Thank you for such a prompt reply and for the suggestion to call C-S. I assumed that I needed to contact a dealer and all the ones I've called don't answer the phones. As for the reason why manufacture years are important, well, I was under the impression that the newer, the more reliable the technology and condition. My child is a beginner and we tried the rental arrangement last year but feel that it is not a good value.

Since we're starting second year band, I felt that we might as well buy a flute. If you have any suggestions on buying a used flute, I am happy to read them. I followed your advice and called C-S. The rep I spoke with did not sound very knowledgeable however she did answer the question about what year the flute starting with #70. (2000) She said that their website isn't current with info about how to determine manufacture years based on newer model serial numbers. I also found a very helpful (at least it sounds helpful!) for me to read about buying used flutes.

In case you're interested, here it is (it's safe): I guess the most important thing about buying a used flute, from what I've read, is to make sure it has been fully reconditioned, especially replacement of the pads and corks. And to have it tested by an experienced flutist. Oh, and making sure it is a reputable make. Buying a used flute is harder than I thought! Thank you for all your help!

That does seem to be a well written and accurate description of what to look for/avoid when buying a used flute. I would encourage you to look at older flutes as well.Age is not necessarily an indicator of how well an instrument will play. A 70 year old flute that has been well taken care of and has had annual maintainance can play like new, and certainly better than a 5 year old flute that has been mistreated or neglected. One of the major benefits of buying a used flute is that you can get a reputable, name brand instrument for less than a newer one, and as long as it is in good shape (or can be put back in good shape for a reasonable price), there should be no issues with the technology or condition.

Thank you for that advice. I called an instrument repair technician in my area and his opinion regarding older flutes is similar. He said as well that he finds the newer flutes, after the '80s, to be less well crafted. He also said that flute pads should last around 20 yrs. If the instrument has been well cared for. I am therefore looking at older models now.

I'm unaware of any published serial number model/year of manufacture lists for their saxophones. Armstrong only offered student grade lines of saxes for what it is worth. I have little hands on experience with this maker's saxophones, and thus don't feel qualified to give an accurate opinion of them. Armstrong then added their own keywork to these bodies - similarly to what other German manufacturers did with Keilwerth sax bodies decades before. Finally, Armstong also imported two other entire lines, the Heritage and the 3070 (thanks to Hurling Frootmig at the SOTW Forum for finding this model number).

The tech said he would be happy to take a look at any flutes we're considering purchasing. Of course, he does have a business interest, but if we pay less than $100 for an older flute and he fixes it up for $250 or so, that sounds like a good value and secure way to go vs.

Buying unseen/uninspected off eBay or an online used flute store. At least to me, a novice buyer of used flutes! So, thus far I'm of the opinion that one should buy and service locally. I'll try to update with any news. I have an Armstrong 305B LTD, the serial number is 7116937. I purchased it from a dealer, supposedly new, in December of 2005.

I have often wondered just how old the instrument is, since a dealer inventory tag had the appearance of being quite aged (well yellowed and dirty). After reading the posts in this thread I decided to call Conn-Selmer to see what I could find out.

The person I talked to said all she could tell me is that it showed up as a model 305B, and that it was sold by Armstrong to a dealer in March of 2000. I've never seen, or heard mention of, a 305B LTD before. Although the instrument showed up in Conn-Selmer's database as a model 305B, this instrument seems to have all the features of a 305B except the barrel is engraved 'LDT' and the flute has a gold-plated lip plate and crown. The person I talked to at the factory knew nothing of the LTD version, which I find rather curious. Sorry for the long post, I'm just wondering if anyone else is familiar with the Armstron Model 305B LTD.

Thank you for the input on the pads. I guess the bottom line is to ask if and when the pads were replaced and to check them out closely. As a side note, I got back to a seller on Craigslist about a flute he had listed for sale and asked him if I could have a professional evaluate the flute prior to any money changing hands. I was suprised by his reply. He was offended that I asked to have the flute checked out since he was selling it for a low price. I did call up a large dealer and asked about buying new v.

Used and inquired about what they had in stock. I almost feel like it's not worth the hassle to buy used.

Thank you for taking the time to read and reply! I hope this info can be helpful to others as well.

Soldered tone holes on a 1947 The New King alto saxophone. Hunter X Hunter 2011 Mp4 Free Download. Source: wws.com However not everything changed radically. The famous, with an inverted triangle replacing.

What’s In A Name? Something To Go To Court Over In the early 1950s, a legal battle flared about who had the right to use the name Toneking.

