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My horn is in need of some work and is going to be headed to the shop.

I was thinking of selling, but lately I have been thinking about a few mods instead. I really love this horn. Sometimes (rarely) I need just a little extra out of it for the bigger orchestra stuff.

I was thinking of putting on a new Kanstul bell , moving the the leadpipe off the bell and removing the fifth valve.

Any thoughts??

Thanks!

I suggest you get in touch with Lee Stofer and possibly arrange to go see him. He probably be about the best qualified to help you make a decision along that line of possible action. I'm sure you would find himvery helpful and a straight shooter.

I'm hoping he will see this post and chime in. I have been to his shop before.

USStuba04 wrote: I was thinking of ... removing the fifth valve.

Does playing a fairly easily in-tune low F and below annoy you?

USStuba04 wrote: I really love this horn.
I have been thinking about a few mods.

Thanks!

I did some editing to make a point.

And anyway, for what a new bell and leadpipe would cost, you could probably find something on the used market that will give you a little more sound for rare use that won't permanently change a setup that you already love.

Dan Schultz also is good with bell switching, and usually has a good stock; as is also Matt Walters and Dan Oberloh. All these guys are good at predicting what a different bell will do for a horn.

There isn't going to be any amount of parts swaping that is going to make a G-50 play significantly (or even noticeably) "bigger." It's a compact 4/4 tuba and that's all it's ever going to be.

If you've just got the itch to experiment, consider getting an actual York Moster Eb bell fitted to the horn rather than a Kanstul.

Regarding the leadpipe and fifth valve, unless you want to complitely eliminate the 5th valve, don't bother removing it and the leadpipe because there is nowhere else on the horn to fit a 5th valve. The legs on the main slide are too short, and the 4th valve wrap is already tight...I wouldn't even consider adding a dependent 5th there. The Rusk cut leadpipe 5th valves always actually worked pretty well, in my opinion, and offered up good response.

Going a step further, I would say that a lot of the current offerings are TOO OPEN and really could benefit from some added resistance, especially when it comes to the low register. A lot of the hot "tweaks" and "improved models" that have come out in the last decade or so have all been designed to increase resistance with smaller leadpipes, smaller diameter 4th or 5th valves and branches, etc. There also seems to be a trend away from large mouthpieces to smaller, more middle of the road models.

G-50s are big enough and designed well enough to play in an orchestra on the smaller and lighter works. It's not the best choice for the real big stuff, but that can be done, too. Call Dave Fedderly and ask him about all of the orchestra work he did with his.

Sounds expensive...

I had a similar idea with my old Marzan. But I realized that for the amount I'd have to spend on the parts/labor to make the changes (and *hope* I liked it better afterwards), I could save the money, sell the tuba, and get what I really wanted.

Neat idea, but maybe try an entire Kanstul first...?

If you want it to play bigger, gett a bigger ax. These are perfect little wonders as they are, and for their size they eek out more power than their modest stature would indicate. Messing with it would probably cut the resale value for when you realize it didn't work out the way you'd hope.

J.c.S. (big, big fan of the G50!).