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Recently an old friend, a fiddler with whom I've worked for many years, decided to return to his high school trumpet playing roots. He said that he wanted a "Silver plated shepherd's crook cornet" and if he could find one that played in they key of C so much the better.

Searches on eBay turned up a lovely old (1912 - 1915) J.W. Pepper cornet advertised to be in Bb and C. After we nailed it down I did some cleanup and repairs of old repairs. As it turns out it actually was designed to be played in one of three keys: A, Bb or C.

A truly beautiful instrument, it is engraved from stem to stern - even on the outer tuning slide legs and crooks - and all details are quite well crafted and delicate.
Key of A configuration:

Key of Bb configuration:

Key of C configuration:

General photos:

Wonderful Piece!!! Nice job!

I have a Pepper cornet from the same era very much like yours that's engraved Pepper 'Surprise'. Nice job. I wish mine had all the leadpies. I had to make a Bb one.

Guys, what does dorn mean? I don't want to do a Google search.

If you know you don't want to do a Google search, then you probably already know as much as you want to know.

bort wrote:If you know you don't want to do a Google search, then you probably already know as much as you want to know.

So Horn dorn is NSFW? Like a fetish for instruments?

Hahaha, okay... I thought you were just asking about "dorn."

"Horn dorn" is just a phrase that means posting pictures of attractive instruments, for the sole purpose of ogling them. Still not sure I'd Google the phrase, but it's nothing NSFW.

Great photos! Thanks!

I wonder about the C leadpipe. Does it have a dummy tubing entering the lower receiver for the tuning slide?

Would a few separate photos of the C contraption be possible?

Klaus

Magnificient instrument! I especially like the C leadpipe. Does it have different individual valve slides for the various pitches, or do you just keep pulling until the individual valve circuits are in tune?

imperialbari wrote:Does it have a dummy tubing entering the lower receiver for the tuning slide?

It appears to me the C crook is tuned at the leadpipe like a flugelhorn.

TubaTinker wrote:I have a Pepper cornet from the same era very much like yours that's engraved Pepper 'Surprise'. Nice job. I wish mine had all the leadpies. I had to make a Bb one.

I'm not up on the model names, does the "Surprise" have an over-abundance of engraving like this one?

And yes it's nice when all of the parts are present. JR is a happy camper.

imperialbari wrote:Great photos! Thanks!

I wonder about the C leadpipe. Does it have a dummy tubing entering the lower receiver for the tuning slide?

Would a few separate photos of the C contraption be possible?

Klaus

I will do that ASAP Klaus. The bottom "slide" bit is nothing more than an alignment piece, all of the air goes through the leadpipe into the top part of the horn's leadpipe circuit.

iiipopes wrote:Magnificient instrument! I especially like the C leadpipe. Does it have different individual valve slides for the various pitches, or do you just keep pulling until the individual valve circuits are in tune?

The big change is swapping the MTS for the C leadpipe mechanism. A and Bb use the same MTS but with different leadpipes. The tuning slides are marked for Bb, for A one guesses (or today uses a quartz tuner).

The C leadpipe shortens the horn to match and yes, the small leadpipe for C is a tuning slide with additional lower travel available by pulling the whole leadpipe assembly.

Now waiting to hear "Tin Roof Blues" and the like emanating from its bell.

bigtubby wrote:

TubaTinker wrote:I have a Pepper cornet from the same era very much like yours that's engraved Pepper 'Surprise'. Nice job. I wish mine had all the leadpies. I had to make a Bb one.

I'm not up on the model names, does the "Surprise" have an over-abundance of engraving like this one?....

Yes. Lots of engraving. Here are a few images....