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So a school here locally got 4 new 20k sousaphones, and they only have one tuba player so i figure why not borrow one and play test it... well I think it plays pretty dang well ... I was having to really play loudly to get it to blat... a couple really high notes wouldn't give me a place to call their home, but I think it is a very good horn ... then as i am putting it back in its very awesome case... (tangent... the new yamaha shoulder pad actually works... no padding just makes the round surface flat and distributes the weight of the horn over your entire shoulder instead of just one spot... genious) so anyway back to getting it back in the case ... the little "guard wire" pieces of brass that I know and love on sousaphones ... one of them looks like it is coming off so, I being the aspiring repairman, pull up slightly with my finger to see if it is solder coming loose. To my horror it was not solder ... it is stinkin tape!!!! The guard wires are plastic and they are taped on the horn. I almost want to take them all off to see what the horn really plays like. I wonder how the tape is going to hold up in Vegas in 120+ heat. Has anyone used one of these new sousaphones with the plastic parts in hot weather for extended periods of time? What if anything happened?

I was involved in the purchase of 4 or 6 new Conn 20K sousaphones for a Marine Corps field band about two years ago. We noticed the banding right away was not metal and also the plating job was horrific. There was excess plating material at the joints inside the horn which caused it to flutter when playing. Horrible sound. After a series of phone calls we were able to get a hold of a rep at Conn who stated the plating material could be removed with a toilet brush and the adhesive that was used for the banding was the same as that used in car racing. We asked them what would happen to the banding or any other part of the horn if we ultrasonically cleaned it and after a few days we were told it would be fine. Hope this helps. By the way we traded all of our initial horns in for new ones which were plated better.

Doesn’t plating on the inside joints show that the joints are leaky?

Klaus

I would make one suggestion: Yamaha brass sousaphones--excellent tone, lacquer is 1st rate, pison action is great--peddle E to C above the staff no problem at all. My alma mater (Univ. of Houston) bought 20 of them last year and the first set of 8 they purchased 26 years ago are still in service today (and you don't have to deal with the issue of polishing silver plate!)

JJ

about the tape thing...I know that the King 1141's guard wire is the same way.
I guess as I think about it...I bet it's a thing of Conn-Selmer marching horns...I talked to a rep during the season and he claimed that it had to do with the fact that they didn't have a way for the guard wire to bend with the horn in the case of a dent...
I think they need to step up their game!

I've used some of the new plastic replacement guard wire material... some of it on my personal King 1241/2341. I like it! It's a heck of a lot easier to put on than the convention brass bow guards and also probably offers better protection, too. The adhesive is automotive-quality so heat/cold/moisture, etc should not cause any problems.

Something that band directors need to consider the cost difference of having the real brass bow guards put back on horns as opposed to putting on the new plastic ones. For dent work on sousa and tuba bows, most of the time those old brass guards have to come off anyway.

Acoustics? Naw.... those plastic strips aren't going to cause any adverse intonation or resonance issues. At least not any more than putting on pads, hanging on to the leadpipe, or wrapping the horn around your body in the first place.

To bad ! for us players Conn isnt the company we knew and loved in past years , but then again not much is .

Are the Conn 20K’s delivered for US military bands equipped with plastic fenders as described?

Klaus

imperialbari wrote:Are the Conn 20K’s delivered for US military bands equipped with plastic fenders as described?

Klaus

I'm getting ready to order some, but this may change my mind! I'll let you know if/when we purchase them.

Don't get me wrong guys the sousaphone still plays 100% like a conn 20k. I think tubatinker hit it on the head when he said that bit about simpler and more cost efficient repairs ... I haven't noticed anything bad about the plastic ... in fact this sousaphone actually has some ring on it more like a Yamaha sousaphone ... but it still plays like a 20k which in my opinion is way better. I kind of wonder what the horn plays like without the guards ... has anyone with these tried taking off the guards and played the naked horn?? Not feesable for schools and stuff but for a pro who is very careful about bumping into junk...