TromboneChat

Have to give a shout out to Eric Edwards for the mod he did on my old 78H. I had found a chopped up valve section from a 79H and Eric cleaned it up and made my 78 into a convertible. It hadn't occured to me, but Eric supplied a second turning slide so I didn't have to deal with moving the counterweight when changing. He did a fantastic job and the horn plays better than ever after he did his magic!

Hmmm.

Out of curiosity, is the left hand grip similar between the two configurations? It would seem that the straight config would leave the left hand more spread out and the valve config would scrunch up the left hand a little. The 79h and 78h have slightly different slide brace placement. I've got both models, and swapping slides leaves you a little uncomfortable.

This really does look great. I'm not a big fan of convertibles, but I have to admit, I'm kinda jealous.

Nice work! Just out of curiosity, is it just the way the picture looks, or is the slide angled a bit more to the right (away from the bell side) with the f attachment section on than when using the straight section?

Jim Scott

Good observations, Gentlemen. Yes, Jim, there is an angle with the valve section. I'm not sure if that was the way the valve section was, but the knuckle on the valve looks tight and there aren't any dents or anything to suggest a problem. Probably looks to be more the way I took the picture.

And, yes, with the valve section on, the left hand grip is a bit shorter. It would appear to be the slide brace (I didn't know the slides were different) as the trigger set up appears to be pretty close, if not exact, to what is on my 88H. Perhaps the Wise grip might even things out? I don't have particularly large hands, so its not a problem for me.

Cool horn(s)! Did you think about having the F-attachment section rebuilt in a more open wrap? The small 180 degree bend (just behind the rotor) on those old Conns is very constrictive. An open wrap could make the trigger rendition blow more freely......closer to the feel of the straight horn. It would not be a difficult modification, especially now that the horn is sectionalized. Then again....maybe you kept the original wrap because it worked well for your case/gig bag situation?!?

Traditional wrap versus open wrap put aside......that’s still a convertible horn that I would love to have!

Trying to remember the rebuild, but I believe I left the slide receiver & valve connection intact and that's where the odd angling comes from.

When I rebuilt the valve tubing to clear the added rear brace, I ensured all the joints were tight before I soldered which negates any inherent stuffiness due to the crooks. And IMHO open/standard wrap are no different when assembled correctly.

Regarding the left hand placement, my goal was to make the trigger placement similar to the front main brace to keep the position the same. The valve section was built in relation to the original straight goose neck.

Glad you're happy with the result Rich!!! Thanks everyone for the comps & write up!!!

Eric

Brian, I hadn't considered doing an open wrap, and have to agree with Eric, as this horn plays plenty open...actually more than I expected. To be honest, I only expect to use the valve section when needed for the pesky low note in pit work or 3rd in big band which I don't see that much. The majority of my playing is on bass bone.

79h has an unexpectedly big low D. I'm not sure it would benefit from an open wrap.

Again, IMHO, I don't believe an open wrap plays any differently than a standard closed wrap.

The only thing I can think of is the horn will resonate differently due to the change in bracing.

But IF assembled carefully & correctly, they will blow similarly!


Eric

Nice project and once again appreciate Eric’s work.

I’m another person who finds minimal difference with open wraps. I contemplated an open wrap conversion when Benn Hansson installed a Rotax valve on my 79H. I also considered making it convertible. When I got the horn back I was glad I left the wrap alone and skipped the convertible conversion. It plays better than I ever imagined.

I agree that many traditional wraps play the same or better than the majority of open wraps. The reason for this is that so many open wraps have that awful 180 degree bend going into the neck pipe. That sharp bend alone negates any benefit of an open wrap. However, I have found that rebuilt open wraps with a rotary that has the 90 degree/90 degree configuration are a slight improvement over traditional wraps.

I’m sorry I brought up such a moot point. If the horn plays great, you should absolutely leave it the way it is and enjoy playing it!