Bundy Makes a Comeback

Helen

Helen

Content Expert Saxophones
Staff member
Administrator
I'm sure some of you get the WWBW emails, so you would have received this news too, but I was surprised to see this in my In box this AM.

It seems that the name Bundy is back. Did anyone know this was in the works? Anyone know who is making them? What company they're now connected with? (Still Selmer & whoever they are now?) What country they're from?

I just love the history that WWBW provides. Makes me all sentimental and misty for my Bundy tenor from grade 8 band. :cry:

They say:

George Bundy moved to Elkhart, Indiana from New York City in 1927 after purchasing the H & A Selmer music store from Henri and Alexandre Selmer. A clarinet student of Alexandre Selmer, Bundy began working at the store in 1909. By 1911, George Bundy was in charge of the store, which he then purchased in 1927. In 1941, George Bundy created the Bundy line of instruments specifically for students. High quality, durable, reliable instruments with the Bundy name were quickly popular, and by 1948 more musicians were beginning their musical journey with a Bundy than all others combined. Today, the name Bundy is the most widely recognized name in student instruments worldwide. Begin your exploration of the wonderful world of music with a new Bundy instrument.
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But the important info, the specs for the horns include:

Standard Features:

Body: Clear lacquered Yellow Brass

Keys: Nickel Silver

Pads: Premium Tanned Leather Pads with Domed Plastic Resonators

Adjustment: Adjustment Screws on Right and Left Hand Keys

Mechanism: Stainless Steel Screws

Case: Hard-Shell ABS Case

You can check out the Bunday BAS 300 alto for yourself. It's only $899.99.

(Is it just me, or does it resemble the YAS student models in appearance of the keyguards and model numbers?)
 
All of that text and it boils down to one huge factory each in Taiwan, mainland China, and Vietnam, cranking out cookie-cutter saxophones, in 500-count batches with whatever name is contracted for. Doesn't mean it is bad or good or fair, just marketing hype. DAVE
 
I noticed that it looked a lot like a student Yamaha as well. Dave is probably correct in that it is made overseas. My guess would be China.
 
Has a lot of Yamaha features. Also has a Mark VI style bell brace.
I wonder what country is stamped on it ? I've read that Yamaha
has several different foreign factories now. I wonder if it's a Yamaha
from one of those factories.

Well I called their 800 number. Very nice guy told me it's from the Asian rim,
but no country of origin was available. He did say that it was a Bundy made product,
but that means little when he could'nt even tell me where it's made.
 
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Connical said:
Has a lot of Yamaha features. Also has a Mark VI style bell brace.
I wonder what country is stamped on it ? I've read that Yamaha
has several different foreign factories now. I wonder if it's a Yamaha
from one of those factories.
Click to expand...
I've heard from a tech I know that "all Yamahas" are now made outside Japan. I doubt this, especially as the horns are all proudly stamped, "Made in Japan". (Looking at the part numbers, too, makes me doubt this, too -- there aren't specific "Japanese" and "Other" parts.)

The limited Yamaha Q-series horns were made in Indonesia. They don't make 'em anymore.
 
The really low end stuff that Yamaha sells at places like SAM's club is made outside of Japan. I'm pretty sure China. All of the higher end stuff still seems to be coming out of Japan.
 
I just love threads somewhat related YAS-23s. My horn!:D

Anyways, the keyguard looks like a YAS-23/25/275/32/52/62I whatever design with cut outs like the YAS-23 Vito stencil. The fork F# looks like the ones used on the YAS-21. The RH pinky keys remind me of Jupiter. The neck does not look like a Yamaha. The front F looks like a one-piece like a Yamaha. The bell brace doesn't look like a VI... This thing is weird...
 
It would be interesting to see how the 'New' Bundy compares to a 'Vintage' Bundy.

I'm guessing I would probably prefer my vintage.
 
I'm going to be making my annual trip to South Bend and WWBW shortly, I'll test one and see what I think of it.
 
Some Yamaha instruments, like the student clarinets, are made in Indonesia afaik.

I don't know if the new Bundys will be available here, but if they will I hope they are better than the old ones which I consider terrible. Not anywhere near a YAS-23.

Nitai
 
clarnibass,
It's interesting to see the difference in opinions.
You like Yamaha over Bundy. I prefer my old Bundy over Yamaha. At least as far as student/intermediate horns go.
I guess it depends on what you grew up on.
 
Tammi said:
clarnibass,
It's interesting to see the difference in opinions.
You like Yamaha over Bundy. I prefer my old Bundy over Yamaha. At least as far as student/intermediate horns go.
I guess it depends on what you grew up on.
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Tammi,

Actually, I grew up on neither. I play clarinets, and none that I ever owned was a Bundy or Yamaha. Sometimes I like to play saxophones but only for a little while. If I play a saxophone a lot, the sound is getting a little boring too soon (it's not the same when listening to saxophone though, some of my favorite musicians are saxophonists). So my level on saxophones is just good enough to not be limited by that when repairing them.

I definitely prefer the sound of the Yamahas over the Bundys but that is just opinion. As far as build quality which is mainly what I was referring to, the Yamahas are simply much better. All old bundys I've seen didn't have good springs and pads, and had terrible key design (for example the key cup arms), very unlevel tone holes, etc.

People here usually don't invest so much in student models like Yas-23, Bundys and others. I only did a very thorough overhaul on a YAS-23 once, to make it as good as any instrument, and it was one of the best saxophones I've played! At least if you like the sort of tone these instruments have.

By the way, you can call me by my name instead of my handle :)

Nitai
 
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My first clarinet was a plastic Bundy. My first alto was a Bundy.
I get a chance to play a few students horns when they think they have a problem. Most are Yamahas' or Jupiter. They're not bad, they just feel funny.
Playing an old Bundy is kind of like going home. It's familiar.
 
clarnibass said:
Some Yamaha instruments, like the student clarinets, are made in Indonesia afaik.
Click to expand...
Yamahaaltoplayer said:
275s are made in Indonesia.
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The discontinued Q series of instruments were made in Indonesia and are not "stamped" with "Japan". The 275 was originally made in Japan and some accounts now have production moved to Indonesia since 2006/2007 -- in an actual Yamaha factory. There are reports of other Yamaha student instruments being produced in Yamaha's Indonesian factory, too.

Yamahaaltoplayer said:
Anyways, the keyguard looks like a YAS-23/25/275/32/52/62I whatever design with cut outs like the YAS-23 Vito stencil.
Click to expand...
If the Vito looks like a 23, but has dark lacquer and an altissimo F#, it's a YxS-25 stencil, not a 23.
 
pete said:
The discontinued Q series of instruments were made in Indonesia and are not "stamped" with "Japan". The 275 was originally made in Japan and some accounts now have production moved to Indonesia since 2006/2007 -- in an actual Yamaha factory. There are reports of other Yamaha student instruments being produced in Yamaha's Indonesian factory, too.


If the Vito looks like a 23, but has dark lacquer and an altissimo F#, it's a YxS-25 stencil, not a 23.
Click to expand...

25s aren't just 23s with high F#. They are more like a 275.

I was talking about the new Bundy, though. The keyguard is like the Yamaha connected key guard (New ones on the 23 not the 21) but with triangle cutouts like on the Vito (23 stencils). 23s have a (nicer) curvy cutout. And to make it more confusing, Vito is stamped on some Jupiter stencils but with some Yamaha features, too... Like this Bundy...:confused:

Btw, how do you know so much?;)
 
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