Bach made a few sterling silver bells the old-fashioned way (i.e., cutting a form out sheet silver and hammering/spinning it into shape) before they introduced the electro-formed "Sterling Plus" bells. They were very special order only and involved a long, long, wait for delivery. They are probably the rarest Bach bells of all.
I rewatched your video on the Bach 45B. My college has one (or one similar-it’s not a 42) and we are going to be staging an opera from the 1920s with a pretty small pit (the bass trombone is the only low brass part, for context). Would the Bach 45 be a decent fit for a show like that? I usually play a Shires Q series bass, but at the moment it’s in the shop. Thanks for all the information-your Thayer informative videos have been extremely helpful and your content is always great.
I have a 42B that I selected at the factory in the mid-80s. And, true to your comments, Bach's stamping identifications are not consistent. The bell is simply stamped 42. AND, not mentioned in you video, the slide is an LT slide - not stamped LT. BUT it is stamped 42 O. The 'O' is placed under that 42, and stands for 'open lead pipe'. I don't know what the specs are that make the lead pipe different from their other lead pipes. I do like how the horn plays though. A few years after I got the 42B I was fortunate to be able to go back to the Bach factory and select a straight 42...standard yellow brass throughout, standard slide, straight bell (no valve).
I'm pretty sure that the surviving Glenn Miller trombone (on display at the USAF Museum on Wright-Patterson AFB in Dayton) is a Model 6vii. (It's definitely a Model 6.) Every time I visit that museum I'm glad I forgot to bring a small shank mouthpiece with me. One of my life goals is to avoid going to jail. Also, the Model 39 alto was available with lightweight handslide, i.e, an LT39 or LT39G.
Oh, they available for trumpets. There are lightweight valve set (designated by an LT prefix), gold brass bells, bore sizes (M, ML. L, XL, MLV [stepped bore]), silver plated (S suffix), gold plated (I don't know what the suffix is for that), bell flare options (37, 43, and 72 are the ones I recall for Bb trumpets), reversed leadpipe construction (suffix R), and the list goes on...
Probably the most confusing answer to „what horn do you play?“ is „Bach LT5042BOFGHLM“
Bach markings always remind me of my years working at Starbucks. “I’ll have a 2SFVNL ☕️”.
Finally, Bach topics! Great work Aidan!
Very Interesting. I remember when Bach introduced the Sterling Bells. They sent out a trumpet music sample CD to people that requested it.
Bach made a few sterling silver bells the old-fashioned way (i.e., cutting a form out sheet silver and hammering/spinning it into shape) before they introduced the electro-formed "Sterling Plus" bells. They were very special order only and involved a long, long, wait for delivery. They are probably the rarest Bach bells of all.
Important video!
I had a rare 50B3GHO which was a heavy gold bell in early 90’s another Bach I wished I’d kept!
Cool vid man thanks for the knowledge
Great info. I have an LT8
I rewatched your video on the Bach 45B. My college has one (or one similar-it’s not a 42) and we are going to be staging an opera from the 1920s with a pretty small pit (the bass trombone is the only low brass part, for context). Would the Bach 45 be a decent fit for a show like that? I usually play a Shires Q series bass, but at the moment it’s in the shop. Thanks for all the information-your Thayer informative videos have been extremely helpful and your content is always great.
If it's a 45, that would be pretty much perfect if the part isn't too low!
Cool thanks! The lowest the part goes is C#2, so I’ll give it a shot. Thanks!
I have a 42B that I selected at the factory in the mid-80s. And, true to your comments, Bach's stamping identifications are not consistent. The bell is simply stamped 42. AND, not mentioned in you video, the slide is an LT slide - not stamped LT. BUT it is stamped 42 O. The 'O' is placed under that 42, and stands for 'open lead pipe'. I don't know what the specs are that make the lead pipe different from their other lead pipes. I do like how the horn plays though. A few years after I got the 42B I was fortunate to be able to go back to the Bach factory and select a straight 42...standard yellow brass throughout, standard slide, straight bell (no valve).
Oops! Forgot about the open leadpipe. There's one bad mark...
I'm pretty sure that the surviving Glenn Miller trombone (on display at the USAF Museum on Wright-Patterson AFB in Dayton) is a Model 6vii. (It's definitely a Model 6.) Every time I visit that museum I'm glad I forgot to bring a small shank mouthpiece with me. One of my life goals is to avoid going to jail.
Also, the Model 39 alto was available with lightweight handslide, i.e, an LT39 or LT39G.
Interesting! I have a friend with a 39, but a standard slide with the oversleeves removed after the fact.
You missed the 34, Aidan.
models 1, 2 and 3 were alto i believe
Yes, I knew a couple of those first ones were
All those options make me glad the same isn’t true for Bach trumpets..I own 2 of those..
Oh, they available for trumpets. There are lightweight valve set (designated by an LT prefix), gold brass bells, bore sizes (M, ML. L, XL, MLV [stepped bore]), silver plated (S suffix), gold plated (I don't know what the suffix is for that), bell flare options (37, 43, and 72 are the ones I recall for Bb trumpets), reversed leadpipe construction (suffix R), and the list goes on...
@@dennisclason3376 good point..they actually have more options now than when I got my Bach 37 Bb trumpet in 1974..