SUPERB VINTAGE S.M.L. TENOR SAXOPHONE, ALMOST PRISTINE. 100% orig. silver, no dents, new pads & corks, perfect! Start Price USD 2,950.00 Current Price USD 2,950.00 Time Left - Bid Count 0 Buy It Now Price USD 3,150.00 Reserve Price - Start Time Wednesday, September 03, 2008 End Time Saturday, September 13, 2008 Location Wichita, Kansas See more about 'SUPERB VINTAGE S.M.L. TENOR SAXOPHONE, ALMOST PRISTINE.' Description WICHITA BAND INSTRUMENT COMPANY 2525 East Douglas Avenue Wichita, KS 67211 Tel: (316) 684-0291; FAX (316) 684-6858 Email: wbic@wichitaband.com WICHITA BAND INSTRUMENT COMPANY 2525 East Douglas Avenue Wichita, KS 67211 Telephone (316) 684-0291 FAX (316) 684-6858 Email wbic@wichitaband.com RARE AND SUPERB S.M.L. “PRE GOLD MEDAL” TENOR SAX, MADE IN FRANCE IN 1952, 100% ORIGINAL SILVER. Vintage saxes from Selmer, Conn and King are usually in our collection in Wichita and here’s a very good and original example. The original finish is worn not at all, it’s never sustained any serious dents or dings and it’s as clean as a whistle. Serial number 9649 (1952). 100% original satin finish, minimal engraving to the bell. Palm and side keys show no wear to the original finish. No wear to the stack keys, key pearls are still very sharp, just like new. It looks like this one’s not been played much in the past 56 years. Note that there is no wear to the key-touches for the little finger left hand or little finger right hand. You’re seeing the tenor exactly as it’s come to us. We’ve not yet done ANY repairs to it, have scheduled it for a clean-up and pad job next week. S.M.L’s “Gold Medal” saxes were so named because of the award they won at the Worlds Fair. Do a search on the Internet and you’ll learn that there were “23 UNIQUE FEATURES” on the G-M tenors. OUR S.M.L. TENOR HAS 21 of the 23 FEATURES. EVERYTHING except the jive engraving to the bell and the swivel left-hand thumb rest. It’s got rolled tone-holes, so we’ll use the “reso pads” from Ferree’s that are close to the originals from C.G. Conn. Right now, it’s still got the original pads on it. The sax came to us from an amateur musician who bought it new, played it for a year and hasn’t touched it since. Hinge-tubes show NO wear, are very tight, so no swedging will be needed. Case is original and PERFECT on this one. We even have the original keys to it. It’s a clean example from S.M.L’s “Golden Era”, comes with our top recommendation. How do we know the finish is original and not a re-plate? It’s not all that difficult. Almost all saxophones are made of yellow brass. To get the metal to have a nice shine to it, the brass is lightly polished with a cotton buffing wheel to which is applied a light gritty “Tripoli” compound that takes off the little pits and scratches. A final polish is next done with a finer polishing compound that’s bright red. Most shops call it “jeweler’s rouge”. After the final polish, all metal parts are dipped in a de-greasing liquid and then the brass is either plated (usually silver) or sprayed with a couple of coats of clear or gold-tinted lacquer. If it’s done properly, lacquer and silver are both very durable finishes. If the player keeps fingerprints wiped off the instrument, the finish is often good for several decades. Eventually, especially if the saxophone is played a great deal, the finish will start to show wear patterns where there’s contact with the player’s hands. It’s possible at that point, to chemically remove the remaining finish, polish again with Tripoli and red rouge and to re-spray or re-plate. But there are always tell tale signs that the brass has been stripped and re-finished. Before we offer any saxophone to our customers, we inspect the instrument very carefully. We go over it, literally, with a magnifying glass. Saxes that have been re-finished always have tiny wear and etch marks under the silver. We give extra attention to the thumb rest and the area on the body that’s just next to the thumb-rest. If it’s a re-lac or re-plate, you can always see etch marks or a wavy surface that’s under the finish. The other spot that we inspect closely is the strap ring. If it’s not original, you always can see tiny scratches or wavy metal under the finish. If the sax has an engraved bell or end-bow, we use magnifying glass to look closely at the grooves of the engraving. If they’re sharp and haven’t been polished over, the finish will almost certainly be original. But you can get fooled here, since there are some superb craftsmen who have the skills to re-engrave the metal----especially if the bell has never before worn any engraving. Key pearls are important, as well. We look carefully at the back edges of the pearls: not at the front, where you would expect finger wear, but at the back of the key, where there are always traces of a key being polished prior to the key having new finish applied. And the opposites to all the above are… If the metal is smooth and