Valve Caps

[OldsRecording]

Does anybody know where I can find a valve cap for a early '60's (serial number 24xx) Mirafone sousaphone?

[Dan Schultz]

Don't see too many of those creatures. You might check with:

Ed Stregge
Badger State Repair
204 W. Centralia St.
Elkhorn, WI 53121
Phone (262) 723-4062
Fax (262) 723-2587
mrstregs@aol.com" target="_blank

[Lee Stofer]

FYI,
The Mirafone sousaphones and helicons were not made by Mirafone, but out-sourced to Boehm & Meinl. The valveset and wrap was very similar to an Amati.

Do you need an actual valve casing top cap, or a finger button? There were various finger buttons used on them, from what I've seen. If you'd like to send me some close-up photos of the valveset, I can determine if I have what you need. Ed Strege may have the parts you need, particularly a valve casing top cap, but he'd need to see what you have, to have a chance of matching it up correctly. For the last one that came through here, I could not manage to get a set of 4 matching finger buttons, so I just changed them all over to Yamaha buttons, which work fine and look good.

[OldsRecording]

Thank you for the lead. We just need one finger button. The lost one is somewhere in the grass on the football field at the local high school.

[Lee Stofer]

BTW,
The Mirafone sousaphone was not made in the 1960's or '70's, but rather for a limited time in the late 1980's to the 1990's. The serial numbers are not Mirafone, so a Mirafone serial number list is useless in this instance.

[OldsRecording]

BTW,
The Mirafone sousaphone was not made in the 1960's or '70's, but rather for a limited time in the late 1980's to the 1990's. The serial numbers are not Mirafone, so a Mirafone serial number list is useless in this instance.

Thank you for that information. I did not know that.

[Dan Schultz]

I found an old Miraphone valve cluster that contained one piston and one cap. It's off an upright tuba but the cap may be what you need. The outside diameter of the thread is about 1.053". The piston diameter is about .933".

[OldsRecording]

I feel silly. What I have always refered to as a 'valve cap' is apparently a 'finger button'. Does the valve block you found happen to have one of those?

[Dan Schultz]

I feel silly. What I have always refered to as a 'valve cap' is apparently a 'finger button'. Does the valve block you found happen to have one of those?

No fingerbuttons with this particular valve block. However... if you can post a good image and some dimensions... one of us might have one in one of our 'hellboxes'. Knowing the thread might be useful, too. If a matching fingerbutton can't be located... just change all three to a compatible thread and profile.

[OldsRecording]

Mira3.jpg

Mira2.jpg

Mira1.jpg

Here are some pics. I'm not sure how helpful they will be, as the yardstick was the most accurate measuring device we could locate.

[OldsRecording]

Mira4.jpg

Here is a shot of the whole valve block.

[Dan Schultz]

I have some of those fingerbuttons but they aren't silver. ... bare brass. If you want one... send me an email with your address.