Dan's new photos @ oberloh.com

[The Big Ben]

Check it out, brothers and sisters:

http://www.oberloh.com/gallery/tubavalvereferbish.htm" target="_blank

http://www.oberloh.com/gallery/rotaryva ... onpage.htm" target="_blank

It was Groucho or W.C. Fields or Homer Simpson who said:

"I like work. I could watch Dan do it all day long!"

[Naptown Tuba]

Nothing like seeing a master at work. And what cool tools

[oedipoes]

Dan does magic things with brass, that's for sure !

Question, I know he reads this forum sometimes...:

Mr. Oberloh, did you think about starting to build brand new tuba's from scratch?
Your own design, all parts made in-house, custom made on special order.
There's definitely a market for that, if people are buying hand-made M-W Baer, Fafner, Thein, Hirsbrunner or Gronitz...

There must be a very good reason for not starting an own line of instruments.
Maybe lack of time?
Maybe rebuilding instruments id just more profitable? One has to make a living out of it.

Wim

[oedipoes]

bump for my question.

[Bandmaster]

The valves in the photo essay belong Dale, DP on this forum. Dan did the same basic treatment to the valves from my Holton at about the same time. Both Dale's tuba and mne are just about done, so hopefully we'll be getting them back soon.

You can see Dan's work on my valves here - viewtopic.php?f=2&t=9824&start=60

After all my conversations with him, I feel that he has the skills to build a horn from scratch if he really wanted to do it. The bell would be the only hard part to make since he wouldn't have a mandral big enough. I know he has made french bells, so he could probably make a mandral, but that would be very expensive. But then he also likes the non-tuba work that walks in his door, so would he have the time????

[Rick Denney]

...so would he have the time????

And would we be able to afford the product? And are his taper design skills the match of his exquisite machining and reconstruction skills?

There are guys who could make a vintage V8 engine from scratch, even to the point of casting their own block. But considering the necessary skills, and considering that the engine they are copying were basically made by paid-by-the-hour auto workers, it makes one wonder what the cost would be. Even then, they would at best be tweaking an already proven design.

Rick "thinking a tuba must be made in no more than about 200 hours to keep costs under any possible price" Denney

[Donn]

I would think you would only get set up to make tubas, if you were motivated by some idea about how they ought to be made. I mean, if you have a nice shop and you like tubas, maybe you could make them, but there would have to be more motivation than that, given all the work and hassle and unreliable financial rewards.

Maybe you think you have a better idea for a valve layout, or a bell profile, or maybe you think clear plastic is worth a try, and it's important enough to you to go through all that. If not, then it's probably more interesting and profitable to fix them.

[ztuba]

Dan doesn't just do tubas... He also does amazing work all over ... I think the most awesome thing he does is fixing what other people have already made. I think his fabrication skills are much more serving of the music world exactly where he has chosen to place them. I agree however that he would have no problem making and selling new tubas to people like me. I just wonder what would happen to everyone's dreams of having that 5 valve york BBb tuba one day... well with the waiting list going the way I am sure it is ... maybe a decade down the road.... I know mine would be crushed.

[Daniel C. Oberloh]

[Daniel C. Oberloh]

Dan does magic things with brass, that's for sure !

Question, I know he reads this forum sometimes...:

Mr. Oberloh, did you think about starting to build brand new tuba's from scratch?
Your own design, all parts made in-house, custom made on special order.
There's definitely a market for that, if people are buying hand-made M-W Baer, Fafner, Thein, Hirsbrunner or Gronitz...

There must be a very good reason for not starting an own line of instruments.
Maybe lack of time?
Maybe rebuilding instruments id just more profitable? One has to make a living out of it.

Wim

Thanks for the kind words. I really don't think there is a need for another tuba manufacturer. Building brass instruments from scratch is much more easy then rebuilding them. It also requires investing in more tooling (see expensive) that is of little use to repair (spinning lathes, circle shears,etc.). When making instrument, the tooling dictates the shape of the parts and does the lions share of the work until you get to the assembly part; thats where the hand labor kicks in (soldering and polishing). Rebuilding/restoration relies solely on your artistry, hand skills and craftsmanship. I guess thats why there are more folks making tubas then performing high end restorations on them.
I like repairing and rebuilding. Thats what I was trained for and feel very comfortable doing. Making parts for instruments is a lot of fun and an interesting challenge that I don't have to do all day every day.
I also like working on clarinets, flutes, saxophones, oboes, etc. I enjoy working with and instructing my staff who are great guys. Repairing engraving, customizing, performing complicated restorations on rare and/or personally important instruments are all a challenge that keeps things interesting. It might be fun to build a horn and I have considered it but then I look at the projects waiting on the shelf and those on the bench, and the thought of making a horn from scratch quickly dissipates. Thanks again for the nice words.



Daniel C. Oberloh
Oberloh Woodwind and Brass Works
http://www.oberloh.com" target="_blank

[iiipopes]

You know, when he takes a beat up tuba, completely rebuilds the bugle, and puts a front valve section on it in place of the worn out top valve section, but for spinning a bell he's basically built a "new" tuba.

[tubatom91]

I like that shirt Dan!

[imperialbari]

I like the Oberloh designs for their simplicity and lightness. But wouldn’t the one below here rather sound leaky than stuffy?

K

[The Big Ben]

That's the new ZenTuba. Be the tuba, you are the tuba, one with the tuba...

I like the Oberloh designs for their simplicity and lightness. But wouldn’t the one below here rather sound leaky than stuffy?

LV paid extra for this model Hirschberloh. He gets all the metal goodies that go in the middle. The "budget model" comes with a plastic conical tube that goes from the bottom of the mouth pipe to the bottom bow. It is possible to change the key (BBb, CC, Eb, F) by changing the length of the plastic tube. As with all things Hirschberloh, each plastic tube costs $2K. But they certainly are well made.

Jeff "Anyone wanna buy a bridge?" Benedict

[tubatom91]

I like the Oberloh designs for their simplicity and lightness. But wouldn’t the one below here rather sound leaky than stuffy?

I would imagine it to be very free blowing with a fine open tone. at least you wouldn't have to worry about what kind of oil to buy......but then there's the question of that "perfect" mouthpiece for it.

[ztuba]

I am confused now ... in Dan's walk through he says "Mouthpipes,
"First off, last on"". Here is a pic with it on first. Is there a different process for different makes?

[Daniel C. Oberloh]

I am confused now ... in Dan's walk through he says "Mouthpipes,
"First off, last on"". Here is a pic with it on first. Is there a different process for different makes?

You think to much.

In this case, just think of the bell and bow as an extension of the mouth-pipe.


Daniel C. Oberloh

Oberloh Woodwind and Brass Works
Saving the world, one horn at a time...

[Bandmaster]

I am confused now ... in Dan's walk through he says "Mouthpipes,
"First off, last on"". Here is a pic with it on first. Is there a different process for different makes?

If you do think about it, it makes sense. The bell, bottom bow and leadpipe were damaged on a silver tuba. The bell and bow repaired and in need of replating. A new leadpipe made and in need of silver plating. So these parts are assembled and sent to Anderson's to be silver plated so they will match the rest of the horn. Now it all makes sense, right?

[ztuba]

sometimes I do think too much.

[pgym]

I am confused now ... in Dan's walk through he says "Mouthpipes,
"First off, last on"". Here is a pic with it on first. Is there a different process for different makes?

If you do think about it, it makes sense. The bell, bottom bow and leadpipe were damaged on a silver tuba. The bell and bow repaired and in need of replating. A new leadpipe made and in need of silver plating. So these parts are assembled and sent to Anderson's to be silver plated so they will match the rest of the horn. Now it all makes sense, right?

But why attach the leadpipe to the bell before sending the parts off to be plated? If the leadpipe is "first off, last on," wouldn't that require unmounting the leadpipe from the bell when it got back from Anderson, attaching the other parts, then re-attaching the leadpipe? Why not simply send the bell+bow and leadpipe as separate pieces?