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For those of you who have played a 184 BBb... or who have a colleague who plays one...

What are your thoughts?

Thanks. I have an opportunity to buy one.

Good time to listen to some of Roger Bobo's early playing on the CC 184. I'm more of a CC player so I would love a CC 184. If you like BBb for quintet & solo/chamber - get that horn! I am trying to thin the heard one last time... but If saw a deal on a 184 - I would grab it.

Tim Jackson

Decades ago, I owned two different model 84C instruments. The fifth partial was somewhat low, and I dealt with it.
Recently (documented in this site’s repair forum) I brought a B-flat 84 “back from the dead” for a friend. It’s the very same: flat fifth partial.
These are beloved instruments, and the B-flat features the same quirk as the C. My friend/customer is crazy about his, and he’s using it several hours a day to teach his tuba students at his university.
Currently, I’m trying to do a really nice job of restoring another B-flat 84 that I actually have here - to possibly sell to someone who has expressed interest. The one that is here is in better shape than the one I fixed up for my friend, and I have great hopes for it as well.

Here she is! A BBb 184 from 1973. https://photos.app.goo.gl/kv3vVja9ybySQn9i6

I finally got it run through a sonic tank. It was quite grubby. And the major dents - mostly along the lower bow - were addressed, as well as a few on the bell flare. I gave the valves a chem clean, put on new bumpers, and got the valves properly aligned. The S-arm mechanism works beautifully. It is a great playing little tuba!

I played one of these in College, I would love to get another one, Im a short guy and these are perfect, compact design but a full sound.

I never played a 184, but I prize my 1972 186 Mirafone. They look almost exactly the same as far as position of the slides, tall bell, etc. Does anyone have a side-by-side photo of a 184 next to a 186?
Scottw

I bought a 184 CC from one of the members here, to be my "old man" horn. Great player, a little "barky" until I found a mouthpiece that worked well (for me) with it. I love this horn.

I bought a brand-new BBflat 184 in 1983. My teacher suggested it and I loved that horn, used it as my primary through college and grad school. Later, I mistakenly fell victim to the bigger horn phase and still later I sold the 184 (along with aforementioned bigger horn) in 1998 and "switched to CC"

Several times over the next few years I tried 184's in CC and (for me) they did not live up to the memory of "my" 184 (sn12453)

ATMO the BBflat 184 is the perfect quintet and chamber music tuba. Best memories of summer chamber workshops at Humboldt.
The BBflat 184 is also a very capable large wind ensemble horn when playing in section with other tubas. When I took the orchestra chair in college there were usually only 4-6 basses so I used it most of the time there as well. Best 184 memory from collitch was when we played the Berlioz Fantastique on 184s, I on my 12453 and the fellow on 2nd tuba used his 184 pitched in CC.

The reason I so often say "ask your teacher" is because if I could go back I'd spend more time with my teacher, less time reading online hardware chatter, work through any playing blocks and religiously prepare for my applied lessons, and never "switch to CC". I like to think I'd still be playing on that 184 today.

I'm not going to repeat stuff that I've talked about another threads in depth at all, because that stuff has already been posted, and this thread is mostly water under the bridge, if you read back to the beginning. All I'm going to refer back to another post I've made is about some newer era Miraphone tubas which still have that 3/4 sound and nimbleness as B-flat tubas (I'm not talking about the newest Hagen 3/4 thing) and those newer generation 3/4-ish instruments also feature a larger rotor bore. I'm thinking that the rotor bore is the same as the 186, even though they play and sound like 3/4 instruments. Absolutely are easier to play in tune than the old 184 B-flat or C.

The "newest Hagen 3/4 thing" is not a 3/4. I'd like to know what you're referring to that you seem to want to keep a secret though.

^ I'm thinking bloke might be talking about the Miraphone 282. I think it sorta replaced the old 184.
Imo, the 282, vintage Olds 0-99, vintage Conn 10j etc, are all "go-kart" BBb tubas that play super easy, responsive and with good body of sound for their size. I consider them more 7/8 size tubas though.
The little Yamaha 105 and King 1140 are 3/4 size tubas.

Tuba sizing will always be debated about...

Not a secret. I think there was both a 182 and a 282 unless I'm confused (and I probably am). I just didn't want to post a bunch of stuff that I posted before, because I already post about six or seven times as much stuff as I probably should. I'm not looking to argue about size of tubas. I much prefer to argue about chili peppers, scotch tape, foot powder, and the proper depth of a trench...

...oh yeah: and T. U. B. A... you know, we're the good guys and the real tuba players live.