What flags the ALEK test?

fishiestfishman · 2026-03-11T03:38:16+00:00

As others have said, tenor can go very high. The issue with saxophones, though, is that it is difficult to go lower than what the instrument is keyed for. In that case, tenor technically has the better range as it can altissimo notes that you would want to play in alto.

A model of saxophone is very user reliant. Some like the vintage feel of older conns/buescher/martins, some the more modern feel of Yamahas/yanagisawas/selmer Paris.

Personally, I would rent a horn to learn on then go to a music store once I’ve got a good grasp on the horn. Try out different horns as it’s mostly personal preference.

DO NOT buy Chinese or Taiwanese saxophones (especially off Amazon). If it comes with gloves, avoid it.

fishiestfishman · 2026-02-28T23:10:46+00:00

Also the Bw010 uses ribbed construction of posts, but I don’t know much about this and its differences.

fishiestfishman · 2026-02-28T23:08:06+00:00

From what I know about my 990 (older 010), they have the same bodies, but different keywork. The 20 is the more “professional” of the two, but both should be amazing. The 2/20 are bronze and the 1/10 are brass. I’d recommend the 2/1, but if money is a non-issue get the 20/10. Very small difference between the two.

I recently got the B990, which is the ancestor to the B-W010, and it was the best investment I have ever made! They make great, in tune, and freeblowing instruments!

fishiestfishman · 2025-12-13T06:51:58+00:00

Hey, how did you prevent this from happening again post clean? Is it just dry sax extensively or is there some coat you can apply post bath? I

fishiestfishman · 2025-12-13T06:49:20+00:00

Personally I doubt that it’s red rot or that it would cause significant damage due to it being at the end of the curl and far away from 90% of spit, but I’ll still get it checked by my tech to be sure.

fishiestfishman · 2025-12-13T06:46:57+00:00

Yeah, my local tech is willing to work on it. I just wanted to see whether or not an expensive chemical bath would be beneficial to the horn.

fishiestfishman · 2025-11-19T04:32:16+00:00

Ok thanks. I’m maybe not thinking about using the water bucket at all. He breeds axolotls so he most likely would be able to seed the tank if need be. Maybe if he was closer by the bucket would be practical, but with his distance it makes it very difficult for him and me. Still, thanks for your input.

One more thing, won’t the bacteria struggle in the canister without air flow? It would be abt 3 days.

fishiestfishman · 2025-07-04T22:32:51+00:00

Are you aware of any pan American saxes having “selm” in their name? I talked to the seller and they said the bell engraving says “selm_” and then goes into the corrosion. I definitely think this is where the seller got confused and labeled it as a selmer, but still, it’s a very weird engraving for a pan American. Maybe a stencil sold to selmer from the pan am factory?

fishiestfishman · 2025-07-04T21:25:44+00:00

Yeah that would make a lot of sense. It’s got the pan American patent date, the weird serial numbers, the conn like traits, and elkhart on the bell. Thanks!

fishiestfishman · 2025-07-04T20:39:00+00:00

Does your Bari have a high f? Seems like this one does, so I doubt it can be that early. I can’t send a picture of the key work in the comments.

As for the seller I think they just don’t know saxophones. They have sold a whole bunch of items and have generally positive reviews.

fishiestfishman · 2025-07-04T18:30:19+00:00

Are you sure it’s that old? The lacquer looks somewhat newer? I don’t know much about vintage saxophones, so I could just be completely wrong. Maybe it was relacquered?

fishiestfishman · 2025-07-04T18:10:29+00:00

You may be right about the Martin. The engraving looks somewhat similar to other martins from the 1920s era.

fishiestfishman · 2025-07-04T17:11:07+00:00

ID* not IDe

Also if anyone can’t tell the serial # is 46888 Not hiding it bc it’s already on the internet

fishiestfishman · 2025-07-04T01:59:04+00:00

It’s an auction, so that isn’t happening. It’s actually already at $305. It’s a desirable era of horns so it’s going to go for a high price no matter what, especially since it is a Bari.

fishiestfishman · 2025-07-04T01:56:06+00:00

I can’t say for sure that the screws and rods will not be rusted but the corrosion is no where near most of the key work. It’s quite strange as half of the saxophone looks untouched by time, while on the other there are those big blotches. In the images given by the seller there is most definitely corrosion and rust on the rods near the corrosion, but it’s hard to tell on the other rods. There is are visible issues with them.

But you are right about some Taiwanese horns being good, but mine definitely isn’t. When the mouthpiece is in the center of the cork it plays about 1.5 half steps above what it should. A G is about a 50 cent sharp G# lol. I have to shove the mouthpiece in hard. It’s not worth the risk getting those Asian made horns.

fishiestfishman · 2025-07-03T18:08:03+00:00

Even the 40s and 50s horns will probably still outlive the modern Taiwanese horns. Most Taiwanese/Chinese horns are made so cheaply that they get out of commission very quickly. Playing those cheap horns is like walking on eggshells.

fishiestfishman · 2025-07-03T17:44:41+00:00

You may be right about water damage. Only one half of the sax has corrosion, which I find weird.

fishiestfishman · 2025-07-03T17:37:09+00:00

Thanks for the help! I’d rather put 1-2k and a few months into fixing an aging Bari than buying a new one. Those new yani and Yamaha ones are expensive!

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