Any thoughts on 1950's King Super 20 S1?

[dwgib]

Just snagged a 1950 King Super 20 S1, hoping it's as good as it's reputed to be. Would like to have gotten the dual bore one as I heard they are the best version of it, but prices are high on those, if and when for sale. Anyone have played or own one that has any thoughts on it?

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Olds Super('54)
Conn Military Spec('32)
Conn 22B('24;'41)
Holton Military 48('51)
Holton 45 ('47)
Pan American 66B('31)
King Liberty('25,'29,'34 Silvertone)
Martin Imperial('64)
Tonk Sterling('19)
H.B.Jay Columbia('19)

[so what]

I think you are likely to find that it is a great playing trumpet.

[dwgib]

[GeorgeB]

Sorry, I don't know anything about The King Super 20 S1. I own and play a King Super 20 Silversonic dual bore Symphonic the model Harry James played. I will only say that if the S1 is even half the horn that my Silversonic is, you will be more than pleased.

George
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GeorgeB
1960s King Super 20 Silversonic
2016 Manchester Brass Custom
1938-39 Olds Recording
1942 Buescher 400 Bb trumpet
1952 Selmer Paris 21 B
1999 Conn Vintage One B flat trumpet
2020 Getzen 490 Bb
1962 Conn Victor 5A cornet

[dwgib]

[GeorgeB]

[dwgib]

[Rod Haney]

I had one that was amazing and traded it to Andy Taylor for a new Flumpet, he got the better part of the deal. I also have a very early model bought as almost new and I’m still breaking in the valves. I have some real special and too expensive horns that at best equal and only 2 of 12 horns better it. None are the equal of the 1st. They hit much above their price even if you pay up to 2k for a pristine one (always play 1st). Keep in mind you are playing a M bore horn and adjust as you must and it will sing and soar and blend with anything. I also think it (they) help me endurance wise, although at 71 2 hrs is about my limit.
Rod

[dwgib]

[GeorgeB]

My dual bore Silversonic is considered a large bore with the following size range:.464 to .468 if that is any help to you.

With the exception of a Selmer medium bore most of my horns are medium-large bore ( approx .459 to .460 ). So the King does take a bit more effort to play but is worth it.

George
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GeorgeB
1960s King Super 20 Silversonic
2016 Manchester Brass Custom
1938-39 Olds Recording
1942 Buescher 400 Bb trumpet
1952 Selmer Paris 21 B
1999 Conn Vintage One B flat trumpet
2020 Getzen 490 Bb
1962 Conn Victor 5A cornet

[dwgib]

Just got the Super 20 today. Wow! This horn plays beautifully, and so easily. Of course all the slides were stuck, got all unstuck except the dual part of the main tuning slide. I assume you take the spacer piece out to change key to C? I really don't know, I have a couple horns like this but have never seen any info on what it does, only my assumptions when the info on them say Bflat, A, & C.
Anyway, like most of the others, they're really stuck together. I love that this horn has the screw type limiters on both the main tuning slide and the 3rd valve slide.
Anyway, beautiful horn. I see from the tone why one guy said in his auction description that it was the poor man's Committee.
I may send it out to get the bell bend fixed and the slide unstuck, way too nice & expensive to try myself. Might even go for a refinish, depending on cost of course.
I may go for a silver plate on it. Although it wasn't offered in that.

Just looking at the HN WHITE site, This one must be early enough to have a 1 piece bell, as they have one for sale a couple numbers off from mine that is. And it seems that tuning slide doesn't come apart, as they have several for sale with all slides removed where they didn't take it apart, which if it did, I would have assumed they would have.
Nice thing, my case latches are broken and they sell new exact replacements, very cool.
_________________
Olds Super('54)
Conn Military Spec('32)
Conn 22B('24;'41)
Holton Military 48('51)
Holton 45 ('47)
Pan American 66B('31)
King Liberty('25,'29,'34 Silvertone)
Martin Imperial('64)
Tonk Sterling('19)
H.B.Jay Columbia('19)

[nieuwguyski]

I believe that tuning slide is two pieces, though most are completely stuck from decades of sitting closed. It is not intended that the H-shaped section be removed to raise the horn to C -- you'd need a complete set of shorter valve slides to manage that. The stuck slide is the Bb tuning slide. The stop rings on the H-slide are to quickly retune the trumpet to A. In a perfect world you'd also extend the valve slides for playing in A, and older versions of the Super 20 probably had lines scribed on the valve slides indicating how far to pull each one for playing in A.

By the time this trumpet was made pulling slides to play in A was no longer common, but legacy designs still had some of the parts to do so (into the early '70s the Bach catalog still listed the price of an optional main tuning slide rod-stop for quick changes to A).
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J. Notso Nieuwguyski

[dwgib]

[dwgib]