Tootsall

You might as well ask Leigh about the shipping/plating price. My understanding is that his prices could be VERY competitive with the result that the TOTAL price would be about equal. (Get two or three American prices for the work and see what the price spread is!) His turn-around time will no doubt be mainly a function of the shipping time "back and forth"...but compare that with the extensive "wait times" for some of the more popular American refinishers! Hey...it never hurts to ask, right?

Refinishing should not affect the sound provided it is done right. The real danger is that some "low-ball", "mass-production" refinishing shop might have a tendency to develop "heavy hands" when it's time to use the buffing wheel. This will a) soften up the engraving (possibly even making parts of it unreadable), b) thin out the metal (maybe in areas where you don't WANT it thinned) and change the sound. CHANGING the finish will change the sound. If it's silver and you're going to gold, the gold is so thin that you probably won't notice the difference; but if you are switching between lacquer and plated (gold OR silver), you will most probably notice a difference in sound.

Check the SchilkeLoyalist for a story about the effect on sound of different finishes...or read the Eclipse website for more of the same.

bugler16

All of the horns that I have had goldplated I had done by Zig Kanstul in Anaheim California. Wow excellent work I was so impressed with the first one that I could hardly wait to send the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th. Not to mention the unbelievably quick service and great personality that made him so easy to work with. He was reccomended by my prof when everywhere else I looked said something in the time frame of month's. Zig Kanstul has time and again had my horns returned to me in 2 weeks (3 when I sent 2 horns at once). Absolutely amazing. Simply box it up put in a note with contact info. Call and tell him it's will be coming. When he gets it he will call you with an estimate, you decide whether or not to have the work done and then when he's finished he'll ship it. Let me say though that his work is excellent. My first horn a somewhat older strad was not in the best of shape, he replaced the leadpipe, replaced the tuning crook, replaced the finger buttons, took a few dings out, fixed the silver where I had eaten through and into the brass, and gold plated it. Time from the day I shipped it until the day I had it back in my hands 2 weeks (14 days). Looks gorgeuos and play better than when I bought it. Total price $1000 (including shipping both ways (overnight)). I know that seems like a lot but wow what a lot of work, simply having a silver horn goldplated is cheaper.