clean on the thumb-rest itself and also on the body around that area, it’s a very good sign the finish is original. If there are no pits, scratches or dings under the lacquer at the strap-ring area, and if the only scratches are on top of the finish, then it’s a good indication the lacquer is original. If the engraving is sharp and not “feathered” or buffed away in places, it means the finish is probably original. If key pearls are sharp at the front of the key, it means the sax hasn’t been played much. If the pearls are worn at the front, the sax has undoubtedly been used a bit, of course. But if the pearls are worn away at the side or at the back of the pearl, the key has almost certainly been re-finished. This one’s a clean example from S.M.L.’s “Golden Era”, comes with our top recommendation. Buy it now price on this one is a mere $3,150. YES, YOU CAN BUY ONE ON E-BAY FOR LESS MONEY! But this one’s absolutely perfect, original, pristine and will (next week) wear all new pads and corks plus our 24 month service warranty! BEST ONE WE’VE SEEN SINCE THE SEVENTIES! ******************************************************************************************** Wichita Band Instrument Company is a small musical instrument emporium located in the center of the USA. We’ve been in business since 1953 and have had the same owner since 1963. Originally we were a repair shop that specialized in woodwind and sax restoration. Today we have 18 employees including eight of the finest repair technicians in the country. Virtually ALL the items we sell have been fully reconditioned in our own shop, although we do sell the occasional unrestored historical instruments each year. Due to the heavy demand for our services, we do no school repairs, and very few “walk-in” repairs, unless the instrument was originally sold by us….even if it was 55 years ago! It’s sometimes possible to buy a good saxophone on Ebay for a lower price, but unless that instrument wears all new pads and corks from a reputable shop, you won’t know how it plays until you spend another five to seven hundred to have it mechanically overhauled. With a saxophone from OUR shop, you know it’s in the finest condition when it arrives at your home! Here’s what we do to all used saxes we sell: The instrument is taken apart and everything washed clean. We don’t use in chemical dips, but do use plenty of soap and water! Dings are next burnished from body, bell, end-bow and neck. With a little effort, we can make things look “like new” again. After the body-shop work’s been completed, we swedge hinge-tubes tight again and re-fit to the sax body. Finally, pads and corks are replaced and the instrument play-tested. Most customers tell us that our saxes are then actually “mechanically better than new”. Wichita Band’s service warranty is the same as it’s been for more than thirty years: “ALL new and all used instruments sold by Wichita Band Instrument Company come with our 24 month service warranty. It’s in addition to any factory guarantees. For two full years, we will repair or replace, whichever in our estimation is the more advisable, pads, corks, springs or other parts required, at no charge to the customer. The customer is responsible for shipping and insurance charges. Cases and plating finishes are not covered by our service warranty but are sometimes covered by factory guarantees.” Wichita Band’s service warranty does cover dents and dings to your sax. If your instrument sustains damage to the body, end bow, neck or bell, we’ll burnish out the dents and make it look “like new” again. The cost you is absolutely nothing except shipping and insurance charges. Wichita Band Instrument Company maintains a repair department capable of restoration work of the highest quality. Even though repairs are essentially “free” for the first two years, after that period has expired, we remain at your service to maintain and repair your musical equipment forever. It’s our “service after the sale” promise and has been since 1953! In the event that a customer requires service under factory guarantees or Wichita Band’s service warranty, the item must be returned to us and not directly to the manufacturer. Anything we sell can be sent to you for a short approval period without obligation. We collect NO SALES TAX, unless you’re lucky enough to live in Kansas. The customer is responsible for shipping and insurance and must pre-pay back to us any freight charges on returned equipment. International shipping is available. Returned items will be refunded within 3 weeks of receiving the item. We’re happy to send any instrument “on approval” for five days, but ask the prospective buyer to pay shipping both ways and to please reimburse us for posting and clean-up charges, 2.95%, on any returned item. VISA/MASTERCARD/DISCOVER/MONEY ORDER/CHECK/WIRE TRANSFER ACCEPTED. Credit cards not accepted from some countries. We must ship to the credit card