mtsusean

Greetings all, I'm a new member and first-time poster.

I have a Model 37 I purchased in 1998. I was always under the spell of owning a silver Bach and purchased one as a college graduation present for myself.

In about 2000 I sent it to Bob Reeves for an alignment. It worked great after the alignment. Due to some military obligations over the last 26 months though the trumpet hasn't seen much use.

About 6 weeks ago I took it to a guy to look at the #2 valve. It was slow and sluggish. He put some majic to it and corrected that problem. Soon after, the #1 valve started acting up.

What's going on with that #1 valve is that after depressing the valve, it will come up ~ 1/4 way and sort of "hang" then release. I have looked it over till I'm blue and don't see anything mechanical. I took it back to my repair guy and he "fixed" or so he thought, the nylon guide. I played it that night and the problem resurfaced.

I'm almost of the opinion that there is some sort of vacuum problem in the valve and casing. I can't see anything wrong with the guide, spring, stem, cap, etc. I don't have any kind of ball or inside caliper to measure the casing.

I need the trumpet fixed by next Thursday. I plan on calling Bob Reeves tomorrow to see what kind of turnaround they have or can do on it. In the interim though, does anyone have any suggestions on what to check, evaluate, try or attempt to help? I took the first slide out, tried the up and down motion with it out, removed the bottom cap, tried it without the spring, basically everything I could think of to isolate the problem. Nothing.

Oh. And the loaded question. If I fixed it and decided to sell it, in the $1,000 price range, what's the best manufacturer out there? Sure, there are a thousand options but I'm curious to see what compares or outperforms the Bach offerings.


Thanks

Sean

W Scott

Well, first things first. The trumpet has been sititing for about two years, right? When was the last time the trumpet was taken apart and everything dunked into a bathtub of soapy water?

If that's been done, and doesn't correct the problem, then try laying the 1st and 3rd valve on a towel, assembled and side by side. Do these two valves look absolutely alike? While you're doing this, go through and check to make sure that all of the numbered parts of the valves that Bob Reeves inserted are with the correct valve. Some of the markings are so tiny, I use a magnifying glass to make sure. Also, on my Conns' valves there are very small felt pads that can get 'stuck' in the wrong spot on the valve stem components and will cause the valve to stick.

So, look very carefully at that third valve. Really check the numbered components of the 1st and 2nd valves. If these steps don't fix the problem, then you will probably have to send it to Bob Reeves or Steve Wynan.

As for what $1,000 will get you? Not too much that's new. You can get some really good, vintage horns and put them into excellent shape for that money. Follow the E-Bay listings for a week or two and you'll have a good idea what's out there.

Bill

mtsusean

It's been thoroughly cleaned, scrubbed and lubed. I guess I'll drop it in UPS today and see if I can rent or borrow something locally for a while.

A.N.A. Mendez

I'd be glad to give you a loaner if you are close?

mtsusean

Thanks for the offer on the loaner. I contacted Reeves and the recommended I try the local guy again. I dropped it this morning and discussed it the repair guy and he's going to try a couple of different things. It's almost as if the trumpet has been dropped or damaged but it hasn't.

Oh well.

I'll check on it again Monday.