The rebirth of a Holton 345 has started...

[Mark]

I think Dan O. should have the honor of the first dent.

You clearly don't know Dan. If he gave the first dent, he would feel compelled to fix. Then it would have no dents and thus be ready for a first dent. You can imagine where this would lead...

[bort]

I think Dan O. should have the honor of the first dent.

You clearly don't know Dan. If he gave the first dent, he would feel compelled to fix. Then it would have no dents and thus be ready for a first dent. You can imagine where this would lead...

Certainly tongue in cheek. I don't know Dan well, but it's quite obvious this thing ain't gonna have 1 scratch on it. Not on his watch, especially not after 5 years of rebuilding.

[sloan]

I think Dan O. should have the honor of the first dent.

You clearly don't know Dan. If he gave the first dent, he would feel compelled to fix. Then it would have no dents and thus be ready for a first dent. You can imagine where this would lead...

Would actual music ever result?

[tubaforce]

That piece of art is certainly worth the wait if it plays as nice as it looks! Oberloh's restorations are so much more than restorations, they have been "corrected" if needed, and will play better than they ever did new! Dan puts the same 110% into everything I've seen in his shop! I am still very pleased with the old Beuscher Euphonium he did for me! and I didn't even wait quite a year! Happy playing! Al.

[Daniel C. Oberloh]

Having received Dave's tuba back from plate, today I started the process of lapping in the slides and valves. Its a tedious process but very necessary if you want them to operate properly.

It took a good part of the day but I managed to get things squared away and moved on to the last stage before assembly, final color buffing.

Color buffing is the stage that brings out the true bright luster of brass and silver. Its a process that calls for a good deal of skill and understanding of just what is going on in the process. The right compound is applied to the right size wheel, made of the right material, spinning at the right RPM. There is a lot more involved then just rubbing the metal on the spinning buff. This process took me about one hour with very nice results.


During this stage you have to be really careful. An accident could cause very serious damage to the instrument and worse, serious injury to the polisher.

I am fortunate that I have physical size on my side, it helps a great deal when it comes to polishing large pieces such as Dave's horn.


Even so, I had to take a few breaks during the process as this kind of work is pretty rough on the lower back. It is tough and very exhausting work. Paul helped me out this evening with the degreasing and final cleanup. Tomorrow we assemble.

Daniel C. Oberloh
Oberloh Woodwind and Brass Works
http://www.oberloh.com" target="_blank"

[bisontuba]

It is a work of art-gorgeous!
mark

[Bandmaster]

It's looking great Dan. I'll be there next Thursday to pick it up!

Now, what enveryone wants to know... what music do you listen to while color buffing a Holton? I noted the earbuds you are wearing in the photos.... the wire even goes up under the noise protection earphones.

There are a group of fine musicians ready to test play it I hear, so I want comments.... I want this horn to have a good reputation as well as look pretty.

[bberlien]

I had the fortune of playing this instrument tonight and the owner will certainly be satisfied with all of Dan's efforts. Mechanically, it's a new horn. Dan was watching the tuner while I played, and the intonation was as expected; it plays like a 6/4 tuba (I play one as my main horn and nothing seemed out of the norm). Also as expected, the horn has the dark, clear, full voice a Holton 6/4 should. There were no wonky notes - basically played like any modern professional tuba.

All said, congrats to Dan, and a tip of the hat for all of his craftsmanship on this one. At the end of the day, it looks and plays like a brand new instrument. Given the long, LONG list of issues that were addressed with this particular tuba, that's saying a whole lot.

[Bandmaster]

I showed at Dan's shop yesterday just before noon to pick up my new Holton 345 and was not disappointed.... WOW! It looks absolutely fabulous and plays even better! Dan also fixed a screwed up valve job on my old 1919 Martin Helicon that Sawday and Holmes in Long Beach did a while back. So I'm a happy camper right now. Just stopped while on the drive home to post these photos... enjoy!

