The lady's dressed now...

tictactux

tictactux

Distinguished Member
Distinguished Member
...after having spent three evenings on the kitchen table.

Took me two evenings alone to clean her (she must've been quite the tramp).

Tonight was la soirée de feutre, de liège et de velours, and there's nothing more beautiful (bear with me...) than when you close the keys and it doesn't go clank! but rather thud! instead. And I haven't even oiled the rig yet.

Can't wait for tomorrow.

I'll have myself a beer now. :cool:
 
SOTSDO said:
Did it come with a neck? I've seen a number of old baritones that I was tempted to purchase, excepting only that there was no neck.
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Yes, it did, thankfully. I wouldn't know where to find a replacement short of having one done (which I imagine can be quite an adventure).
The only thing missing is the collar round the back F# key. But I can live with (or rather: without) it.
 
Gandalfe said:
So, remind me what we are looking at here? It sure is nice looking, is it a relacquer?
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Nah, I guess that's when you take a snap without a flash - it's a silver plated Bettoney, and my best guess so far is that it's a Martin Handcraft stencil, or maybe some Conn. No spit valve, no high F, straight soldered tone holes, octave pip near the neck tenon. Must be a '30s thing.

I'd like to pinpoint the manufacturer and the year, any telltale details I should look for?
 
Nice work. Looks allot like my Martin Handcraft bari. This is the ebay pic from when I bought it. It's featured on www.themartinstory.net

Handcraft-82899-baritone-3.jpg
 
MartinMods said:
The Martins had beveled tone hole rings. I just modded a 1915 Conn Wonder that had straight soldered tone holes like yours:

http://www.woodwindforum.com/forums/album.php?albumid=49&pictureid=367
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According to http://themartinstory.net/ the earliest models had straight tone holes.

The curled part of the neck is completely "plain", with no keywork, spit valves, pips, nothing. Plus the LH pinky table looks more Martinesque than Connish. But I believe the stencilling business works in wondrous ways, and both Martins and Conns look - to me - similar enough to appear to be stencils of each other. :confused:
 
It's a beauty no matter what make it is. Great work Ben. A beer well deserved.
 
Martin didn't make their own Handcraft basses, stenciling Conns and Bueschers. It it conceivable, that in 1914, they stenciled the first baritone model as well.
 
MartinMods said:
Martin didn't make their own Handcraft basses, stenciling Conns and Bueschers. It it conceivable, that in 1914, they stenciled the first baritone model as well.
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I was thinking that too Lance. The Martins and the Conns of this vintage do seem very similar.

I remember a few years ago play-testing an early model Conn bari keyed to high Eb. It was a very nice sax, but I couldn't justify a 3rd baritone... And that was when I was working 4 nights a week in clubs with my jazz band... It had a really sweet sound though. I sometimes wish I would have bought that sax.

I'm sure you'll love your bari Ben. What kind of band are you going to use it in?
 
Near the serial number there's a stamp that says

PATD DEC.8.1914
III9954

Which makes it a Conn. (google against the patent number...)

Helen, I'll use it for my own pleasure, and I'll lend it to a band buddy for this summer, we have some pieces that could stand a bari.
I'm not good enough a sax player to play that in concert. But I'm working on it. :cool:
 
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