Mendez cornet owners...assist please

Amateur's Amateur

So I very recently got myself a Mendez cornet, mid-1950's large bore configuration. It's pretty worn, but playable. What I find odd is that I can insert the tuning slide correctly or upside-down. I expected that it would not fit either way, onaccounta the tubes would be different diameters---you know, the whole 'conical bore' thing. I cannot improperly insert the tuning slide on my pre-war The Olds cornet, and I figured the Mendez would be the same. It measures .468 on both tubes and at the second slide. How is it actually a cornet? The 1957 brochure on Olds Central says that it has "...careful engineering to preserve the conical principal of the Cornet..." Is it preserved in principal only? Can you do it all with the bell flare? Or, what am I not thinking about? It occurred to me that maybe it is a slide from a Mendez trumpet, but those are not .468 (as far as I know). Perhaps other owners could chime in with their experience. Thanks

Amateur's Amateur · Posted: Sun Nov 21, 2021 10:14 am Post subject:

bumping.

Note to self: don't post on a Friday night.

A.N.A.Mendez · Posted: Sun Nov 21, 2021 1:43 pm Post subject:

Those buggar's are conical throughout, when I worked on several the lead pipe and the bell are way more so than the trumpets.Perhaps they just made the tune slide easier.
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JonathanM · Posted: Sun Nov 21, 2021 4:09 pm Post subject:

stumac · Posted: Sun Nov 21, 2021 6:30 pm Post subject:

From memory from the Olds parts catalogue the only differences are the bell, leadpipe and mouthpiece receiver, all other parts shared.

Regards, Stuart.

A.N.A.Mendez · Posted: Sun Nov 21, 2021 7:42 pm Post subject:

Amateur's Amateur · Posted: Sun Nov 21, 2021 10:57 pm Post subject:

Thank you for the responses! I don't know anything about trumpet/cornet design and I assumed that the only way to 'make it conical' was to change the size of the tuning slide tubes. I have an early 50's Special cornet parts horn and it too has a tuning slide that will only go in one way.

So I guess another way is to make the bell flare in a specific way along with the lead pipe. Interesting!

The valves are quite worn, but work well and it needs an alignment, but my first impression is that I love the sound. It's Big to my ears and dark/round. It sounds like I imagine a Vindabona would sound, but I have never heard one.

Definately free-blowing...

Again, thanks. And chime in with anything else related.