, sometimes the fourth line F is a little low. I also took the pull knob off the second slide and replaced it with a amado water key. The second slide accumulates a lot of condensation. as for the left hand operation of the 4th valve, it can be done if you reach through. Mike Johnson replaces the fourth piston with a rotor and says it opens up that circuit. At one time I talked to him about doing a conversion so the fourth could be operated with either hand.

[bloke]

I've thought this over, and - though it would take awhile - I believe I could reorient my brain (compensating instrument) to operate the left-hand 4th valve as a right-hand pinky 4th valve...

LOL...It's just that I've already learned nearly all of the other systems commonly found in the western hemisphere (no...I don't have any Vienna systems under my fingers.)