Willson Valve Trombone

[Fontana06]

Hey guys,
I have been offered a valve trombone from Willson for about 300 dollars. I can't find anything on the internet about what the model is called or how much it's worth. Have you had any experience with the Willson brand, especially with their (valve) trombones?
Thanks in advance
Fontana06

[Macbone1]

Evidently Willson does not make one, never did. Sounds like someone is trying to unload a Chinese valve trombone under false pretenses.

[JohnL]

Willson is a generally well-regarded company, but...

The only reference I can find to a Willson valve trombone of any sort is this reverb.com listing:
https://reverb.com/item/58249195-willso ... ue-sparkle
for a compact marching trombone.

It's one single listing, and the instrument is actually marked:
DEG
SIGNATURE
DEG PRODUCTS, INC.
LAKE GENEVA, WIS., USA

The seller is a former forum regular (forum name Euphanasia) who I always found to be honest and reasonably knowledgeable. Willson did make instruments for DEG at one time.

If there's one, there are almost certainly more, and if they made a compact marching trombone, it's not much of a stretch to think that they probably made conventional valve trombones, too. Now that's several leaps of reasoning to get to a Willson valve trombone, but nothing too far-fetched.

There are DEG-branded conventional valve trombones out there (part of the Caravelle Classic line). They aren't too well regarded, and they may or may not have been made by Willson.

Murky waters, to be sure.

$300 is a pretty low price for a decent valve trombone (no comments from the peanut gallery about valve trombones in general, please). If you can play it before you buy it and like the way it plays, go for it. If you can't play before you buy? Walk away.

[CalgaryTbone]

DEG and Conn both have had some instruments (flugelhorns for instance) that were Willsons but were sold under their own name. Bach euphoniums are re-branded Yamaha 321's. It's possible that this is an instrument that was made and sold under the circumstances.

Jim Scott

[Finetales]

Willson made a whole lot of marching instruments for DEG/Dynasty starting in the '70s (including that linked Reverb marching trombone, which is very rare), but I've never seen evidence that they made a conventional valve trombone. I would be surprised if any of the DEG Caravelle line was made by Willson, as most of the Willson-made instruments I know of were marching instruments only marked DEG or Dynasty II/III (and they all play well...unlike the Caravelles). The DEG Signature 2000 flugelhorns were also made by Willson IIRC, but not the Caravelle flugelhorns.

But it is possible that Willson made a valve trombone...some of those DEG by Willson marching instruments are enormously, absurdly rare and a normal-looking valve trombone would fly even more under the radar.