Getzen CB50/G50 with Stofer Mods & York Bell

[tylerferris1213]

So I've happily owned my CB-50 for over ten years. I replaced the factory bell with an original York bell and the results were fantastic! Then I took it to Lee Stofer who re-braced it and corrected the taper in the leadpipe among other things. The end result is arguably one of the best quintet tubas you could ask for, and it has the horsepower to support an orchestra. I used it for band, orchestra, and quintets during my undergrad with great success. I also used it over my other horns when I did four concerts with the Firelands Symphony Orchestra last year. What I'm saying is that this thing is a hot rod.

Fast forward to now and I'm an instrument repair technician. I saw another Getzen pop up for sale within driving distance of me, so I went out and bought it. I also talked at length with Lee Stofer about wanting to do his modifications and he gave me his blessing. I also happen to have a York with bad valves, but the bell has basically all the original silver intact! Lee is going to send me some OEM braces and all the other parts he adds/replaces for his Stofer Custom CC, and I'm going to rebuild this Getzen from the ground up.

If anyone is looking for such a horn, shoot me an email at tylerferris1213@gmail.com for more information!

[matt g]

Sounds like an awesome project! Please post photos along the way if you can.

[tylerferris1213]

I'm good at fixing brass instruments, but I'm horrible at documenting my process. I'll try lol

[bloke]

I recall when Holton and Getzen (around the same time) released new models.

Getzen's 50 was (reportedly) a copy of a Rusk cut-to-C York B-flat.

Holton's 330 (C) and 331 (B-flat) were the final reissues of a bell and bows that they had recycled - over-and-over - for roughly a century, and were extremely similar (bell and bows - wise) to the York 4/4 short-model B-flats.

Holton stuck with their same .665" bore, and Getzen went with the King valve section bore (as have so many of the rest of us with our old York and Holton reconfig's).

Frankly, I was a bit confused (not paying much attention) and - for a short time - and thought the two different C's were the same instrument - particularly as some Getzen rep's (whether known or unknown to Getzen...??) were offering forth rhetoric whereby the Rusk-style 5th valve was there to allow players to either play the instrument in C or B-flat.

This was before the www was so predominant, and Holton was claiming that their 330 and 331 instruments were the first to be computer-designed.
I'm sure they used a computer in some of the reconfiguration details, but - when I look back-and-forth between a 331 Holton and old (or old-old, or old-oldl-old) same-size 4/4 B-flat Holton tubas, the most significant difference I see is that the 331 bell was trimmed back an inch from 19 inches to 18 inches. Otherwise, it looks as though the same ancient bell mandrel and bow molds were pulled out yet again.

yeah...I like my old Holton (second-to-last re-issue: 1960's) compact 4/4 B-flat with a King valveset altered and used. In this size instrument (if really large C instruments respond more quickly and with more ease than really large B-flat instruments) I don't see as this pertains to small 4/4 instruments.