New York Bach 4 tenor trombone

[WGWTR180]

A friend of mine has a beautiful New York Bach 4 tenor trombone in amazing condition. Even the original case is in great condition. I don't know much about these instruments. If anyone does and could possibly give me an approximate value I'd appreciate it. FWIW he will be looking to sell this instrument. Thx.

[Doug Elliott]

I've seen a Bach marked 4 but it wasn't an unusual size, I can't remember now what it was. I think Bob McChesney either has it now or he was the previous owner.

[WGWTR180]

I've seen a Bach marked 4 but it wasn't an unusual size, I can't remember now what it was. I think Bob McChesney either has it now or he was the previous owner.

Sorry Doug. Because I put this under instruments I thought New York Bach 4 trombone was obvious. Seems like nothing is obvious these days. LOL!

[Crazy4Tbone86]

I have only seen a couple of New York Bach 4 models. I am wondering how many were produced.

The bore on those is very small. The Bach Loyalist site has them listed as .468 bore, with some of them made with .468-.485 dual bore. Are they rare? Compared to some other New York models, yes. Are they valuable? I think that is up to the musician(s) looking to buy it. Not too many trombonists play on equipment that small these days. Yet, the NY and Mt. Vernon Bach small-bore horns have a reputation for playing very open with a dark sound. There are also collectors out there who buy instruments with no intention to play them.

Most NY Bach 6 IV models (probably the most common NY Bach model) that are in good condition sell in the $1000 - $1200 range. If your friend's trombone is in very good condition, I'm thinking he should aim for the $1300-$1500 range.

[Doug Elliott]

Don't assume I only think about mouthpieces...
I knew it was a trombone and that's what I was talking about. The one I saw was something like .500 bore, not a tiny bore.

I wondered it it was mismarked. And I think Bob McChesney has it.

[WGWTR180]

I have only seen a couple of New York Bach 4 models. I am wondering how many were produced.

The bore on those is very small. The Bach Loyalist site has them listed as .468 bore, with some of them made with .468-.485 dual bore. Are they rare? Compared to some other New York models, yes. Are they valuable? I think that is up to the musician(s) looking to buy it. Not too many trombonists play on equipment that small these days. Yet, the NY and Mt. Vernon Bach small-bore horns have a reputation for playing very open with a dark sound. There are also collectors out there who buy instruments with no intention to play them.

Most NY Bach 6 IV models (probably the most common NY Bach model) that are in good condition sell in the $1000 - $1200 range. If your friend's trombone is in very good condition, I'm thinking he should aim for the $1300-$1500 range.

Thank you Brian.

[WGWTR180]

Don't assume I only think about mouthpieces...
I knew it was a trombone and that's what I was talking about. The one I saw was something like .500 bore, not a tiny bore.

Haha. I was confused by your statement referring to "unusual size." Guessing you were talking about bore size.

[elmsandr]

Not sure how popular this would be, the bore is sub-485, right? I know those small Bachs have a reputation for playing bigger than their size, but that is getting really small.

That said, there are fans of these small bore Bachs out there and this sounds like it would be in great shape. Probably worth it to go the consignment route with somebody that knows the collectors so that they can get a good value on this. The 'street' price may be stuck with the flock of 6s that are out there.

Cheers,
Andy

[HawaiiTromboneGuy]

I had one once many years ago. It wasn’t in pristine condition like the one your friend has, but I remember it being a very tiny bore and I was just getting into the Williams horns around that time. I ended up selling it for less than a grand ($800-$900?) with the original case. Granted your friend’s horn will probably sell for +/- $500 more being in the condition that it’s in.

[Burgerbob]

I think you can look at the market for Bach 6s and narrow it a bit more from that.

[slip937]

I ordered a new one in the 70s when I was playing 6s and 8s, and it was too small even for me and sent it back. Very difficult to evaluate. The only way is to see what the market will bear. I recall that either, or both, Bobby Byrne and Warren Covington played one. Dual bore possibly .468/485.

[WGWTR180]

Well the one I'm speaking of is for sale. I will have pictures soon and will put an ad into the classifies. Thanks everyone for the input!!!!