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Willson flugelhorns any good?



 
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Bxls_chops
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Joined: 16 Jan 2022
Posts: 7
Location: Brussels, Belgium

PostPosted: Tue Jan 18, 2022 4:16 am    Post subject: Willson flugelhorns any good? Reply with quote

Hi,

I have the occasion to buy a Willson Flugelhorn (for +/- 400$), not sure what type it is (they say there is no type written on the horn, it only says "Willson band instruments international" on the bell and "Swiss made" on the valves. It has no trigger on the 3rd valve (which I don't really use much so that's ok for me). Silver plated. in good overall shape

actually it looks exactly the same as this one :

https://www.catawiki.com/en/l/3608995-willson-bugel-swiss-made

myself I actually play a Courtois 154, which sounds a bit too classical for me and for some reason it doesn't blend well when I go out jamming, had a better experience with an earlier Flugel with a smaller bell so thinking of going back to that type of horn..

any experiences with this particular horn? any info? the price? I really find nothing on this particular type, not even on the factory website

many thanks to y'all!
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OldSchoolEuph
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 18, 2022 5:48 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I cannot speak to flugels, but they build very good euphoniums (not my personal taste as they are dark & stuffy British sounding for me), and certainly in terms of intonation, workmanship, etc. their low brass product is quite good. I would be surprised if the flugels were too far away in terms of quality.
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Halflip
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 18, 2022 6:45 am    Post subject: Re: Willson flugelhorns any good? Reply with quote

Bxls_chops wrote:
any experiences with this particular horn? any info? the price?

I never tried a Willson flugelhorn, but I recall having a conversation with Charlie Melk about them (partly because at least two U.S. makers offered them as a stencil horn under their own brand names). I think Charlie said they were well-made and had good tone and intonation. His only negative comment was that they felt less 'agile' than some other comparable flugels in terms of playing characteristics.

$400 seems like a pretty good price. I've seen Willson flugels go for a fair amount more on eBay (but I'm not sure if all the ones I've seen are the same model).


Bxls_chops wrote:
myself I actually play a Courtois 154, which sounds a bit too classical for me and for some reason it doesn't blend well when I go out jamming . . .

I owned a Courtois 154 a long time ago, and I had the same impression. I sometimes wonder if the "Reference 159R" model they have now would be a lot more suitable for jazz/commercial use. (Their description certainly implies that.)
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jhatpro
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 18, 2022 8:13 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I had one for awhile. Didn't like it as much for jazz as the Scodwell I have now but $400 is a good price.
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Tony Scodwell
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 18, 2022 9:18 am    Post subject: Willson flugels Reply with quote

DEG was the Willson importer for many years and early on had the Swiss company make their DEG flugelhorn with Donald E. Getzen Signature stamped on the bell. Willson owned Bauerfeind at the time and when Donald asked me for input on his new line of pro horns, Bauerfeind valves were used on the new DEG flugel and piccolos. They were very well made in true Swiss fashion and my only complaint with them was being made of stainless steel, they would freeze up if not played for a few days.

The Willson flugelhorn is a fine instrument and always undervalued. Conn had them made under their name for awhile and you will see them for sale occasionally usually even cheaper. When Willson sold Bauerfeind the new company was located near Frankfurt and continued supplying many custom makers around the world myself included. Unfortunately the world currency situation wasn't favorable to the US dollar and a set of Bauerfeind flugel valves were priced at 600 Euros, and this was only for the valve block and tuning slide crooks. You got to make all the inner and outer slides plus ferrules. Adams is the current owner of Bauerfeind and continues to make these outstanding valves. My whole point is a Willson flugel for $400 is way less than the valves alone would cost these days.

Tony Scodwell
www.scodwellusa.com
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Bxls_chops
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PostPosted: Thu Jan 20, 2022 5:35 am    Post subject: willson flugels Reply with quote

Ok, given the doubt I had if the type of flugel would be my cup of tea and the answers I read in this thread I proposed the seller to pay upfront, ship it to me so that I could try it out for a week and send back in case it wasn't my thing...which he refused..

so unfortunately I wouldn't be able to give you my impressions on the horn...up to the next one

thanks for the answers anyway!
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Tony Scodwell
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PostPosted: Thu Jan 20, 2022 9:29 am    Post subject: Trial period Reply with quote

I wouldn't send a horn to anyone I did not know personally either. No offense, but in the real world today too many scoundrels are out there with unlimited schemes to scam people. Paying up front was a solid gesture on your part and the return clause was something a private seller usually doesn't have to do. Good luck on finding a better $400 flugelhorn.

Tony Scodwell
www.scodwellusa.com
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Crazy Finn
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PostPosted: Thu Jan 20, 2022 5:35 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

At the $400 price point, it wouldn't be hard to flip again without losing any significant money (if any). If you're really interested, I'd just go for and see what you think. If you don't like it or eventually find something better, selling it without a loss wouldn't be hard.

On the other hand, doing that and not selling it is a good way to end up with too many horns.... speaking from personal experience.

Also, sending a horn to someone I didn't know is just not something most reasonable people would do.
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Last edited by Crazy Finn on Thu Jan 20, 2022 7:01 pm; edited 1 time in total
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Tpt_Guy
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PostPosted: Thu Jan 20, 2022 6:14 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Should be a good horn. I have a Conn 24A (a Willson stencil) and it plays very well. Nice tone, good intonation, wide slots, and blends well with other flugels. Response isn't an issue, but that could be because I sent the shank off to Mark Curry and made a mouthpiece specially fitted to the receiver (it's a French taper, but had been worn to oversize).

Cosmetically, my horn looks identical to the horn you were considering minus the first valve slide water key.
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