trombone bach 42b corporation

[cpanico]

I may have your opinions on trombone bach 42b corporation

[tbonesullivan]

There are good ones, and there are not as good ones. Also given how long ago they were made, condition and how much they have been used is going to be a major determining factor on how good of a horn it is. It's really not possible to give a good answer to such a general question.

[cpanico]

why do they sound different? If you don't have the opportunity to try it before buying, how can you tell if it's a good tool? Is there a site where there are several for sale?

[BGuttman]

To be pretty brutal about it, if you need to ask this question you probably won't know the difference between a Corporation 42B and any other 42B.

There are people here who are very attuned to fine details of sound who claim they can hear the difference. Personally, I can't.

[Posaunus]

Is your question about:
a. the general quality or sonic characteristics of the Bach 42 family of trombones (there are several different versions of these)? -
or
b. the virtues of a "Corporation" Bach 42B vs 42Bs from other eras?

The answer is probably the same to both questions. Bach 42B trombones vary widely in quality and condition over the past 70 years or so. Some are good; some not so good. So yes, you really should try before you buy.

There are many music stores in the United States where you might be able to try a few Bach 42 trombones. And there is a massive used trombone market, much of it on line via the Internet.

Where are you located, cpanico?

[biggiesmalls]

Corp. 42B's are...

"...like a box of chocolates: you never know what you're gonna get." - Forrest Gump

If your mission is to find a "great" Corp. 42B, try to buy at a price that allows you to re-sell and (almost) break even. Keep buying, playing and selling until you find "The One" (or not).

I bought, played, and sold half a dozen or so Corp. 42B's, looking for "The One"...then, after I found "IT", I sold "IT" and went back to playing my Elkhart 88H.

In the final analysis, they all sounded very similar in front of the bell, but all played quite differently behind the bell.

DJ Kennedy has a funny saying:

"A great 42B doesn't play like a 42B...it plays like a trombone."

[BoomtownRath]

I have recently aquired a corp. 42B from a friend who decided to sell it because he had too many trombones and being a bass trombone player I thought what the hell, might come in handy to help out somewhere on tenor. I bought it without knowing it was a corporation model as the engraving of 'corporation' is pretty small but it was when I played it it played nothing like any tenor I played previously........ The instrument has a warmth and smooth dark tone that is difficult to describe. Slotting is excellent and what got me was the ease at which I can play high G in #2nd....... I've always had problems with this particular note on tenor trombones but always put it down to myself, not anymore.

I've stumbled across a good one (luckily!) and will have the valve and wrap replaced with an olsen rotor in good time. When you play a good one you'll just know!

[tkelley216]

Corp Bach's seemed to be a little underrated for a while. When conn moved their production from Elkhart to Texas, Bach moved from New York to Elkhart. In the process Bach hired many of the workers who made the prized Elkhart era Conn's to make Bach designs. This meant that while Conn's instrument quality took a dip from being made by less experienced workers in Texas, Bach was able to maintain a very high quality of workmanship inherited from Conn's "golden years" workers while probably expanding production. It's no coincidence that at this time Bach started taking over conn in popularity. You can talk all day about the nuances of a particular brand/model's design but if there are only a few brands on the market and one is built better and more consistently than the others, it has a pretty good chance of winning out.

That's not to say there weren't lemons coming out of the Bach factory during this era. The Bach 42 is a frankenhorn by design and while I've had a chance to play a number of corp 42s, they seem to vary much more than Elkhart Conn's. Try before you buy. I recommend replacing the linkage on the valve if you have a good tech. There are people who buy these horns with the intention of replacing the whole valve section, but if it's already a good horn with stock parts I wouldn't fix something that isn't broken.

[DCIsky]

By now, I’ve owned two Corporation 42s. One of them, a totally stock 1976 horn, was purchased with the intention of being my backup large tenor. However, it plays so well that it is now my daily driver, replacing the Shires tenor that I had spent three times the amount on. The other was a frankenhorn: a corp bell section rebuilt with an Olsen valve and edge bracing, with a later 42 slide and then an Edwards slide. It was fairly fun to play, but the combination of parts/condition of the horn gave it some really weird overtones that made section playing difficult. I ended up selling that one fairly quickly after I bought it.

Moral of the story: try before you buy.

[CarlVicVogel]

What years are classified as "Corporation" horns. I have 3 Strads, and am curious as whether they qualify.

thanks

CarlVicVogel

[Burgerbob]

What years are classified as "Corporation" horns. I have 3 Strads, and am curious as whether they qualify.

thanks

CarlVicVogel

They'll say Corporation in the logo. 1970-1979.

[CarlVicVogel]

Thanks Bob! Most of mine are from that era.

Carl

[Jbeckett]

There are huge differences in the sounds of modern 50b’s and Corp 50’s. I’ve got two that play with outstanding everything. From slotting to projection to a round fat tone. Modern ones are too expensive and commonly not as well put together. I have one of my Corp 50’s getting instrument innovations valves put on. The pipes and bells are different. I also have one stock Corp 50b3, as my daily driver. It’s not pretty, but that’s not the point.
I got off topic. As far as Corp 42’s go, I’ve played two that sucked, and the one I have now: I like. Plays smooth and round, and slots well. Bell doesn’t resonate but projects very well. It also is a very early Corp with a Marston valve. Sounds 100% different from any modern or even 80’s or 90’s 42 I’ve ever played.