Amati claimed that they also had the right to use it, since they were the legal successor to the name. (After their takeover of the Keilwerth company in Graslitz.) Not only did Amati use the name Toneking, they also used the Keilwerth logo, as well as Keilwerth serial numbers—as evidenced by this Amati-made Toneking baritone, serial #30390. Source: tclaw99 on eBay.com It took until 1955, for the European Court of Justice in The Haag to rule that Julius Keilwerth was the only one who could legally use the Toneking name. The disputes between Keilwerth and Amati soon ended, and animosities were evidently forgotten, since in the 1960s, J.K. Cooperated again with its Czech competitor. However, for a period of 10 years (1945-1955) there were saxophones produced by both J.K.

And Amati, that carried the Toneking name. Therefore if you’re looking for a vintage Toneking, you have to be careful what it is you’re buying.

Keilwerth and Armstrong At the time when Armstrong was the distributor for Keilwerth in the US, and Keilwerth for Armstrong in Germany, all the necks for J.K. Horns were produced by Armstrong, because they were superior to what Keilwerth was making. The Armstrong necks were cut from brass, soldered, and then corrected through hydraulic inflation, to be within a 1/10 mm range. This ensured that all the necks were identical. Only when the partnership with Armstrong ended, did J.K. Start producing its own saxophone necks again. Nauheim-Made J.K.

Models In 2003, Gerhard Keilwerth (Julius’ grandson) spoke to Uwe Ladwig about the differences in Post WWII Julius Keilwerth horns. According to Gerhard, these were the distinguishing features of the different models.¹ • The intermediate model—The New King without a high F# key—had rolled tone holes until the 1960s. Production of The New King continued until the end of the 1960s. Toneking Exclusive Tenor Serial #: 90667, circa 1986. Source: saxpics.com The Beauty Of The Angel Wing The year was 1951, and the Julius Keilwerth Saxophone company filed an application with the German patent office for a radical new type of key guard.

This key guard was made out of “Plexiglas oder anderen Kunststoffen” (Plexiglas or other plastics). This plastic key guard, or angel wing as it would come to be known, was to provide a one-piece replacement for the multiple wire or sheet metal guards that protected the low Bb, B, and C keys. The angel wing further added protection to the low C# key—. This is one of the diagrams from Keilwerth’s original patent application: Although the patent was granted in August 1952, we know that the Plexiglas key guards were not without their problems. While these guards certainly looked striking.

Toneking 3000 saxophone-shaped trumpet. Source: quinntheeskimo Vintage Horns on eBay.com Very simply put, the Toneking 3000 was a saxophone-shaped trumpet. This was in no way a new idea, since a number of companies had already developed single and double-belled, sax-shaped trumpets in the early part of the 20th century. That said, the Toneking 3000 was a real oddity, and was very difficult to play due to its shape. They had a limited market, and production soon stopped. There are some discrepancies in the dates provided for the manufacturing of these trumpets.

According the website,, the Toneking 3000 was built between 1982 -1986, with no more than 100 instruments produced. However, according to Uwe Ladwig, the Toneking 3000 was built in the 1970s. Given that Keilwerth focused solely on saxophones in the 1980s, I tend to believe Uwe. It’s possible that the author of The Jazzophone website has a simple typo on his site. In any event, The Toneking 3000 is really more of a collector’s item, than a performer’s horn. How To Create Loyalty Programs In Sap Crm Software here. 1979 Catalogue Of J.K.

Instruments A regular visitor to my site sent me. I am in the process of digitizing all the pages. If you like perusing through old instrument pamphlets and catalogues, I suspect you’ll like this. (Yes, it’s in German. Yes, translations are coming.) The Last Decade Of A Family Owned And Operated Saxophone Dynasty The 1980s saw the Julius Keilwerth company return to its roots, and offer nothing but saxophones again. It would be the last decade of the Toneking and its variants, and 1989 would see the company’s production and name rights sold to Boosey & Hawkes.

Serial Number & Pictures Of Keilwerth Horns The absolute best serial number chart that I have found for Julius Keilwerth saxophones, is on. They recently redid their site, and haven’t redirected their old pages. For photos of J.K. Horns, I would suggest either,, or Pete’s new site,. If you know of any other good J.K. (BTW, in light of what I’ve just written, I realize I have a number of errors in my J.K.

Gallery that I have to correct.) ___________________________________________________________________________________ ¹ Source: Uwe’s discussion with Gerhard Keilwerth on May 26, 2003. The source of the majority of information for this page is from Uwe Ladwig, in der deutschen Fachzeitschrift—German music journal— SONIC sax & brass.

I would like to thank Uwe for so generously allowing me to use his research, and very much appreciate the trust he has shown by allowing me to do my own translation.