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Sam I am: "I do not like top-action whams"
Posted: Mon Nov 29, 2021 5:26 pm
by bloke
I keep suckering myself into picking up cheap, name-brand (or name-brand-
ish) top-action (13/16ths size...??) tubas that are shiny, have hard cases, and have no cracks in them, which are cheap - with the goal of flipping them...
...but they are a PITA to slick out
(particularly the King 1140's, and knock-offs of such).
- busted critical-width main slide braces (due to design flaws)
- other busted critical-width braces
- (due to design flaws) mushed-flat 4th bows (buried way down inside the guts of the bugle, which require taking the whole d@mn thing
apart...)
- bugle bows which sport legs that are too d@mn long and skinny (which defines that lining them back up with each other - after un-smashing them - is always challenging)
...and (after buying them, paying shipping, and all that work...What are they worth...?? a grand (tops?)
bloke "I need to break free of this addiction (aka: buying myself jobs), and I ain't quite done with this one, yet"
👹 wrote:' BREAK'S OVER...BACK ON YOUR HEADS !!!
Re: Sam I am: "I do not like top-action whams"
Posted: Wed Dec 01, 2021 9:29 pm
by bloke
...so this kid has been wearing my @$$ out (phone calls / texts...) about this tuba that I agreed to fix up for him
WHEN I HAVE TIME.
OK (dammit) I friggin' surrendered to his relentlessness, and (again, a detour from the important Holton BB345 projects) straightened out this Blessing (now-shuttered USA factory, with a nice German Bauerfeind valveset) knock-off of a King model 1140.
I hope they will now come and pay for it, and get it out of here...I emailed them these same two pics and a four-octave/five-B-flats demo video, and..."radio silence" in return.
(Often, the pestering ones become "the silent types" - when its time to pick up and
pay.
)
(This was an ugly duckling...and required probably eight (more?) hours of my time, which I had to "find" over three days...dents-dents-and-dents...busted braces-braces-and-braces...per the typical 1140-style tuba damage - a mess...oh yeah, and - OF COURSE - the nice cauliflowered bell flare).
Per routine bloke wizardry, I managed to straighten out the bell, bottom bow, and upper bow without taking any of them apart from each other...but (as design flaws define epic damage to these, when these tubas are tumped over - and the slides smush in against them) I decided that it was best to remove all three of the inner bows, to repair them. I'm sorta proud that the inner bows (soldered back together) define nice straight lines (from all perspectives) and that all of the original-or-replacement braces went back to the original spots...but that's what I do, so...
yeah...It's silver plated.
no...The slide alignment is only as good as was the factory alignment. I "fixed" it. I did not "blueprint" it.
Re: Sam I am: "I do not like top-action whams"
Posted: Thu Dec 02, 2021 8:08 am
by Three Valves
Isn't it time for the re-appearance of bloke-elf, spreading joy to children and the young at heart??
Re: Sam I am: "I do not like top-action whams"
Posted: Thu Dec 02, 2021 8:50 am
by Doc
Re: Sam I am: "I do not like top-action whams"
Posted: Thu Dec 02, 2021 9:16 am
by bloke
Re: Sam I am: "I do not like top-action whams"
Posted: Thu Dec 02, 2021 10:48 am
by Three Valves
^^^^
No, no, the one with the pointy ears working in his brass shop, removing dingers, creases and dullness.
Bringing brassical music to all the childrens!!
Re: Sam I am: "I do not like top-action whams"
Posted: Thu Dec 02, 2021 1:06 pm
by bloke
Three Valves wrote: ↑Thu Dec 02, 2021 10:48 am
^^^^
No, no, the one with the pointy ears working in his brass shop, removing dingers, creases and dullness.
Bringing brassical music to all the childrens!!
I don't believe I've ever met that particular
pushover naive exploitee...(??)
Re: Sam I am: "I do not like top-action whams"
Posted: Thu Dec 02, 2021 1:19 pm
by Three Valves
Well someone
@Doc must have snagged the photo...
