Raincatcher - which brand?

[imperialbari]

http://cgi.ebay.de/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie ... 0230637410

[iiipopes]

Looks like a Conn to me. Notice it is the same valve block and upper loop going from block to bugle, but the main tuning slide is longer due to the different bell geometry.

[Dan Schultz]

Might be a Conn but the large ferrules don't look right. Here are a couple of pictures of a Conn 'Raincatcher'....

[miz-zoutuba]

Is that a Bundy neck on there?

[Sam Gnagey]

It certainly looks like a Conn product to me. The ferrules are like they used on their Pan-American line. The braces look like early Conn braces. I have a Conn raincatcher from 1925 with identical configuration. I just sold a Pan-American helicon that looked like the raincatcher in question on all the details. The slide extensions lead me to believe that it was built at high pitch and converted to A-440.

[imperialbari]

I asked because I didn’t recognize this model, which doesn’t fit Conn or King exactly. Sam’s Pan-American suggestion sounds likely to me.

I don’t know about the Pan-American serial numbers, but if they were integrated in the Conn numbering system, this instrument would be from 1925. And hadn’t high pitch been abandoned already in 1920?

Klaus

[Roger Lewis]

A bit off topic but answering the above post. I'm pretty sure that high pitch stayed around until about the mid- 30's based on some saxophones I've encountered. (Don't worry, I washed shortly after handling them).

Just my observations.

Roger

[pjv]

My bets on Pan American. Next to the very Conn-ish features theres also the serial number. If you look at the picture of the serial number it looks like it reads P19389, the "P" being typical of early Pan American instruments. Using Conn-Loyalist's info, this sous could date from around 1925.

Cheers, Patrick