brp247

I have a La Benge ML with sn # 423**. What year was it made, and is it considerd a good horn. Also how much would it cost to get it refinished

londonhusker

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djm6701

The Los Angeles-era Benges are very good horns. You have a horn built late in the time Benges were manufactured in Los Angeles, after which UMI bought the product line and the quality went downhill.

If you are interested in having the horn rebuilt or repaired, the best bet is to contact Kanstul Musical Instruments www.kanstul.com in Anaheim, California. The owner, Zig Kanstul, was the former Benge shop forman, and his company owns the original Benge tooling. They make, among many models, horns that are essentially the original Benge models and they are very highly spoken of. He would easily be able to restore your horn, make any necessary parts, etc.

You can read more about the history of Benge here:

http://www.dallasmusic.org/gearhead/Benge.html

felix c

My Benge Flugel its on the same Range 423xx. The original owner tell tht buy it new in 1985 Its read USA on the bell. I have seen other LA Benges in the 424xx an the owners tells that are from 1982 read Los Angeles Calif.. I have seem Ohio benges in the 100xxx range (the first USA on the bell) from 1986. My USA 3x+ was ordered from Giardinelli and they have to order to the factory the s/n begins with 999xxx from 1987.
Last Los Angeles Horns were from 1982 till 1985