billing address with exceptions made only at our discretion. We’re happy to correspond with musicians, players, parents and enthusiasts of all types. Written appraisals are always available, but please don’t write or telephone and ask “what’s granny’s baritone sax worth?” Do an Ebay search and you’ll be able to figure it out for yourself. Feel free to call or e-mail for any additional information. Wichita Band Instrument Co. 800-835-3006 (USA and Canada), 316-684-0291 outside the USA and Canada order line, and info line, e-mail: wbic@wichitaband.com. ******************************************************************************************** Wichita Band Instrument Company is a small musical instrument emporium located in the center of the USA. We’ve been in business since 1953 and have had the same owner since 1963. Originally we were a repair shop that specialized in woodwind and sax restoration. Today we have 18 employees including seven of the finest repair technicians in the country. Virtually ALL the items we sell have been fully reconditioned in our own shop, although we do sell the occasional unrestored historical instruments each year. Due to the heavy demand for our services, we do no school repairs, and very few “walk-in” repairs. Wichita Band’s service warranty is the same as it’s been for more than thirty years: “ALL new and all used instruments sold by Wichita Band Instrument Company come with our 24 month service warranty. It’s in addition to any factory guarantees. For two full years, we will repair or replace, whichever in our estimation is the more advisable, pads, corks, springs or other parts required, at no charge to the customer. The customer is responsible for shipping and insurance charges. Cases and plating finishes are not covered by our service warranty but are sometimes covered by factory guarantees.” Wichita Band’s service warranty does cover dents and dings to your sax. If your instrument sustains damage to the body, end bow, neck or bell, we’ll burnish out the dents and make it look “like new” again. The cost you is absolutely nothing except shipping and insurance charges. Wichita Band Instrument Company maintains a repair department capable of restoration work of the highest quality. Even though repairs are essentially “free” for the first two years, after that period has expired, we remain at your service to maintain and repair your musical equipment forever. It’s our “service after the sale” promise and has been since 1953! In the event that a customer requires service under factory guarantees or Wichita Band’s service warranty, the item must be returned to us and not directly to the manufacturer. Anything we sell can be sent to you for a short approval period without obligation. We collect NO SALES TAX, unless you’re lucky enough to live in Kansas. The customer is responsible for shipping and insurance and must pre-pay back to us any freight charges on returned equipment. International shipping is available. Returned items will be refunded within 3 weeks of receiving the item. We’re happy to send any instrument “on approval” for ten days, but ask the prospective buyer to pay shipping and to reimburse us for clean-up and restocking charges, 2.95%, on any returned instrument. VISA/MASTERCARD/DISCOVER/PAYPAL/MONEY ORDER/CHECK/BANK TO BANK WIRE TRANSFER ACCEPTED. Credit cards and Paypal not accepted from some countries. We must ship to the credit card billing address with exceptions made only at our discretion. We’re happy to correspond with musicians, players, parents and enthusiasts of all types. Please note: Many scam artists are now sending fake “Ebay second chance” offers or “Ebay/Paypal invoices” to high bidders and other bidders on closed and active ebay items. If we send you an “Ebay invoice” or “second chance offer” it will be from wbic@wichitaband.com. Please call us on our 800 number (800-835-3006) or (001-316-684-0291 for international buyers) or email us directly at wbic@wichitaband.com, to speak or write to us in person about any auction, and please verify any second chance offers from us. Customers wishing to use US Postal Service: Please be advised that we will be happy to send your item by the US Postal Service if you so desire. However, please be informed that if your item is lost, stolen or damaged in transit, it could take one year or longer to finalize the claim with the US Postal Service. Therefore, we cannot be responsible for lost, stolen or damaged items when shipped with the US Postal Service. Because of this problem, we cannot recommend the US Postal Service for anything other than inexpensive items. Please see our other auctions: Current E-bay auctions. Feel free to call or e-mail for any additional information. Wichita Band Instrument Co. 800-835-3006 payment line (USA and Canada), 316-684-0291 outside the USA and Canada order line, and info line, e-mail: wbic@wichitaband.com. OUR STORE Place a Bid!