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Would this Ziess tuba be in the key of BBb or CC? Would it be worth to purchase for under $1000 with no case?

With the height of the body compared to the bell, and the "dogleg" going into the main tuning slide, this is probably BBb. Does it blow? Any tuba in good condition that will play even marginally well is worth $1K. Like many rotaries, it may have the "flat fifth partial" syndrome.

I'll vote BBb too. If that's what you're looking for, you could do a lot worse.

Karl Ziess was a stencil name- different manufacturers made tubas for whoever used this name. Several possibilities are Boland & Fuchs, Cerveny and B&S. This one isn't a B&S. Someone like TubaTinker would probably recognize it.

But for that price? Buy it, as long as it's in the key you want and works reasonably well, even if it needs a little TLC. These horns were generally good players, and some could be better than good.

As another poster already mentioned... this is not a B & S/VMI. The chance of it being a CC is very slim. Sometimes characteristics are difficult to catagorize because hardware components could have been purchased from several manufacturers. The harness loop backing plates look Alex. The brace between the main tuning slide and bottom bow looks like Bohland & Fuchs. The backing plate on the thumbring looks Amati/Cerveny.

I think I'll go with Bohland & Fuchs on this one.

ITS AN AMAITI MODEL 68