Advice on buying an Amati Kraslice

[albertdobyns]

Hello!

I am considering buying an Amati Kraslice from a guy locally. He said he bought it in 1981 and hasn't played it in quite a while. Said it still plays and functions, although I plan on giving it a proper cleaning, oiling, and tune up. We have agreed to a price of $500 and I think it sounds like a tremendous deal. Can anyone give me any feedback on this horn and the value as you perceive it?

I am a casual player getting back into playing without having played for a while. I would love to buy a new horn, but I cannot afford it, so a good used Tuba is right up my alley.

Pictures:
http://imgur.com/a/i6lyI" target="_blank

Thank you!!!

[bort]

Good deal. I'd guess it should cost around $2,000 if it was in good working order. Your price plus repair costs should be way under that. I can't promise it'll be the most perfect tuba ever, but it should be very serviceable and solid for your needs. Nice find!

[Donn]

I think it sounds like a tremendous deal.

You are correct.

[albertdobyns]

Thanks everyone! I will post pictures and write a bit more about it when I pick it up tomorrow. I am fully expecting to rework the rotors, and give it a deep cleaning. Any advice is helpful!

[bigtubby]

A lot of horn for no money.

[edsel585960]

That's a good deal, Go get it!

[albertdobyns]

I got it!!!

Guy was nice as hell. He had his original tuba stolen in college at UMASS in 81 and bought this one for $1300 the next week. He has had it ever since. It has a bit of a dent in one bit of the tubing, and needs some tuning up, a thorough cleaning, and needs a spit valve repaired, but other than that it is great! Once I cleaned the rotors up and oiled them a bit, and when I followed the advice of Dr. Funderburk and ran some warm water through the rotors via the leadpipe it played like a dream. The sound is rich and deep. Has a little buzz in the low Eflat, but nothing I can't fix. VERY happy with my purchase! He even threw in a leather padded gig bag, and two helleberg mouthpieces. Outstanding.

Here she is:

http://imgur.com/a/axRou" target="_blank

Thank you for all of your help!

[Heavy_Metal]

Cerveny makes Amati Kraslice horns IIRC. No wonder it plays so well.

[imperialbari]

bloke has touched on the thin metal and its risks in matter of denting.

I see some benefits of the thin metal: lighter weight is nice when marching and thin metal makes the instrument more alive.

In understanding the Cerveny concept of tubas it for me is necessary to see these tubas in the light of the Austrian and German military bands especially, when troops were moved by marching. Until maybe the last few decades German trombones and especially German bass trombones haven’t impressed me. They could not add the chiff to the bass line that British military bass trombonists provide. Hence the need for tubas that allowed for a marcato attack with a lot of overtones.

When the Amati engraving is found on rotary instruments, then mostly on the cheaper model lines with less nickel silver trim and/or fewer valves. Your tuba has the 4 valves that are most common on BBb tubas. As for less nickel silver, it may cut on the longevity of a given instrument, but from a musical point of view I consider it a benefit. One of the easiest players I ever tried, is an Amati oval Bb Tenorhorn with less nickel silver in the valve transmission than your tuba apparently has. (Most Cerveny/Amati tuba models have the same acoustic designs through the price ranges with the amount of nickel silver and the number of valves making the difference).

One way of keeping your tuba going for a long time might be about very frequent oiling of all moving parts. I prefer a thin petrol-based oil like Green Juice, because it is better at finding its way to the points where it is needed. If you also oil at the end of each playing session, then the water displacing effect may save you from some corrosion.

Klaus

[scottw]

wow! Some nice condition. You should easily get your money plus a nice profit should you decide to re-sell it. At this price, you can't go wrong. It is always a good idea to play-test any tuba, but Amati is one of those that really can vary from horn to horn in terms of quality; paying top dollar then finding issue after issue is no fun! You are in terrific shape--congratulations on your find and welcome to TubeNet!

[albertdobyns]

thanks everyone! I am taking it to a repair shop in Fredericksburg while on vacation here and will see what the outcome is on a good tune up, a possible rotor fix, and perhaps a linkage replacement. Loving it so far!

[bisontuba]

Congrats!