Hi kemist,
If I were you, I'm not sure I would go about searching for a tuba to buy based on my experience with just a few tubas from school. For one thing, it is hard enough to find a used tuba for $500 to $1200 that is playable, without specifying ". . .and it has to look like this." For another, the tuba you are specifying looks like a 3/4 size, 3 valve instrument, and most folks your age with some experience playing are going to opt for a full size (4/4) tuba or larger, and a 4 or 5 valve horn, too. So you could easily end up spending $1000 for a tuba "that looks like this" and then need to trade again when you learn a little more about tubas.
If you like the 3/4 size tuba, you might end up playing an Eb or F tuba or a euphonium, but this is a different part in the band from the BBb part you're now playing. If you continue with BBb tuba in bands, you're almost certainly going to move to a 4/4 horn. The 3/4 horns are mostly used by younger players or old guys who don't want to muscle a big horn around and don't have the breath any more for the bigger horns.
What I'm saying is that I think you need more experience before shelling out for a horn. If you wait, your college will probably have horns that you can use while in band. In most colleges, pep bands, marching bands and concert bands use college instruments and are not totally populated by music majors. After you've played a while on other instruments, you'd be in a better position to choose something that you would use for a while. In other words, a good, informed choice.
If you must have something NOW, you could consider a 3 valve Chinese horn, which would run about $1,000. The problem with this is that if you decide to sell in a year or two, you are going to take a hit on depreciation and only get $600-$700 back. . .and it could take a while to sell it. You can search the local Craigslists and look here in the for sale area if you are willing to buy without a play test. A really good idea would be to hoof it over to Baltimore (Baltimore Brass) or to NJ (Dillon Music) and spend half a day play testing various horns. You could also possibly find horns to try in Pittsburg and Cleveland, nearer to you, but nowhere like the selection at the other two places I mention. You can see some of their inventory on line at their websites.
What you are going to discover is that there just isn't any easy way to buy a tuba when you live in the country. I live in Knoxville, TN, which is not a metropolis, but isn't Petticoat Junction either. After a lot of research, I traveled to Birmingham to play test and buy a horn, and now that I'm after something else, next week I'll travel 460+ miles to look at and hopefully buy another. Unless you are really sure about a particular model, inspection and play testing is a good idea and, by buying in person, you also avoid shipping charges of about $100-$150 and the possibility of shipping damage.
I hope the above helps, even if it isn't exactly what you wanted to hear.
