Questions about old Selmer
dandd
She couldn't answer any questions about the horn, and it has two
peculiarities that I've never seen before.
1. The side of the tube into which the mouthpiece is inserted is
labeled "K-MODIFIED". What in the world does that mean?
2. The first valve casing has a spring loaded lever which can be
operated with the left hand thumb to elongate the slide associated
with the first valve. What in the world is that for?
The horn came with a Vincent Bach 1 1/4 C mouthpiece and a
Selmer 3C which I assume came with the horn. Although there is
very little visual difference between them, the Bach seems to
permit a fuller sound while the Selmer seems to make the high
notes a little easier. Is my perception in keeping with what one
would expect?
Please respond with email or post.
Dan
Robert Eye
Selmer trumpet; perhaps they will read your post and reply. I do not know what
it means either.
The spring operated lever is the "1st valve trigger." It allows for the
lengthening of the first valve slide so that if any notes that use the first
valve that play sharp, the player can correct the pitch by lengthening the
slide using the trigger -- more pressure on the trigger makes the slide go out
more, reducing the pitch. Other trumpets have a thumb saddle on the slide,
which allows the thumb motion to move the slide out or in -- the same basic
adjustment, accomplished a little differently.
If this horn is old enouth, the Bach mp may be a little different than the Bach
mp of today. As it is there is not much difference between diameters that can
be detected visually between a 3C and a 1 1/4C. the 3C is smaller than the
1 1/4 C, which means that the high notes should play a little easier, and the
tone may not be as full as on the larger 1 1/4C.
Bob Eye
Russ Button
: I recently purchased an old Selmer from the widow of the horn owner.
: She couldn't answer any questions about the horn, and it has two
: peculiarities that I've never seen before.
: 1. The side of the tube into which the mouthpiece is inserted is
: labeled "K-MODIFIED". What in the world does that mean?
That's the horn I play. I bought it in '71 and still love it.
I haven't a clue as to what "K-MODIFIED" means. I've never met
anyone who did. It does serve as the name of that model horn.
You can always say that you have a Selmer K-MODIFIED" and people
who know the horn will know what you mean.
: 2. The first valve casing has a spring loaded lever which can be
: operated with the left hand thumb to elongate the slide associated
: with the first valve. What in the world is that for?
Most trumpets have intonation difficulties here and there, which is
why people keep their 3rd valve slides well lubricated and move them
in and out. Low D is a particular problem. Some people are so
particular about this that they also like to move their 1st valve
slides in and out as well. Some horns have a thumb hook or ring
on the 1st valve slide. Selmer put a trigger there like you have.
I almost never use mine.
The Selmer K-MODIFIED" is a rare and wonderful horn, and something
that you should cherish. It was one of the very finest trumpets
made back in the 60's. I'm curious. What did you pay for it?
: The horn came with a Vincent Bach 1 1/4 C mouthpiece and a
: Selmer 3C which I assume came with the horn. Although there is
: very little visual difference between them, the Bach seems to
: permit a fuller sound while the Selmer seems to make the high
: notes a little easier. Is my perception in keeping with what one
: would expect?
Sure. When you're ready, you might want to go to a music store
that has a variety of mouthpieces and spend some time trying
them out. You'll see lots of variation in cup size, rim size,
depth or shallowness of the cup, throat size, and size of the
backbore.
A lot of classical players used the Bach 1 1/2C for a long time
as the standard. I've been playing Dennis Wick mouthpieces for
about 10 years now, and just recently switched to a Monet. You
need to do some exploring and find out for yourself.
Russ Button
dandd
The only number on the horn is the serial number on the second valve casing.
Dan
Dave Smythe
>1. The side of the tube into which the mouthpiece is inserted is
>labeled "K-MODIFIED". What in the world does that mean?
No idea.
>2. The first valve casing has a spring loaded lever which can be
>operated with the left hand thumb to elongate the slide associated
>with the first valve. What in the world is that for?
