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I see a lot of horns labeled as Gnagey here. I'm unfamiliar with the background. Please educate me.

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King 1241/2341 tubas with shorter/gleaned bells (such as 19" Holton/York/Conn/etc.), cut to C, and with 5th rotors added

Sam Gnagey (of northern Ohio)

OTHERWISE, it would refer to a factory Jinbao E-flat tuba (using a compensating E-flat bugle) with a 4+1 front-action non-comp valveset.

bloke wrote: ↑Fri Oct 06, 2023 2:28 pm Sam Gnagey (of northern Ohio)

Sam is in Fort Wayne Indiana unless he has moved recently. But like Bloke said, he takes King 1241 bodies, cleans them up in various ways (and cuts them to CC when making a CC), adds a 5th valve, and puts on various older bells to make franken horns.

Thats what I thought. So wessex has a gnagey tuba, was he involved in the development of that?

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Yes.

Thank you. I'm very glad to know more about that now.

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bloke wrote: ↑Fri Oct 06, 2023 2:28 pm King 1241/2341 tubas with shorter/gleaned bells (such as 19" Holton/York/Conn/etc.), cut to C, and with 5th rotors added

Sam Gnagey (of northern Ohio)

OTHERWISE, it would refer to a factory Jinbao E-flat tuba (using a compensating E-flat bugle) with a 4+1 front-action non-comp valveset.

Owners of the Gnagey CC horns seem to be pretty happy with them. If looking at a 12/234X and the branches, it's pretty easy to see how length could be taken out of them without a lot of fal-de-rah. Add the shorter bell/bottom branch of the Eb monster and bob's-yer-uncle. If someone had the urge to create a frankenhorn, it would seem there would be success in making one a lot like the ones Sam made.

Not taking anything away from Gnagey C instruments...

SIMILAR models include (discontinued) Canadian Brass/Getzen (King pistons/slide tubing/valve caps fit those perfectly), Conn 52/54/56J (also very strongly King-related), and (China) Eastman 632/832 models.

Also similar (rare) is a (genuine) so-called "Donatelli" Conn, and (as I've played a couple that impressed me re: sound/intonation) Conn B-flats that have been conscientiously shortened to resemble those C "Donatelli" instruments.

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Having (lately) become a "B-flat snob" (me: a C player for 48 years) in this (approximate) size range above, I've been enlightened towards the (slightly smaller and shorter) York/King 4/4 instruments (remaining in B-flat, but ALSO with King valvesets, as the York valvesets were .656" bore, and the the Holton valvesets were .665" bore - both perhaps...?? slightly smaller than optimum). I've played York/Holton 4/4 tubas (as York/Holton bows/bells were extremely similar) cut down to C, and the tuning (after such cutting) became too quirky - in my judgement.