Ways to pay for a tuba?

[TexTuba]

Sell drugs?

[Todd S. Malicoate]

Work hard and save up?

Yeah, I know...it's not such an obvious answer these days...

[bort]

Though I haven't done it myself, getting a second (or first??) job can bump up your bank account quickly.

Work 16 hours/week at $8/hr and that's already an extra $512 per month.

That, and cut out the BS expenses you have right now. Get rid of cable TV, cheaper cell-phone plan, eat Ramen noodles for lunch every day... you'll be surprised how much you can save if you... set a budget and stick to it!

[shovelingtom]

1. Collect underpants
2. ?
3. PROFIT!

Basically, I'm putting back 25-200 a month, along with everything I make selling on etsy and eBay. I still haven't bought a tuba (despite looking for right at a year now), but when I do it (a.) will be something nice, and not the first bargain junker I can afford and (b.) not put me into any sort of debt and (c.) be all the sweeter due to the delayed gratification.

[Dylan King]

Proverbs 28:20
A faithful man will abound with blessings,
But he who hastens to be rich will not go unpunished.

Proverbs 22:4
By humility and the fear of the LORD
Are riches and honor and life.

Psalm 37:4
Delight yourself also in the LORD,
And He shall give you the desires of your heart.

Matthew 21:22
And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.

1 John 5:14
Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.

[Kayla]

^=== above, and...

Ask Grandma?

[katietes]

1. Collect underpants
2. ?
3. PROFIT!

Basically, I'm putting back 25-200 a month, along with everything I make selling on etsy and eBay. I still haven't bought a tuba (despite looking for right at a year now), but when I do it (a.) will be something nice, and not the first bargain junker I can afford and (b.) not put me into any sort of debt and (c.) be all the sweeter due to the delayed gratification.

Hey Tom,
What do you make on etsy? I would love to sell some of the bags/clothing I make there, do you get enough business to make it worthwhile?

/hijack

I bought my F by taking a second part time job one summer, saved up everything I earned from that, and found a great deal on a used one. Keep your eyes open for a steal!

[Brucom]

Write a check - but make sure you add $5.00 so they can cash it at any bank, gas station, Walmart or loan shark.

[iiipopes]

And my original advice still holds true: for the time being, use a school horn, practice diligently, and keep working with your tuba instructor to find the horn for you.

If you must purchase sight unseen, one of the best ways to do it is to call someone like Roger Lewis @ WWBW, Matt Walters @ Dillon Music, Dave Fedderly @ Baltimore Brass, and there are a few others out there who really know how to fit a tuba. Explain to them first, your budget, second, your intended usage, third, what you're playing now, both tuba and mouthpiece, what you do and don't like about the combination, and most importantly, with the help of your tuba instructor, discuss your relative strengths and weaknesses in your playing honestly, and any one of these gentlemen can pick out a proper tuba and matching mouthpiece for you.

Don't get hung up on any particular brand or model of tuba or mouthpiece. The Miraphone I got with the retrofit bell would probably have been the last tuba I would have considered, but it turned out to be exactly what fit my budget and my playing, and I am glad I got it. When I had problems matching a mouthpiece to it, instead of spending hundreds of dollars on a frustrating safari, I called Matt and had a frank discussion with him, and he sent out the appropriate mouthpiece for me, with the rim modified by Vladimir to perfectly match my embouchure. I didn't even know Curry made tuba mouthpieces before talking to Matt.

My setup is tailored to me and my playing. It won't work with yours. Likewise, many of the "artist" model tubas or mouthpieces are mostly marketing, and won't fit your playing, either. The only two exceptions to this I know about are not even tuba related: the Les Paul guitar, which was originally designed to a standard, not the individual playing style of Les Paul, and the Shew Jazz model mouthpiece, which is really a laser copy of a Bach 3C, another standard widely used trumpet mouthpiece.

And finally, the Kung Fu advice is most important of all: patience, grasshopper!

[bisontuba]

Save money--put money away each week/month.
mark

[tubaguy9]

with a car!