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Reynolds Contempora double-trig bass bone

Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 5:21 am
by funkcicle
For all you doublers, I listed this last night.. feel free to pass it along.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... 0249679909" target="_blank" target="_blank
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Re: Reynolds Contempora double-trig bass bone

Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 3:06 pm
by MartyNeilan
Congrats on the successful sale. I had a well-worn version of one of these a few years back.
Some observations:
The 'E' trigger was probably the first true double trigger on a bass trombone. The slide is very short, and pull is limited by the wrap. However, a repairman can easily make you an Eb or D slide with an offset bend in it. This will help keep the low range away from the far end of the slide.
The rotors blow very tight. I have read that having them "scooped" makes a big difference in the blow.
I never had a problem with the side-by-side double trigger, but they have definitely fallen out of fashion. A competent repairman can fabricate a split thumb-trigger linkage.
These horns DO NOT work with a huge mouthpiece. They were designed for something no bigger than the typical 1.5G size.
Tended a little on the flat side even with tuning slide all the way in, had it cut about 1/8".
Despite the 10" bell flare, I seem to remember the bell throat and maybe even the tuning slide being a little smaller than most contemporary bass bones.
Very dark sound when soft, very "in your face" when loud.
Great bigband horn, probably would not be in keeping with current orchestral or wind ensemble horn choices.
Mine did not have a slide lock, it had the springs that allowed you to go in a little sharper than 1st for flat partials. From the pics, this looks like it may have the slide lock.

I was watching this horn for a while, if it stayed near its starting price I would have tried to grab it as a bigband / commercial horn.

Re: Reynolds Contempora double-trig bass bone

Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 5:47 pm
by funkcicle
Thanks Marty! It actually sold for $100 more than my Buy-it-Now price which also would have included free shipping, so my morale is pretty high today :tuba: