Lee Stofer - Repair Guru

[Eupher6]

After having done a search on "Lee Stofer" in this web forum and finding not less than 63 pages of posts that reference his name, I'm not telling anybody much of anything. But I would like to relate my recent experience with Lee.

I'm located in north-central Missouri and finding an excellent, reputable, and somewhat local repair guy has been problematical in the 2.5 years I've lived here.

Like everyone else, I'm fussy about who works on my horns. I've had things done to my horns in the past that were inexcusable, so I'm particular these days.

Just recently, I bought a Mirafone 184 three-quarter sized tuba in BBb. I wanted to get the horn checked out, cleaned, etc. And even with my new Sterling Virtuoso euph, there were aspects about the horn (valve caps sans any kind of noise-reducing agent, for example; along with taking a long look at the trigger linkage and trying to figure out a way to ease disassembly; and one or two other ideas) that I wanted to discuss with said repairman.

My bass trombone's upper section internals had never seen the light of day since I bought it slightly used in 2005.

For all these reasons, I needed a good repairman.

Lee Stofer is a retired Army bandsman, as I am. While he and I never served together, we do know many of the same people.

To cut to the chase on this story, let me say that it's my sense that Lee Stofer is a fabulous repairman. Put simply, he cares about the horns he's working on.

The end result is, the tuba I bought turned out to be an excellent buy. Lee gave it the once-over and pronounced it free of red rot and other debilitating problems. He cleaned it, gave it the acid dip, disassembled the valves, lubricated them, removed most of the dents, and otherwise gave me back a horn that'll serve me well for the next couple of years before the next visit.

While I was standing in his shop on a Sunday afternoon (yesterday), Lee addressed my concerns with the Sterling and gave me back a horn with valves that are faster than they've ever been, and quiet. He registered the valves, found them "off" from Sterling's own settings, and put felts and corks where they were needed. He removed a tiny ding in the bottom bow and we made further arrangements for some custom work that I'd like him to do, probably in February or March.

As to the bass trombone, I explained what I was looking for and he'll take a look at it over the next week or so. I have every confidence that he'll deliver a horn that is better than new.

I can't say enough good stuff about Lee Stofer. He's the kind of repair guy we all want to have - and for me, since he's located in NE Iowa, he's relatively close (270 miles, one-way). The drive is a lengthy one and makes for a full day, but I'd rather do that than trust any delivery system.

Lee will get my continued business.

Oh, and he's very, very reasonable with his prices.

Lee is at http://www.tubameister.com

Allen Lawless

[TubaRay]

Thanks for the report on Lee Stofer. It seems that we should probably start a file on him. I believe it would be filled with similar endorsements. He treats musical instruments with great care, and is a fine man, as well.

[tbn.al]

Glad you found Lee. BTW that's not the first time that particular 184 has been in his shop. Nice to know it will be well cared for again.

[imperialbari]

Isn’t that Guru-outfit a bit light for the Iowa climate?

K

[tubatom91]

Isn’t that Guru-outfit a bit light for the Iowa climate?

K

'pends on how high the corn is.

[Eupher6]

Glad you found Lee. BTW that's not the first time that particular 184 has been in his shop. Nice to know it will be well cared for again.

Interesting. He didn't mention that he'd seen that one before. But then again, I'm sure it might be hard keeping track of all those tubas. He definitely had a few in his shop.

[tubaguy9]

I went there for a visit to his shop and to see his set up as a repair student...he is quite a great individual to talk to and to be around. He cares for the best of the people, and not just to make money. He gave me several repair tips when I was there and showed me one of the horns he had in the shop, a Rudy Meinl 6/4, which was HUGE with something around a .800 bore...If I wasn't a repairman myself, he would be a repairman that I would trust to do pretty much anything on my horn.

[tbn.al]

Glad you found Lee. BTW that's not the first time that particular 184 has been in his shop. Nice to know it will be well cared for again.

Interesting. He didn't mention that he'd seen that one before. But then again, I'm sure it might be hard keeping track of all those tubas. He definitely had a few in his shop.

Al he did to that particular tuba was repair a nasty dent in one of the small branches and align and smooth out the 1st valve slide so I could use it like a trombone slide. Mention my name next time and tell him we are ready to welcome him back south when he gets tired of the snow.

[imperialbari]

Mention my name next time and tell him we are ready to welcome him back south when he gets tired of the snow.

You shouldn’t expect Lee coming back south. One hos the Iowa attractions is that he is assisted by a relative of Steve Ferguson of Hornguys:

Fergie.jpg

K