18.6.14

Tips For Buying Vintage Saxophones

By Ina Hunt


Antique instruments are desirable for collectors, but it can be difficult to find genuine ones. This is often the case with vintage saxophones. If you are not prepared and do not know what to look for, you can easily wind up with expensive scrap metal. It can be a potential financial disaster.

One of the most common and possibly easiest ways to locate antique saxes is through the Internet. Similar to most other online purchases, you need to take extra precautions to protect yourself against scams. It can be hard to check if a sax is not counterfeit or has been appraised without documentation. For online shopping, you will need extra pictures of the sax for sale, the manufacturer, and year. You should also find out if there is a satisfaction guarantee or refund policy.

Gather information about the sax you want or are interested in buying. Learn the differences between counterfeit and genuine saxes. Educate yourself on the basics of a sax, down to the minor differences between year models. Compare alto and tenor saxes and how each one looks. These are important parts of weeding out the fakes from all the choices you have.

In most cases, the saxes for sale will have been out of use for some time, which means that it can have some parts that are not in the best condition. You should thoroughly examine the saxophone whenever you can, paying particular attention to the octave pin and keys because these can be more difficult to repair or replace on an antique sax.

Do some price checking before you buy the sax. Contact other collectors or experts to determine the actual value of the sax. If it seems that the seller is asking too much, you can try to negotiate for a lower price or just pass on the purchase and find another one that is in the right price range. After you have checked around for price averages, create a set amount to spend and stick to it.

Choose a seller that knows what they are doing. You may occasionally come across an individual person selling a sax they own, but most sellers will be dealers or large collectors. Avoid doing business with dealers who are not credible. They should be a member of some type of professional group or organization, such as the Better Business Bureau or something related to antiques and antique instruments.

Certifications and/or licensing is a must for dealers. A dealer should have a verifiable sales or antique dealer license. Certifications should be from a known professional organization. You have the right to ask for details to verify any information that is supplied by the seller. Keep in mind, however, that licensing laws vary from state to state and are often different in other countries. In many instances, a seller only has to be licensed in the state where he or she operates.

Buying an antique saxophone does not have to be confusing or stressful. If you take the time to learn a few things beforehand, you can spend more of your efforts on location the perfect sax at just the right price. A little knowledge can take you a long way.




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