Re: Sam I am: "I do not like top-action whams"
Posted: Thu Dec 02, 2021 1:57 pm
by Doc
Three Valves wrote: ↑Thu Dec 02, 2021 1:19 pm
Well someone @Doc must have snagged the photo...
I don't think I have it anymore, and it was deleted at the old place (unless someone quoted it).
Re: Sam I am: "I do not like top-action whams"
Posted: Mon Dec 20, 2021 3:37 pm
by tubaing
bloke wrote: ↑Wed Dec 01, 2021 9:29 pm
I hope they will now come and pay for it, and get it out of here...I emailed them these same two pics and a four-octave/five-B-flats demo video, and..."radio silence" in return.
(Often, the pestering ones become "the silent types" - when its time to pick up and
pay.
)
I assume that since I haven't seen this "listed for sale" they eventually got back to you and came and bought it?
Re: Sam I am: "I do not like top-action whams"
Posted: Mon Dec 20, 2021 4:18 pm
by bloke
It was picked up on a Sunday...nice family...They all showed up.
If your school needs some cheap 3-valve front-action tubas, I have a 5/4 bell-front Reynolds and a Bach (like an Olds O-99).
The Bach is in a hard case, and the Reynolds is currently in YOUR bag
Re: Sam I am: "I do not like top-action whams"
Posted: Mon Dec 20, 2021 4:51 pm
by tubaing
bloke wrote: ↑Mon Dec 20, 2021 4:18 pm
It was picked up on a Sunday...nice family...They all showed up.
If your school needs some cheap 3-valve front-action tubas, I have a 5/4 bell-front Reynolds and a Bach (like an Olds O-99).
The Bach is in a hard case, and the Reynolds is currently in YOUR bag
I wish I needed them. Hoping to drum up more band kids next year.
Speaking of the gig-bag. I've got two bags that maybe(???) you would find useful for something. One is a Pro-Tec... would fit the Besson 983 if the bag was maybe 10 inches shorter. The other one is a home-made (could be worse, but could be MUCH better) thing that was made for a Conn 2J.
Re: Sam I am: "I do not like top-action whams"
Posted: Tue Dec 21, 2021 12:27 pm
by Crymzon1980
bloke wrote: ↑Wed Dec 01, 2021 9:29 pm
...so this kid has been wearing my @$$ out (phone calls / texts...) about this tuba that I agreed to fix up for him
WHEN I HAVE TIME.
OK (dammit) I friggin' surrendered to his relentlessness, and (again, a detour from the important Holton BB345 projects) straightened out this Blessing (now-shuttered USA factory, with a nice German Bauerfeind valveset) knock-off of a King model 1140.
I hope they will now come and pay for it, and get it out of here...I emailed them these same two pics and a four-octave/five-B-flats demo video, and..."radio silence" in return.
(Often, the pestering ones become "the silent types" - when its time to pick up and
pay.
)
(This was an ugly duckling...and required probably eight (more?) hours of my time, which I had to "find" over three days...dents-dents-and-dents...busted braces-braces-and-braces...per the typical 1140-style tuba damage - a mess...oh yeah, and - OF COURSE - the nice cauliflowered bell flare).
Per routine bloke wizardry, I managed to straighten out the bell, bottom bow, and upper bow without taking any of them apart from each other...but (as design flaws define epic damage to these, when these tubas are tumped over - and the slides smush in against them) I decided that it was best to remove all three of the inner bows, to repair them. I'm sorta proud that the inner bows (soldered back together) define nice straight lines (from all perspectives) and that all of the original-or-replacement braces went back to the original spots...but that's what I do, so...
yeah...It's silver plated.
no...The slide alignment is only as good as was the factory alignment. I "fixed" it. I did not "blueprint" it.
Looks pretty sweet to me, wish I had the monies to get that bad boi, hopefully the kiddo will get it!!!
Edit: Just saw it got picked up, good thing too :D
Re: Sam I am: "I do not like top-action whams"
Posted: Tue Dec 21, 2021 12:35 pm
by bloke
There are a couple of USA-made economy tubas here that are ready to go, but you sound great on the instrument you already have, there.