[tbn.al]

Hate to tell ya'...That stage only takes about an hour and half to reach. ' hope he finds time to do the other 80 for ya' pretty soon...

...Your Holton has no upper/lower bow caps - only guard wire...? (That should speed up the job a bit!)

Unbeknownst to us, bloke was waxing prophetic back in '05. It sure is a pretty thing now though! Sometimes real art takes a while.

[TubaTodd]

Wow....just wow!! I think this comparison really brings out the depth of this task and the quality of the craftsmanship. I've got to say, that looks like a brand-new Holton.

[THE TUBA]

WOW. Bravo!

[Rev Rob]

Outstanding work and I hope well worth the wait.

[MartyNeilan]

Daniel C. Oberloh
Oberloh Woodwind and Brass Works
http://www.oberloh.com" target="_blank" target="_blank"

Inquiring minds want to know...
What WERE you listening to???

[bort]

I'd both love and hate to know what the final price tag is on that repair bill. But if it looks like a new 6/4 BAT, plays like a new 6/4 BAT...

[tofu]

My guess is that the repair bill probably doesn't come close to representing what the true cost is. My sense is that Dan takes on these specific mega projects because he enjoys bringing these special old girls back to life and in many ways he makes them much improved over the day they were originally built. He is a master craftsman who takes pride in his work and isn't just satisified with making it workable or merely pretty. I would guess that is why he takes them on with the agreement with the owners that he will "work" on them in his extra time when he has a chance and the owners willingly agree knowing that few folks have the unique and specific skill sets/knowledge/attention to detail/tuba design-repair-and playing knowledge and intense desire to get it "right". The owners know that while a repair/restoration of this magnitude is never cheap the price they pay is nowhere close to what it would be if Dan really charged them by the hour for the amount of time he spends on them. I think they are more than happy to pay the bill because they end up with something very special.

[Wyvern]

My guess is that with the attention to detail put in my Dan, the finished 345 is every bit as good as a new handmade BAT, so whatever the cost, it was worth it!

[tubaforce]

We'll probably never know exactly how much the cost was, but I remember some numbers were thrown out in some of the earlier posts! This sort of job is (IMHO) akin to buying art. How do you put a money amount on the talent, or the inspiration of the artist/craftsman? My sister is a gifted potter, and never considers how much she's "making"! Any way, I'll bet Mr Bandmaster has done way better than break even vs. a new 6/4 axe! And he has a lot more personal connection to the axe! Finding a deal on it, driving it to Seattle, following the progress of the restoration, and all the other intangibles... Al.

[Bandmaster]

As Dan explained it to me, the Holton 345 was handmade by the techs at Holton back in the day and what Dan did was all by hand, so the horn really is "handmade!" All the bows and branches were hand hammered and brazed together by the artisians at Holton because so few horns were ordered, they never made the molds to do hydroforming. Originally this job was just supposed to be a "fix it up and make it look better" job, but I guess too many phone conversations and wishful thinking got the better of us and we got carried away.

Dan says that this job was break-even at best, and that this thread was the reason he kept with it. He has gotten several (maybe more than several) repair and overhaul jobs into his shop because of what people saw here. So that made it worth his while it seems. Plus there is a certain part of him that wants to prove what he is capable of doing, how good are his skills. The bill to me was a little over $7,000 plus the instruments that I traded to him. How much is a handmade horn worth? I could never afford to buy my own horn when I was in college. To each his own I guess, but I also like the thought of restorating something old back to its former glory. I've always liked old things, cars, houses, etc. Of all the tubas I own, my Hoton is the youngest at 1966 vintage. I left my 1939 York BBb with Dan to fix up, but this one will not be the big job the Holton was. No patches to fix, no major issues to deal with on that one. Just a damaged 4th valve, a new leadpipe and a few dents on the bell stack.

Thank you to all of you for following this thread and commenting on the process!

[tubaforce]

I'll bet your Holton is more like a '32 ford completely restored, and then treated to modern disc brakes and a 351! Al.