Where to find 19" upright bell for older King BBb?

Toad Away · Post by **Toad Away** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 12:20 pm

Any info would be helpful.

Thanks

iiipopes · Post by **iiipopes** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 12:46 pm

Yes, Sam Gnagey and Dan Schultz come to mind as two who work on a lot of King tubas.

The Big Ben · Post by **The Big Ben** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 12:47 pm

I just got a King bell from Sam and it might have been his last one. But you can try.

tubanurse1@verizon.net

Maybe Goodgigs could fund his plastic tuba project by making plastic upright bells for King 2340/1 and Conn 2XJs....

WakinAZ · Post by **WakinAZ** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 2:11 pm

If somebody started manufacturing after-market bells for these horns at a reasonable price point ($300-400?), it would be a license to print money. Dan, maybe you could whisper in the ears of the Chinese outfit that makes those generic Mirafone replacement bells...

Wish I had some venture capital.

Eric "who also bought an upright King bell from Sam" L.

UDELBR · Post by **UDELBR** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 4:54 pm

Meinl-Weston will still make you a CB50 bell, and they fit nicely in the King / White older instruments. You can even specify how large you'd like the small end.

All this for Euros, of course.

WakinAZ · Post by **WakinAZ** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 5:05 pm

Wieviel euros is the question.

Erich

UDELBR · Post by **UDELBR** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 5:53 pm

WakinAZ wrote:Wieviel euros is the question.

Gotta ask 'em yourself. I could only tell you what one cost several years ago.

info@melton.de

Paul Scott · Post by **Paul Scott** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 9:43 pm

I was told that King will still sell these upright bells although they are not cheap. I was surprised by this info. but it came from a very reputable source. I've no idea as to how to go about but you may wish to check it out.

Dan Schultz · Post by **Dan Schultz** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 9:45 pm

WakinAZ wrote:If somebody started manufacturing after-market bells for these horns at a reasonable price point ($300-400?), it would be a license to print money. Dan, maybe you could whisper in the ears of the Chinese outfit that makes those generic Mirafone replacement bells...

Wish I had some venture capital.

Eric "who also bought an upright King bell from Sam" L.

Funny you should mention it. I put together an upright bell from one of those 16 1/2" Mirafone copies and beleive it or not.... it changes the pitch minus 15-20 cents! Same length.... just a smaller bell. I've been trying to get a handle on bell dynamics but this one has got me stumped. By the books.. a smaller flare and the same length should go sharp.... NOT flat. I'm going to meet with an accoustics engineer friend of mine on my trek through the South this week and see what he has to say about it.

Oh... by-the-way.... the idea of a $300-400 NEW bell is just a dream! I don't think THAT's going to happen!

WakinAZ · Post by **WakinAZ** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 10:15 pm

Paul Scott wrote:I was told that King will still sell these upright bells although they are not cheap. I was surprised by this info. but it came from a very reputable source. I've no idea as to how to go about but you may wish to check it out.

Taylor Music had some brand new 19" replacement bells that they got from UMI that they were listing for $750. Ouch - glad I found Sam, but nice to have another option. Apparently UMI is still manufacturing replacement parts for the 1240, 1241 and old style 2340, 2341, or at least they were until recently. Call Bob at Taylor at 800-872-2263.

TubaTinker wrote:the idea of a $300-400 NEW bell is just a dream! I don't think THAT's going to happen!

Well how about $500 -550 installed like you do for the Mirafone replacement bells? If they can clone a Mira bell why not a King bell? Or the even more elusive, and possibly more potentially profitable, Conn upright bells?

Eric "definitely seeing an opportunity to make a decent profit from a serious supply problem" L.

Dan Schultz · Post by **Dan Schultz** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 10:16 pm

Greg wrote:
TubaTinker wrote: Funny you should mention it. I put together an upright bell from one of those 16 1/2" Mirafone copies and beleive it or not.... it changes the pitch minus 15-20 cents! Same length.... just a smaller bell. I've been trying to get a handle on bell dynamics but this one has got me stumped. By the books.. a smaller flare and the same length should go sharp.... NOT flat. I'm going to meet with an accoustics engineer friend of mine on my trek through the South this week and see what he has to say about it.

Oh... by-the-way.... the idea of a $300-400 NEW bell is just a dream! I don't think THAT's going to happen!
So could this be called a "TubaTinkerbell?"