Newly acquired 1952 King 2B Silversonic!

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true2bsu
Posts: 15
Joined: Feb 05, 2024

by true2bsu »

I'm so excited! I just pulled off what I think is a great trade with my local community college. A few weeks ago going through an instrument closet I found an old tattered case with a very tarnished and forgotten King 2B Silversonic. I offered to trade my two battle-axe student trombones, an Olds Ambassador and a Yamaha YSL-354 along with $400 for the horn. They accepted my offer! Did I do ok?

I've now spent a couple of hours deep cleaning it and it plays great! The slide is at least an 8/10 with some Trombotine. I thought you might enjoy a few pictures of a brought-back-to-life 72 year old classic. I'm looking forward to putting it to work in Jazz Band tomorrow afternoon. :D
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harrisonreed
Posts: 6479
Joined: Aug 17, 2018

by harrisonreed »

That slide stocking looks pretty rough. Rest of the horn looks pretty sweet. FWIW, you might consider getting the inners replaced.
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true2bsu
Posts: 15
Joined: Feb 05, 2024

by true2bsu »

[quote="harrisonreed"]That slide stocking looks pretty rough. Rest of the horn looks pretty sweet. FWIW, you might consider getting the inners replaced.[/quote]

That's not a bad suggestion. I'll work it over with some SlideDr "Great Slide" and see if that makes it fast enough that it doesn't bother me first. If that doesn't get it there I'll likely follow your recommendation. Would you recommend just replacing the one that's worn through or do they need to be done as a set? Is this something to trust to a local repair shop or should I send it away to a specialist? Thanks for your advice!
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bitbckt
Posts: 298
Joined: Aug 19, 2020

by bitbckt » (edited 2024-04-18 11:36 a.m.)

That looks like Conn wear to me - plating loss on the stocking. I’d replace both tubes and not bother attempting any sort of treatment.

You might have a “slide guy” that other trombonists in the area trust; slide work isn’t something I would leave to J. Random Tech.
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harrisonreed
Posts: 6479
Joined: Aug 17, 2018

by harrisonreed »

Yeah what he said <EMOJI seq="2b06" tseq="2b06">⬆️</EMOJI>

Probably will mean you will lose the old leadpipe
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rudytbone
Posts: 46
Joined: Feb 17, 2024

by rudytbone »

You did well!
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atopper333
Posts: 377
Joined: Mar 09, 2022

by atopper333 »

That’s an awesome pickup!

I think they are right about that slide. I have an older King slide with the same wear. As it is a much less desirable horn, and I’m a little tight on cash, I did my best to smooth over the area in question and it made it quite playable in the mean time.

That is quite the beautiful bell! Something about those old Kings, they are works of art and play and sound so well…
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true2bsu
Posts: 15
Joined: Feb 05, 2024

by true2bsu »

[quote="atopper333"]That’s an awesome pickup!

That is quite the beautiful bell! Something about those old Kings, they are works of art and play and sound so well…[/quote]

[quote="rudytbone"]You did well![/quote]

Thanks guys!!
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Bach5G
Posts: 2874
Joined: Apr 07, 2018

by Bach5G »

Congrats! Enjoy!
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RobL
Posts: 106
Joined: Mar 11, 2019

by RobL »

Great find, and glad it's rescued from school storage and will be played!

I will be selling a King inner slide with press-fit leadpipe on behalf of a local arts school. I don't yet know the model or condition, but will let you know if it's a 2-B and good.
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true2bsu
Posts: 15
Joined: Feb 05, 2024

by true2bsu »

I'll keep watch for your notice. Thanks!
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ryebrye
Posts: 101
Joined: Dec 20, 2022

by ryebrye »

[media][/media]The 2b silversonic is such a great instrument.

The wear on that part of the stocking isn't sticking up at all so it rubs, is it? That'd be my only concern is if there's some mineralization or something stuck to the raw part that's raised up that starts to scratch the outer slide then I'd avoid playing it until it got fixed.

As far as your trade goes, I think you made a fair trade if your instruments were in good condition... but I'd rather be on your side of the trade. You can put some money into it over time to get the stocking fixed and it'll hold it's value well.

If you ever want a good deal on an ambassador or ysl-354 there are tons of them out there you can watch for and if you were patient you could probably get them for not much money.
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Estraven
Posts: 122
Joined: May 05, 2021

by Estraven »

A somewhat ignorant question: why do I see what looks like plating wear on the cork barrels and slide braces? On the non-SS 2Bs that I’ve owned (both of them ;) ) those were solid nickel silver parts.

That said, this was a killer deal for the OP.