mrwizard96

My son is 11 and has been playing trumpet since last year. He is getting pretty good for only having instruction from school and me. We have been using a school instrument and I think it is time to get him one of his own. I was thinking a getzen would be good and would last him through Junior High. I was wondering what you all thought about doing a lease to own and what I need to watch for when doing one of these?

Thanks

misty.sj

How much extra would you spend in the long term by doing lease-to-own? A good used horn might hold its value better, and you could re-sell if your son didn't keep up the interest. There is a thread in the forums somewhere about what parents should look for in a good horn for their child -- let me see if I can dig it up. http://www.trumpetmaster.com/vb/f131...hlight=parents (Advice for a Young Trumpeter's Parents) That is chock full of info for you. :)

mrwizard96

my wife found a holton for rent to own I don't have any experience with holton what is the consensus here for holton.

mrwizard96

I understand that in the long term lease to own is more expensive but I don't have 800+ to spend on a horn. I don't want to get some piece of crap like a chinese import but I don't want to spend a ton either. After all this is his second year playing.

trumpet_man

I'm no expert, you would be better off disregarding my advice. But I really don't think it would matter a great deal until he gets to highschool. Once he gets to highschool, if he is serious, go with a Bach Strad, or a Yamaha Xeno (what I have). Before highschool, just make sure it plays, you can get one that would be good enough for under $100. But don't get a pocket trumpet, those are fun to play, but have an insane amout of resistance. If I were you, I would get something cheap for now, and save up for something nice (bach strad, yamaha xeno) if he is very serious by the time he gets to highschool

mrwizard96

I can't find a used horn that is under a hundred bucks that isn't some crappy chinese import. Where would you suggest I look?

Jude

Have you asked at the music stores around you whether they have any student horns they've taken in trade? (Or is that the Holton you mentioned?) The place I go to has a pile of them. Not on display, but they're there. They'd prefer to sell you a new horn, of course, but they'd rather sell you a used one than nothing.

misty.sj

What is wrong with the current horn? What's the problem you are trying to solve? My first horn was a Blessing student horn, from a pawn shop, which my parents bought for under $100. It had very little cosmetic damage and played fine. Up until some moron stepped on it in marching band my senior year!

If his current horn is in terrible condition, but you don't want to spend a fortune and are not sure if he will stick with it. I and a couple others here have found the Barrington trumpets from Woodwind & Brasswind to be pretty good for under $200. But understand that a horn like that will have absolutely zero resale value should your son lose interest.

Talk to your local music store, pawn shops, and your high school's band director. Look in the newspaper Classifieds, CraigsList, or the like.

Nobody here is going to tell you 'Buy a Holton' or 'Don't buy a Holton.' That's just a brand, and has produced different quality horns at different time periods, if I understand correctly.

Start with the problem you are trying to solve. And don't rush to do anything in a hurry.

mrwizard96

Thanks for the advice. It isn't that anything is wrong with his current horn other than it belongs to the school and if he has his own then he can play through the summer. I also don't remember saying that I wasn't sure he was going to stick with it. That is an assumption you all are making. I on the other hand know my son very well and know that he will stick with it. Misty, I also was not asking someone to tell me to buy this or buy that when I asked about the holton I was asking peoples opinion in the brand since I had no experience with it.

It is my sons birthday today and we went to the local shops. We ended up picking out a selmer used horn. It is selmer k-modified serial number is 22xxx he loves it. I love it. It has a nice tone to it. It isn't new and the silver is not perfect but it sounds and play great.

Thanks for all the great advice.

Bryan

misty.sj

Sounds like you made a great purchase! That horn should last your son quite a while. :) Nobody meant to imply that your son was not a hard worker. I think a lot of people look for 'lease to own' so that they have not lost a lot of money if their child ends up changing his mind. It seems to me that even better insurance in that case is a used horn with a good resale value, and it is probably a better horn anyway. Did you take any pictures of it? By the way, the silver can be repaired down the road, making the horn look brand new!