after a 45 year layoff -instrument recommendation requested?

[hollowbody]

I played Cornet, Tenor horn and Baritone in town brass bands up till 1973 but then gave up. I have continued playing other instruments since then including guitar, ukulele mandolin etc but now ..
THE TIME HAS COME FOR ME TO PICK UP A TRUMPET AGAIN!! YEAH!!

sorry for the shouting but I am quite excited by the prospect.

However, it has been a very long time since I blew a note and even then it was on borrowed band instruments. I need help choosing my 1st trumpet.
I will be happy to spend up to around £400. I don't mind buying used instruments as I can take a gamble.

My musical love is blues and some jazz and my best chance of playing live will be with a blues/jazz band. I read somewhere here about 'efficient' horns, the type that require minimum input for most output. This sounds interesting as I am advancing in years and probably need all the help I can get

what should I buy? thanks for your help

[TKSop]

Honestly...
Forget "efficient" for now - what you need is something you can get your hands on for £400 that's not too niche one way or the other.

Personally, I'd recommend going used and picking something with a trusted name if possible (the idea being that if you end up not sticking to it, atleast you should get your cash back!).

At £400 the options are largely limited to either unpopular pro models or solid intermediate ones... If you can find a Getzen Capri or Yamaha 4335 then either will do the job admirably - this doesn't have to be a forever friend, it just has to get you going again (and if it can be sold at no loss, there's no drawback to that).

As you're in the UK, if you're on Facebook you'll find a group called "buy and sell brass UK" where you'll find plenty of adverts - some people on there are clearly flipping a bunch, but it might still be a useful barometer of what's worth what (along with eBay completed listings).

[Tone Disciple]

Same situation I found myself in a few years ago. The post above gave some sound advice. I too am primarily a guitar and mandolin player, so I knew from years of buying and selling guitars that there now are a lot of resources where you can get all kinds of opinions on this.

I was good player in High School but when I went to college I quit playing trumpet so I could focus on guitar. Now, 40 years later, my niece takes up trumpet and asks me if I could help her with her playing and reading music. Next thing I know, I find out my playing is not as bad as I thought it would be so I want to buy a trumpet. I looked at forums like this one then places like reverb.com and eBay.com where you can see a lot of instruments and learn about price ranges to see what new and old trumpets cost. Do Your homework. Read about the instruments that catch your attention to learn more about what features are valued and seem to affect the price of them. Go somewhere where you can play a few of the commercials available instruments and try some out to see if any jump out as better or easier to play.

In my case, the first thing I did was look for a horn like the last one I had owned in high school which was a Reynolds Contempora. I found one in my local Craig's List for about the same amount of money you are talking about spending and bought it. It worked out great.

After a while practicing again and teaching my niece - who loved our lessons - I decided I wanted a much better trumpet. I ended up getting an Andy Taylor Chicago III model he sent me from his shop in the UK, but that is a story for another time.
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Tone Disciple
A seeker on the never ending quest for Tone!

[LittleRusty]

Note that things will be different in Scotland. For instance, if the OP was interested in playing in a brass band, which he isn't based on his post, we would probably want to steer him towards a cornet.

Also some of the lower priced used instruments here in the US might not be as available in his area of the world, so the added costs of VAT and shipping might make some of the no brainer advice in the US questionable.

Note, I am not challenging any of the advice already given.

[Tone Disciple]

For myself I will just say that I understand that. The point being that he should use the UK version of brands, pricing, websites, forums, and all the other details. I wasn't suggesting he buy US brands and ship them to the UK.

I have experienced the VAT and customs delays that are involved in that and while it can be done, you are right, it is not something I would recommend in this situation. But you can filter eBay or Reverb for the countries you are most interested in and possibly find some listings for the UK. Maybe?
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Tone Disciple
A seeker on the never ending quest for Tone!

[hollowbody]

[hollowbody]

[hollowbody]

[oldblow]

I am not familiar with non-specialist brands that might be available in that price range in southern Scotland, but I play a Kanstul cornet that was made to match the 610 trumpet, and it is a .470 bore. I am seventy-six, and it plays very easy for me with a Marcinkiewicz 310 mouthpiece. I can bend notes like crazy and play the American songbook very comfortably.

I also have a silver Besson 10-10 shepherd's crook cornet, that does not "light up" like the Kanstul, but you might see one of those around, and they play wonderfully.

I have the about five hundred dollars in each horn, including cleaning, adjusting, etc, by Rich Ita.
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Felton (Butch) Bohannon

[deleted_user_48e5f31]

Deleted by dfcoleman

[pinstriper]

Seems to me that the OP would be well served by a reliable student instrument. Not a piece of crap, but simple, general, reliable, durable. If he hasn't touched a horn since 1973, he is unlikely to live long enough to outgrow a student instrument, and if he does, would be well pleased with the problem of becoming good enough to need and appreciate an upgrade.
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~'77 DEG Dynasty II Soprano Bugle in G
'13 Chinese POS "Hawk" branded Flugel
'59 Olds Ambassador Cornet
'51 Olds Super
'69 Olds Studio
'40 Olds Special Cornet, Military Issued

[Brad361]