Smrgol

thanks for the replies!

hmm... I don't see many deep-red spots, so hopefully it's not red-rot... there are a few blotches that are more bright red than the rest, but not deep red- and where the hands usually touch, the reddish-brown shade is a bit darker. For the most part, the shade of reddish-brown is fairly light and evenly distributed throughout the horn, where it's unlacquered. If it's like this, does that sound more like tarnish that can be removed through polishing? Heh, I'm kind of new to this...

Oh and, the owner who sold me the horn told me it was one of 500 that was being shipped to Elkhart, Indiana- and I see that engraved on the bell. The exact serial number is 62602. It's awesome!

thanks again!