New Resource on VEB Blechblas- und Signal-Instrumenten-Fabrik (B&S) Horns

I have the next page in my B&S series done: a complete guide to Dave Guardala horns.

I was really fortunate that I was able to locate the old Internet archives for DG dealer saxophones.co.uk. The Way Back Machine had captured more than 30 snapshots of the company's Dave Guardala pages during the time that they sold the model of horns.

So if you're looking for info on all the various DG models made (or any one in specific), this is now the page you can find it.

Enjoy...

With the Series 2001 and Codera models also completed, next up is the last of the company's pro models: the Medusa...
 
Nice job!

What I'm looking forward to seeing is a comparison of the various B&S models from this era, like, "How is a DG different from a Medusa?"

As always, if I have pics you'd like to take from my website, please do! I also have a bunch of various B&S horns in that slush pile I sent you a couple months back.
 
pete said:
Nice job!

What I'm looking forward to seeing is a comparison of the various B&S models from this era, like, "How is a DG different from a Medusa?"

As always, if I have pics you'd like to take from my website, please do! I also have a bunch of various B&S horns in that slush pile I sent you a couple months back.
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Thanks Pete. I have to look through the pics and see what there is.

As far as Medusa info goes, I haven't really started the model research yet. Dave Kessler sent me what he had, but I'm hoping I can pull some other stuff from another former dealer via the Internet archives as well. I do have a fair amount already however (since I also have Uwe Ladwig's), but I know there should be lots more out there. It will just take some time to track it down.

I came across a forum post on SOTW that stated the Roman numerals III & IV on the latter Series 1000 and 2001 horns had to do with improvements in key design. I don't know if that's true or not. I haven't seen any official statements from B&S stating that that was the case. Again I will need to do some digging to see if I can find something, but I am hoping that my dealer research will answer that question as well.
 
Oh. Forgot. "... and if the LA Sax Chicago Jazz/Allora horns are any different."

IIRC, there were a couple other B&S stencils, like the Antoine Curtois. I also think that there was at least one thread on SOTW talking about the date that B&S closed up sax production.
 
It's been a while--13 months to be exact--since I started the modern B&S section of my website. As of a week ago I have all their name brand pro horns done.

I have info pages dedicated to the:



That leaves a page(s) dedicated to their stencils, as well as a one to their intermediate level (Series 1000), and student horns (Series 500 & 600).

Given how little info there actually is on this models, this will not take long write. A sentence or two for each, and a few photo galleries is all that's going to be included in each of these pages unfortunately.

So for all of you looking for information about that B&S saxophone you either have, or are thinking of buying, you now have a place to start your search for answers. Enjoy...
 
Mmm... Well that was not what I expected. Just before the New Year I published the last "pro model" page on my modern B&S horn section. It was on the company's stencil saxes. There were only a few "intermediate" model stencil horns made, so by far and away the page deals with the variations on the Series 2001 and 2006 that B&S produced until 2005.

I did not expect to find nearly the amount of info on the various stencil horns that I did. As a result, writing this page took a lot more time than I expected it would. It also became much longer than I originally thought it would be. It is however, richly illustrated with photos of all the known--at least by myself and B&S fans/fanatics on places such as SOTW--modern B&S stencil brands.

Brand names I write about include:
  • Allora
  • Accent
  • Antoine Courtois
  • Chicago Jazz Series
  • Ernie Northway Signature Series
  • F. Schmidt*
  • Musica sopranos*
  • Richard Keilwerth*
* With the last 3 being stencils of the Series 1000--the intermediate level--saxophone.

If by chance you have a modern (post-1991) stencil saxophone that B&S made that is not on this list, please let me know. I would very much like to see some photos of it. As I noted already, not only my research, but that of B&S loyalists/researchers, have not unearthed other stencil names.

That does not mean however, that another one doesn't exist. Until JayePDX contacted me about the Richard Keilwerth horn about a year ago, no one had any idea they stencilled any RK horns. This might have been a one-off, or one of very limited production run. Whichever the case, the RK tenor I have in my gallery is the only one that has popped up on our radar screens.
 
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Not that I see too many, but all the RK saxophones I've seen were Julius Keilwerth horns.
 
pete said:
Not that I see too many, but all the RK saxophones I've seen were Julius Keilwerth horns.
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Exactly, and of those JK stencils, I have only seen one that wasn't a stencil of JK's intermediate level saxophone. Richard Keilwerth never was interested in being known as a sax maker--much like Julius was not interested in being known as a clarinet maker. This is why the 2 brothers bought instruments from each others factories as stencils when it came to instruments outside of their wheelhouse. This tradition seems to have continued past the death of the brothers, but for how long is not entirely clear.
 
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