[Trombone-l] Selman Alto Trombone

[Peter Hanmore]

Robert,
It may be a matter of being in the right place at the right time, but I
still think it's not that difficult to get a quality (brand) instrument -
even French horns - at a decent price.  I managed to get a Reynolds
Contempora double horn off eBay for my daughter for $250.  We put another
$200 into if for a tune up and installed a hand rest (can't remember the
technical name for it) and it's been a great playing horn.
I'd be concerned about the longevity of some of the cheap horns as well as
pitch issues.  If you aren't playing them regularly though, perhaps they
would last quite well.

Peter.

-----Original Message-----
From: trombone-l-bounces at maillists.samford.edu
[mailto:trombone-l-bounces at maillists.samford.edu] On Behalf Of ROBERT SLAVEN
Sent: October 17, 2007 7:56 PM
To: trombone-l at server5.samford.edu
Subject: Re: [Trombone-l] Selman Alto Trombone

In all this discussion of the Selman alto, I'm now intrigued.  If I ever
bought an alto, I'd be in the same boat; wouldn't play it professionally
enough (if at all) to make it worth getting something in the $1000-plus
range, but would be interested in something cheap if it was actually
playable.

But, to be honest, if I got a new horn, I'd be more tempted to get one of:
* soprano trombone;
* valve trombone;
* double F/Bb horn.

There are Selmans in all these flavours on eBay.  I'd especially like to
have a French horn, something I haven't played in a long time; but decent
brand-name double horns start at around $2000, and even the stronger
Canadian dollar doesn't help me much here.  The soprano "mini trombone/slide
trumpet" is something I've wanted for a long time since I first saw
Jupiter's model about a decade ago, and a valve horn would be fun (and
perhaps even more practical for "pep band" work).  (Interestingly, when I
see Selman valve trombones on eBay, they're all in C....)

So, anyhow, does anyone have any experience with any of these offerings? 
Can't beat the price on the French horns (about $400 with shipping), except
perhaps for the also-offered-on-eBay Titan models (about $100 cheaper)....

Robert Slaven
Surrey BC
 
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