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I'm not 80 but I did pick up one of the little weril CC horns and love the light weight. It centers pretty well and the intonation doesn't get too squirely. I imagine their BBb horn is very similar.

My 6th grade son plays a 3/4 besson at school that's a little stuffy - I picked up a well used MW BBb 11 as a 'practice horn' to have at the house - it's nice and small, a bit bigger than the Besson and Weril - IMHO it doesn't center as well as the Weril (keep in mind it's well used and may have other issues - I've only had the major dents taken out of it - not a full overhaul).

Others may have good options.

Send him in the direction of a Yamaha 103 (if he wants front valves) and a Yamaha 105 (if he wants upright). Both are 3/4 size tubas that play pretty well. I would also suggest a strap to aid in the holding (if he isn't doing that already).

Miraphone 184.

circusboy wrote:Miraphone 184.

I have a 184 Bbb. Although this is a very nice playing horn, and is 3/4 size, it is still a fairly heavy horn for it's size. Might not be exactly what he is looking for.

Allthumbs wrote:I had a 184-5u and I agree that it would be a bit heavy. It would also be out of his budget.

Thanks for the responses.

What *is* his budget? $0-500? $500-1500? Under $2K? Should be easy to pick something up in the $500-1500 range.

I play a Yamaha YBB 103 for my Dixie Band (13 Lbs) & I play a Joseph Lidl LBB-701 (15 Lbs) for a Concert Band I play in.
Both instruments are listed as 3/4 size.
Both suit my needs as I am 70 Years old & don't want a instrument that will break my back lugging it around.
I hope you find a instrument for your friend. The YBB 103 comes up quite often on that auction site & there is one on Bass Cleff Brass site.

Allthumbs wrote:

What *is* his budget? $0-500? $500-1500? Under $2K? Should be easy to pick something up in the $500-1500 range.[/quote]

Yes.

His budget is in the $500-$1200 range, maybe a bit more.

It's hard to deal with inflation when you get older. I, in fact, find myself 1-2 decades behind prices sometimes. In my head I know it to be worth X, but the market now says 2X or 3X. Ouch![/quote]

I hear ya on the prices.

Baltimore Brass has a little Dynasty which looks like a clone of a King 1140. They are asking $695 and it comes with a case. The picture looks good- probably dent free (or minor) and shiny. Not sure of their tryout/return policy but you could ask. David Fedderly has a good reputation.

I have a King 1140 and it is pretty light. It has a small bore and it doesn't take much air to fill it up. I can overblow it fairly easily but I'm using a Helleberg which is a big mouthpiece for a horn this size. I like the sound and, even though I'm not much of a tuba player yet, I can play it in tune fairly easily. The 1140 is designed as a low-cost, beginner's tuba and, if the Dynasty plays as well, I think the old fellow might be happy with this horn.

http://www.baltimorebrass.net

EDIT:

Dillon Music has a Meinl-Weston 11 4 valve upright with is a small horn for $1795 if he can go that high. It's convertible to a marching horn which means it is light enough to be lifted onto the shoulders- not that the old boy is going to do any marching. Otherwise, it is a straightforward 4v upright horn.

http://www.dillonmusic.com

Jeff "Hoping to be playing at 80" Benedict

The Weimar I have had up for sale has a bigger bell and a warmer sound than a 184, and is much lighter. HOWEVER, since it is a CC tuba and has "German CC tuba" intonation tendencies, he may not be looking to relearn all his fingerings. With a large mouthpiece I would not have any reservations playing this horn in a small to medium sized group.

I'm not sure that the sound that comes out of a 184 is exactly the type of sound that is most associated with a "concert band".

When you are pushing 80 I don't think that you are too concerned about the type of sound associated with a concert band as much as being able to carry the instrument to all the practices/concerts etc.

I used my YBB 103 in a concert band it was not the full sound that I wanted but it worked until I got the Lidl LBB 701.

The YBB on Bass Cleff Brass is listed at $ 1,300.00.

the "old man" was described as saying he wanted upright valves. Coming off a Brit-made horn, I'd say he doesn't want a 184 or anything with front, or most appropriately, side valves.

The Yamaha YBB 104 fits this, as does the 105. 104 is better, IMO, but if he could be convinced to pursue the front pistons, the 103 or the fore-mentioned Weril 680 are both great. I'm very partial to both, found the Weril before a suitable 103, and don't regret it.

Conn 12j ? it's pretty small to me (being 6' 02" and weighing 270 haha)

Not top-action horns, but an Olds or Reynolds 0-99 might be a good choice. Not sure of the exact model numbers. 15 3/4" bell. Nice sound for a small tuba.

Another thread talks somewhere has a guy with a Lidl BBb that has both light weight and a good tone.

In my opinion (somewhat biased since I own one) the Lidl is one of the best smaller BBb tubas that money can buy. It can produce a lot of sound for its 3/4 size and its 15 lb. weight makes it perfect for the older player.

The bore size on these is .720" and it has a 16.5" bell. It's also a front action, 4 rotary valve horn with miniball linkage. The horn is very well made.

The problem is that new Lidls are very hard to find in the US and used ones rarely come up for sale. They've also gotten very pricey as anything coming from Europe is these days. Steve Ferguson has one right now (www.hornguys.com) and it's listed for $3600 (with hard case). I do think it's worth the $$.

There is an attractive little Mahillion 4 valver on Ebay right now. Looks rather like the model Howard Johnson used to play. Anyone have experience with them?

Another suggestion would be the Amati ABB323. It's a 4 front valve BBb. It's not the greatest horn in the world, but it's fairly light & does the job for this "old man" (52).

I wanted to post an update on my friends tuba search. I gave him a variety of options and he is patiently considering the purchase of an Asian copy of a King 1140.

What is the Brand name on the Asian copy?? Maybe someone on this site can give you some information as to intonation & anything else about that Brand.

My $ 0.02 cents worth.

If he wants a King 1140, get a King 1140, or a Conn 5J, Yammy 1XX equivalent, or other mainstream equivalent, like the Olds. The overall Chinese market just doesn't have the consistency and reliability of manufacture yet to be recommended.

If he wants to spend bucks on a really good horn, and upright valves are not an issue, a used M-W 11 is also a great horn, especially when used with a deep funnel like a Conn 120 S Helleberg or Wick 3L. A friend of mine who is primarily a bass trombonist uses this combination for doubling, and it definitely holds its own in all ensembles. From the M-W website:

4 piston steel valves
Bore: .630in
Bell diameter: 15in
Height: 34in

He sounds like a cool guy. Hope he enjoys his horn. If it is checked out by a respected tech like Matt Walters, it will be a good horn.

Jeff

It's definately a tuba, and way under his budget...


http://cgi.ebay.com/Conn-euphonium-bari ... otohosting

Might not hurt to ask the seller a question or two.