First: DON'T PUSH IT! (unless you push down the first valve first --
ruins the seal.) That's a "first-valve trigger". It's used to tune
the horn as you play. It's not feasible to build a trumpet that is
in tune on all notes; there are a couple (g# in the staff is perhaps
the worst) that are very flat. So, they make the whole horn just a
shade sharp and then you use the first and third valve slides to
fine-tune things while you play (in real-time on a per-note basis).
Also, depending upon how the chord you are part of in the ensemble
is voiced, you may want to change the pitch to tune the overall
chord (for instance, lowering the third or stretching octaves).
One can pretty much ignore it when just starting out, but it'll be
needed eventually. Listen to the first D and Db below the treble
clef staff -- they are quite sharp.
This is also a pet peeve of mine. It annoys me when folks spend a
long time tuning up before rehearsal. To play in tune you have to
listen and adjust every note all the time, practically. Plus, as
you play, the horn heats up and the tuning changes a bit again. As
long as I'm generally close (say 1/8 step) to the pitch I figure it's
time to start...
>The horn came with a Vincent Bach 1 1/4 C mouthpiece and a
>Selmer 3C which I assume came with the horn. Although there is
>very little visual difference between them, the Bach seems to
>permit a fuller sound while the Selmer seems to make the high
>notes a little easier. Is my perception in keeping with what one
>would expect?
The 3C might be a little narrower. It will take a little less
effort, but will not have the full sound as the 1 1/4. The
Selmer may also be shallower, have a different back bore, have
a different rim shape, or any number of other things; I don't
know how they compare to Bachs (although it appears that they
use at least superficially the same numbering scheme).
D
--
=============================================================================
Dave Smythe smy...@sctc.com
Jeff Hornick
able to help you date your horn. He deals in old brass instruments
(I've seen things dating back to the 1850's on his price list) and
is real helpful. His phone number is (818)447-1904.
Tony Baca (?)
: dandd (da...@postoffice.ptd.net) wrote:
: : I recently purchased an old Selmer from the widow of the horn owner.
: : She couldn't answer any questions about the horn, and it has two
: : peculiarities that I've never seen before.
: : 1. The side of the tube into which the mouthpiece is inserted is
: : labeled "K-MODIFIED". What in the world does that mean?
: That's the horn I play. I bought it in '71 and still love it.
: I haven't a clue as to what "K-MODIFIED" means. I've never met
: anyone who did. It does serve as the name of that model horn.
: You can always say that you have a Selmer K-MODIFIED" and people
: who know the horn will know what you mean.
I have used a K-MODIFIED LIGHTWEIGHT since about 72. It is in bad
need of an overhaul, but still plays great. I agree with Russ, when
I say I have a K-MODIFIED, people generally know what I mean. I have
no idea on the bore size, however, when I played some other horns this
summer, the large bore horns felt similar to me.
I play on a Bach 1 C MP with the Selmer horn.
Russ, properlly answered your other questions about the 1st valve slide. I
personally prefer the triger over the thumb hook. Personal preference will
vary. I found that if I throw the 1st and 3rd slides for a low D, the horn
is perfectly in tune. Over course you can just lip the note down, but when
playing a long gig, having to lip notes around is a lot of extra work.
If you find any additional information about this horn, I would sure be
interested in it.
Hope you enjoy the horn as much as I do.
_____
/ony Baca Hewlett Packard Co. Boise, Idaho tb...@boi.hp.com
Burt Codispoti
Can't fins ANYONE who knows what K-Modified means! This is a good trivia
question that someone just has to find the answer for.
Also, Edwards Inst. Div of Getzen also puts out all-copper bells - TWIMC.
800-562-6838
Burt
...every twisted pile of person has a thinking part that wonders what the
part that isn't thinking isn't thinking of...
BEKanak
What does "K-Modified" mean?
All I can add is that Selmer had a "K" model which predates the
K-Modified.
For me, the 3C is a match with the horn.
BEKanak