finishes

johnfin · Regular Member Joined: 17 Mar 2011 Posts: 48

how can i tell the difference in new finishes between real silver plated and silver lacquer.

LittleRusty · Posted: Sun May 19, 2019 12:29 pm Post subject:

Test it with a multimeter. Set the meter to continuity and touch the probes to the leadpipe or bell. Silver is conductive, lacquer is not.

Unless it is conductive silver lacquer. (I did a quick check to see if lacquer is conductive and found some is)

frankcameraska · Regular Member Joined: 02 Apr 2016 Posts: 88

if it's a new trumpet I'd smell it - lacquer smells lacquer to me..
if it's old, silver tarnishes ..

_________________
Bach NY - Adams A5

Bach 3C / Artisan 3C

veery715 · Posted: Mon May 20, 2019 5:34 am Post subject:

I have yet to see silver lacquer on a trumpet, and I have seen a few. Clear (ish) lacquer on a nickel plated or nickel silver instrument, yes.
_________________
veery715
Hear me sing!: https://youtu.be/vtJ14MV64WY
Playing trumpet - the healthy way to blow your brains out.

Crazy Finn · Posted: Mon May 20, 2019 6:58 am Post subject:

Brad361 · Posted: Mon May 20, 2019 4:15 pm Post subject:

Same here, I’ve never seen silver lacquer.

Brad
_________________
When asked if he always sounds great:
"I always try, but not always, because the horn is merciless, unpredictable and traitorous." - Arturo Sandoval

LittleRusty · Posted: Mon May 20, 2019 4:53 pm Post subject:

Brad361 · Posted: Tue May 21, 2019 6:03 am Post subject:

veery715 · Posted: Tue May 21, 2019 6:17 am Post subject:

What are we talking about here? Silver lacquer vis a vis Gold Lacquer - as is applied on my Sima C trumpet? Or lacquer over silver plate?

IOW a silver pigmented lacquer or clear over plating? The obvious next question is why? Why plate in silver and then cover it with a clear finish? No tarnish? I don't know - I only ask questions. Answers are up to someone else.

I have a copper plated Puge, with lacquer over the copper. This is because I like the looks of copper but it oxidizes/tarnishes and looks bad if not protected. So it's both plated and lacquered. (sorry - an answer)
_________________
veery715
Hear me sing!: https://youtu.be/vtJ14MV64WY
Playing trumpet - the healthy way to blow your brains out.

Brassnose · Posted: Tue May 21, 2019 6:18 am Post subject:

Regular silver paint is often black, so pretty easy to tell

_________________
2019 Martin Schmidt eXcellence
1992 Bach 43GH/43
1989 Kühnl & Hoyer Model 15 flugel
1980/2023 Custom Blessing Scholastic C 😎
1977 Conn 6B
1951 Buescher 400 Lightweight
AR Resonance, Frate, Klier

stevericks · Posted: Tue May 28, 2019 12:56 pm Post subject:

Am wondering if you mean the difference between silverplate and nickel. Most horns are one of the following: silverplated, gold plated, gold lacquer, nickel finish. Don’t think I have ever seen a silver lacquerd horn. Can you expound a little more on the question, maybe give us a couple of examples of the horns in question.
_________________
Steve
Olds, Kanstul, Bach

Flip Oakes · Posted: Tue May 28, 2019 3:12 pm Post subject:

The way to tell any plated horn from a lacquered horn regardless of color is to simply take some silver polish on a cloth and wipe the surface. If black appears it’s plated. If the cloth remains clean it’s lacquered. This is regardless of raw brass, or any plated finish. If it doesn’t turn black it’s lacquered. The black you see is the actual plating or metal.
_________________
Flip Oakes “Wild Thing Trumpets”
2559 Mottino Dr.
Oceanside, Ca. 92056-3421
760-643-1501

Delivering the distinctive Wild Thing Sound since 1994

pinstriper · Posted: Tue May 28, 2019 7:49 pm Post subject:

There's another finish one may encounter: chrome. Up until the early 80's chrome was the standard finish for drum and bugle corps instruments with almost no exceptions (in 78 the Bridgemen bought a new line of 2v baritones from Olds in lacquered brass, and sent all their other instruments somewhere to have the chrome stripped and I think lacquered). King started making silver plated bugles right around 79, and I think SCV's King instruments in 80 may have been nickel silver.

I seem to remember talk of there being a worldwide chromium shortage that made for the end of that finish, but I am not at all sure of the reliability of that.
_________________
~'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