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where can you buy colored/custom finger buttons?

Dillon Music at least used to carry several colors and styles of finger buttons for tubas.

You can take the pearls out and put about anything you want back in. If you like the big plain brass ones... take out the pearls and file off the ridge around the edge of the top. Then solder brass discs or quarters on. It's not a good idea to switch finger buttons for a couple of reasons... 1) there are at least three different threads inside the stems 2) on some horns the depth of the underside of the button is important to regulate how far the piston travels.

TubaTinker wrote:Then solder brass discs or quarters on.

If you travel overseas a lot, you can demonstrate your worldliness by soldering coins of different currency onto your buttons.

2) on some horns the depth of the underside of the button is important to regulate how far the piston travels.

Ditto to that.

If you like the look of that bi-metal Italian coin, you might try looking at Canadian coins. They have a $2 coin (affectionately known as a "tooney" or "twooney") that is also bi-metal. These are readily available.