TromboneChat

I'd love to see some pictures of the car!

I've seen this thing in action and can confirm it works great. Note that the bottom is an IV stand (medical equipment) and is light but sturdy.

From the angle in the third picture it still righted itself (although if the slide was on the tipped side it might not). Important part is that the center of mass is still inside of the shape defined by the legs.

timothy42b wrote: ↑Wed Mar 24, 2021 7:17 am

Posaunus wrote: ↑Tue Mar 23, 2021 10:47 pm

I had one of those. (I'm a certified "old guy.") If I recall, it was nowhere near as good, sturdy, or stable, as modern trombone stands. (I have no idea where it is now!)

Yep, I had one. No idea where it came from, and all these years later no idea where it went, but all the old timey guys had them, and they were never all that good. But you weren't a real gigging trombone player without it.

Discovered this group looking for fit information on the k&m 14990 stand. First new stand I’ve purchased in 50+ years, replacing the “old guy” stand I’ve been using all this time. It holds the horn up, but isn’t steady, and 20 or so years ago I had a bad accident with it — knocked my horn over coming out from a side curtain. Bad stuff.
I’ve not done this before now because I worried about the support of the new stand sticking up into the throat of the bell- is there any concern of distortion of the throat by that part by the weight of the horn? I’ve set the heights that the uppermost part almost stops bell movement when resting on the cup and the slide is off the ground.

The Old Guy Stand is almost brilliant. The sprung ball with felt allows the bell to dry a bit. The four felts below don't soak the inner bell surface. It folds up nicely small.

However, the spring ball probably isn't even needed as the rest may do the job. And it only has three legs. To me that's the big issue: the more legs the better. (My stand has five and I do not ever worry about tipping over.) The maker could have dramatically improved the stand by adding a fourth leg, and easily. That's why it's almost brilliant.

I think the reason for 3 legs is that the three points define a plane and if there were four points (or five, for that matter) you overdefine the plane and unless all are perfectly set up the result is a wobble.

My issue with the Old Guy stand (and I had one for a while also) is the flimsy construction. This was also my complaint about the K&M In Bell stand. If the post were nicely rigid, the tendency to unbalance and tip over is dramatically reduced. This can be enhanced by making sure the slide is positioned near one of the extending legs. If the slide is positioned midway between the legs it makes for the most unstable condition.

Everything is a trade off. I use only 14990 k&m stands for everything after a standard Hamilton stand failed under a Duo-Gravis, causing damage to the trombone. One K&M stand is restricted to the house because it is no longer adjustable with my hands.

I make sure all three legs are fully supported if the stand is placed on a hearth or low coffee table to avoid animals. A leg hanging off can allow the stand to walk off the raised surface and fall. K&M 14990 legs are long. Fully supported, stability is enhanced. Carelessness is fully rewarded.

The K&M 14990 is stable without positioning the slide over a leg support. If the slide lock is not fully engaged or the stand height has been improperly set, there will be no dent in the slide crook.

I always have a worn out, black, 50% wool, 50% cotton sock to hang over the bell support. The typical sock holes allow for adjustment of the friction knobs. No marks are left on the bell and the wool absorbs condensation well. I don’t really care to advertise for Crown Royal but if that is a specification requirement for you, various sizes are usually available for purchase on eBay with low risk and without the alcohol. I also realize that will leave most trombonechat users without a friend.

I've added a hose clamp to my two "stay-at-home" Hamilton stands to make sure they don't telescope down. For the road, I mostly use K&M. For church, I donated 4 Hercules DS520B stands so we wouldn't have to carry stands in/out and so we would look the same - then 2 more trombone players showed up...lol. Imagine that... 6 trombones in a church orchestra.

The ideal stand for home use would be hollow and have a fan that blew air up through the tubing when you put it back on the stand. Keep the inside dry and it will last much longer.

timothy42b wrote: ↑Fri May 27, 2022 8:35 am The ideal stand for home use would be hollow and have a fan that blew air up through the tubing when you put it back on the stand. Keep the inside dry and it will last much longer.

oooh.... a warm air turbine so the horn didn't cool down and condense and change pitch while we count all our allotted rests during the places the strings and woodwinds carry the tune...

What do folks suggest for a good bass 'bone stand? I have a Hamilton and a portable K&M, but neither is something I'd trust with my TR-185.

jorymil wrote: ↑Sat May 28, 2022 11:06 am What do folks suggest for a good bass 'bone stand? I have a Hamilton and a portable K&M, but neither is something I'd trust with my TR-185.

I don't think I'd trust the portable K and M with anything but a small tenor, and even then I would prefer the 14985 (the one with tube legs) over it. You might get the 14985 to work with a bass if you're careful, but...

My choices are the K and M 14990 or, should you be able to find one, the 14991, aka the UMI stand. These are some of the most stable and strongest stands readily available. The UMI stand has longer legs that have a bend just before the feet giving extra height, which is ideal for the larger throat of a typical bass trombone (mine stays with the Besson I own).

Others may recommend the Woodwind Design carbon fiber stand, which is fairly pricy and seats the horn using the trombone's center of gravity for balance. YMMV.

I’ve used the K&M 14990 for the past 20 years with various bass trombones, and have never worried about them. As with any trombone stand, just make sure you adjust it well, with the shaft of the stand up into the bell throat, and low enough so the tip of the slide is 1/2” (1cm) from the floor.

Alternatively, Sheridan Brass, maker of the Get-A-Grip, used to have a seriously heavy duty bass trombone stand listed on their site, and you might contact them to see if they have one to sell. It was designed similarly to the HornGuys contrabass trombone stand, which you might also be able to modify to work...

https://www.hornguys.com/products/the-h ... bone-stand

K&M 14990, all the way!

https://www.ebay.com/itm/255546660312?h ... ition=3000

This makes the most compact stand of all time, but it's only three legs. I found mine at a thrift store and use at home only.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/234089667912?h ... Sw72xg72iK

Has four legs! Looks good but I have no experience with this type.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/153747319314?h ... SwqIld5UId

Five legs! Cheap, too. If I had a contra I'd put it on this. (My own stand below is cut to fit in my bag and is a bit short for a contra.)

https://www.ebay.com/itm/123165666553?h ... SwOb9d5lQA

Four legs, prolly a bit heavy. There are better ones to use.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/185319034696?h ... Sw5t9iHSLS

Five legs, the kind I use. There are several models, some with steel legs, some aluminum. Can be made tall enough for a contra, but to fit in my bag it's then too short. There is no better stand base I have found.

wjtaggart wrote: ↑Fri May 20, 2022 8:53 am ...
I’ve not done this before now because I worried about the support of the new stand sticking up into the throat of the bell- is there any concern of distortion of the throat by that part by the weight of the horn? I’ve set the heights that the uppermost part almost stops bell movement when resting on the cup and the slide is off the ground.

You definitely don't want the top knob wedged into the bell throat of the horn. You want to adjust the dome so that that top knob does not get stuck in the bell throat. You should be able to wriggle the bell throat and confirm this. I think that is what you have done, yes?...

Yes
Thanks