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Fair price for a damaged Allora procket trumpet??



 
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Sclurbs
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Joined: 16 Sep 2020
Posts: 10

PostPosted: Tue Jun 15, 2021 7:24 pm    Post subject: Fair price for a damaged Allora procket trumpet?? Reply with quote

Hey y'all. Found a pocket trumpet for 45$ that seems to be usually worth about 350$. The bell seems pretty f****d up but at 45$ would it make sense to take it to a technician and get it fixed? Everything else looks like it's in pretty good shape

Some pics of the horn in question:


https://images.craigslist.org/00707_3xud3nbNFVNz_0CI0t2_600x450.jpg

https://images.craigslist.org/00w0w_aR8UEysG65Gz_0t20CI_600x450.jpg

https://images.craigslist.org/00101_ddp5qhlo8tlz_0t20CI_600x450.jpg

https://images.craigslist.org/00Y0Y_iSG8XRGs9Hyz_0t20CI_600x450.jpg
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HaveTrumpetWillTravel
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Joined: 30 Jan 2018
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PostPosted: Tue Jun 15, 2021 8:57 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Go for it! Techs can do a lot. I would check valves/slides carefully since any problems there can a death knell for your instrument. I'd imagine bell work might possibly be more challenging, since they probably can't use traditional mandrals. That said, if it plays it's worth $45.
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OldSchoolEuph
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 16, 2021 3:05 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

It's an Allora, a brand that sources from a wide range of stencil makers from pretty decent to awful. Its hard to predict where in that spectrum this horn falls. The heavy black epoxy will be damaged by straightening out that bell, so you have to decide if you want to also pay the tech to buff down the bell portion and match it to the slide and caps with clear afterward. (finding a matching black guitar lacquer is harder than you might think) If you do, you will wind up with about $175 in the horn by the time you are done, which would seem a fair value for a fun little horn - assuming its one of the good Alloras. . . .

Play it and decide if it's worth more than $45 before spending a few times that on cosmetics.
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Divitt Trumpets
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 16, 2021 4:56 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I'd spend my money elsewhere.
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Sclurbs
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 16, 2021 6:34 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

OldSchoolEuph wrote:
It's an Allora, a brand that sources from a wide range of stencil makers from pretty decent to awful. Its hard to predict where in that spectrum this horn falls. The heavy black epoxy will be damaged by straightening out that bell, so you have to decide if you want to also pay the tech to buff down the bell portion and match it to the slide and caps with clear afterward. (finding a matching black guitar lacquer is harder than you might think) If you do, you will wind up with about $175 in the horn by the time you are done, which would seem a fair value for a fun little horn - assuming its one of the good Alloras. . . .

Play it and decide if it's worth more than $45 before spending a few times that on cosmetics.


What if I"m not worried about cosmetics and just want the bell to resonate correctly?

The specific model of the pocket trumpet is: Allora MXPT-5801-BK Black Nickel Series. Are you saying Allora's vary in quality from the same models? or they have good and bad models?
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OldSchoolEuph
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 16, 2021 6:53 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Sclurbs wrote:
What if I"m not worried about cosmetics and just want the bell to resonate correctly?

The specific model of the pocket trumpet is: Allora MXPT-5801-BK Black Nickel Series. Are you saying Allora's vary in quality from the same models? or they have good and bad models?


I had not realized that was nickel (a process similar to gun bluing makes the nickel plating black). Thats a nice finish. I have no experience with how well it will hold up to the amount of burnishing required - I would suggest asking the tech to try drumsticks first before resorting to the normal steel burnisher and maybe accept a less than perfect appearance, just rectifying the shape to, as you point out, resonate correctly to a proper uniform reflection point.

Some Allora models have earned reputations for being decent student horns. Some have been train wrecks.

Allora sources globally. As I understand it, the bulk of Allora's suppliers are Chinese, but, at least at one time, they were thought to also significantly rely on VMI. Allora does not share this information, so its all supposition by folks recognizing components. On some long running model names, they have been seen to switch suppliers. Looking at decade-old images of this model, I think they have been consistent - and it has a good reputation.

One thing to bear in mind is that, while this may be a "good" Allora, its still a standard pocket trumpet with a bell flare similar to the geometry of a European bugle of the 18th century. The tone produced by such a bell form is not what one expects as a normal trumpet tone. If you are OK with that, and with a less than perfect aesthetic after structural repair, it seems like a decent opportunity to me.
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2017 Austin Winds Stage 466
1962 Mt. Vernon Bach 43
1954 Holton 49 Stratodyne
1927 Conn 22B
1957 Holton 27 cornet
1985 Yamaha YEP-621
1975 Yamaha YEP-321 Custom
1965 Besson Baritone
1975 Olds Recording R-20
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cheiden
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 16, 2021 12:16 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

No way I'd spend money buying and trying to repair a horn that's likely to be mediocre or worse when you're done.
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ECLtmpt2
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 16, 2021 3:40 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

That's a nice looking, except for the bell!, pocket trumpet. I like the finish. As has been said Allora can be a crap shoot but I guess this will not be your senior recital horn. I get attached to 'rescue' horns like some people do to rescue dogs. My family will have to deal with them later, not me. I have a Czechoslovakian Amati Pocket POS only because it was one of the last from that now free and separated country. It plays.

So,... $45.-; that will get two people a couple of full meals from McDonalds now-a-days. You can blow $45.- bucks on a lot less, I'd go for it and then see where it goes as far as real tonality and playability go, as long as the valves and slides work now. That would be my only concern. It looks like a fun piece, probably never really worth much but...my $0.02c.
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