FS: King 70's .547 5B Symphony (new price)
- wafeki
- Posts: 222
- Joined: Sep 12, 2018
FS: King mid 70's 5B straight Symphony tenor. Rope style engraving. .547 slide has been well maintained and recently serviced. Bell flare was, at some point, transformed to a dull/brush finish. Brace was, at some point, modified to a decorative style (looks like it could be a BAC mod but I don't know for sure). Bell is the 8 7/8" Symphony style, usually called a 9" bell. No nicks, dents, dings, although there are some blemishes. Sound is rich, robust, very full, and the slots are right on. Great horn for ensembles of all sorts, and rich lead large bore style ala Curtis Fuller. Original King case has some scuffs and scars but is solid and the interior is in good shape and not musty. $900 shipped CONUS.
- SlideCrook
- Posts: 85
- Joined: May 11, 2020
Was this one of the straight 5B conversions done by DJ’s friend about 15 years ago?
- wafeki
- Posts: 222
- Joined: Sep 12, 2018
Honestly I don't know. The story I got is that it was donated to a school in Phoenix. They didn't want it and by chance I got it at auction while visiting the area late last year. I will send a picture to Kevin Stiles at BAC to see if he remembers any conversions of straight 5B ropey bells with that brace. I have seen a similar brace on a BAC custom mod (I don't think on a King) - the basis of my conjecture above. I don't know if the .547 slide is original to this bell or if it was a 5B that had a .536 slide. Anyway, it produces a very buttery warm sound with a 6.5 AL, and the middle and bottom registers sound big with the bell that is larger than the regular 4B.
- Finetales
- Posts: 1482
- Joined: Mar 23, 2018
[quote="wafeki"]I don't know if the .547 slide is original to this bell or if it was a 5B that had a .536 slide.[/quote]
I don't think so, that generation of 5B (1485 etc.) had a kink in the gooseneck, rather than the straight gooseneck present on the later .547" 5B (and this bell). Mid-1970s would also be too late for the earlier horn.
I don't think so, that generation of 5B (1485 etc.) had a kink in the gooseneck, rather than the straight gooseneck present on the later .547" 5B (and this bell). Mid-1970s would also be too late for the earlier horn.
- chromebone
- Posts: 454
- Joined: Apr 08, 2018
King did make some straight 5B’s in the 70’s, it is possible this one was always a straight horn.