Quote:
Originally Posted by trumpetmike  The thing that sets many of the smaller firms apart is not where the parts come from, but what they do with them. |
You hit the nail on the head!!
This is the same response I got from other horn makers ... even the ones who claim to make their horns by hand. In fact, the statement that I got was that there is not one horn maker who does not source out some of their horn parts....not even Monette. Wouldn't you guys get upset if his parts were made in India by the poor people who make $5.00 a week? IMO, I think that allowing companies to specialize and perfect their particular products that go into the horn will make for a higher quality horn. Some makers train and source out their horn assemblies for certain model horns. I have seen that this has lead to competition against that very horn maker who trained and contracted with them as well.
It's true however that it is the horn maker to make the horn play which is the biggest and most important part of making the horn. His name is on the product no matter who made the parts and it is the horn makers reputation that is on the line here, not Joe Blow who made X,Y,Z parts.
Liad