Can anyone tell me what a pre R13 is?

blogan

Aside from the obvious, a model before the R13 came out, how do I find out some history on what is being billed as a pre R13? I have the serial # and all it says is that it was made in 1925. From the pictures and what the seller is saying, it has been restored and it does look good in the pictures.

Obviously in 1925 they weren't calling it the pre R13 because I don't think they knew they were going to eventually come out with a model called the R13. I can't find anything on the Buffet website. Is there anything or anywhere that anyone knows of that I can find out more info on the clarinets made in the year 1925?

Just trying to find out some history.

Thanks
 
The various manufacturers...

...weren't all that keep about keeping records that documented the history of their various models, dates of introduction and the like. One manufacturer (Colonel Conn) even destroyed all of the records of their earlier work, just to get rid of the paper.

Good luck with your search.
 
Look here
http://www.ClarinetPerfection.com/clsnBuffet.htm

in 1955 Buffet and Robert Carree came out with what is known as an "R13"

But keep in mind, Fischer imported the buffet brand well before the R13 and just copy and paste from http://www.ClarinetPerfection.com/clsnBuffet.htm#R13ModelGeneral
Carl Fischer Musical Instruments Company of New York continued to import the Buffet clarinets. They (Carl Fischer and not Buffet) had the designations of R13, R13 1/2, R14, R14 1/2, R16 R16 1/2, R16 3/4 - this was found in the Carl Fischer catalogs, not on the clarinet itself.
The "1/2" represented an Eb lever.
The R14 had 17 keys and 7 rings & the Eb lever.
R16 was the 19 key, 7 ring with articulated G#, Eb lever and forked Eb key.
R16 3/4 had 20 keys, 7 rings, articulated G#, Eb lever, forked Bb and a partridge in a pear tree !!
These identifiers were basically used to differentiate the instrument itself. But an R13 was still considered an "R13" PLUS options to the consumer.
Click to expand...

But keep in mind the history of buffet clarinets, just like all the other makers, was an evolution and change. Thus a 1925 model is NOT a 1950s model

a 1925 Buffet clarinet is a cylindrical, larger bore clarinet. A great player and great tone but not designed with the intricate specifications of a R13 of 1955 onwards.

I'm not quite sure what you are asking. It is a 86 year old clarinet (2011 - 1925 = 86) and there's no denying that fact. It is NOT an R13, it is a 1925 Buffet made clarinet.

It's a good buy if you believe it is worth it. anything "pre-R13" is worth about 1/2 the value of a low end R13 sale, say on eBay.
I do not track pre-R13 prices but it is roughly 1/2 as mentioned
http://www.ClarinetPerfection.com/ClarinetValue.htm

but eBay is an Open Market. people may ask more or less, etc. dependent upon the scenario
 
Just wanting to know a little more about that year. Did those models have a name? Is it considered intermediate or professional? What type of wood? Nickel or silver plate keys? The serial # is 641R1. The Buffet site only says it was made in 1925.

I don't know to much about clarinets in general except that I used to play on my dad's 1930's Buffet as a kid. I'm a guitar player professionally and would like to get back into the clarinet. I am just looking for great tone. And I know from playing another instrument that tone comes a lot from the player.

So in a nutshell just interested in what model this particular 1925 vintage might be.

Thanks for the info thus far. I checked out the links but there doesn't seem to be much info on models from that year.

Thanks
 
Back before 1960's most makers made one professional clarinet like when Henry Ford made the Model T in black only. One model.

Buffet had no particular name for it. It was simply a Buffet clarinet. Selmer has their Selmer paris clarinet and Leblanc had a Leblanc clarinet.

Leblanc was probably the first one to go wild and introduce different models quite quickly, then multiple models at the same time. But back before the 1950s there was only 1 model from each of the big 3.

Most were nickel plated keys. Some may have been raw nickel-silver keys. The keys themselves are made of nickel silver, then plated. They were most commonly plated with a nickel compound. Some may have been silverplated. There were stretches where some may have not been plated at all.

as for wood most clarinets are made from a combination of African Blackwoods (also commonly known as M'Pingo) & Ebonies. There's a "trade" name grenadilla used in the music industry used to identify African Blackwood (mostly), which is NOT grenadillo. There may be other woods used too such as various Rosewoods and fruit woods.

http://www.clarinetperfection.com/wood.htm

Usually a visual inspection by someone that actually knows the various wood makes can identify which wood was actually used. Such as example, my 1955 Buffet is all African Blackwood/M'Pingo. Where as my 1967 is blackwood and the upper joint is a striped black Ebony.

Of course, the makers staining woods black, and using filler to eliminate grain doesn't help much.
 
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