TromboneChat

I'm looking at an Olds Special for sale online - It's difficult to pin down the details but I think it's from the 1950s - It looks like it is from before the tri-color era.
I understand that these are dual bore 0.485/0.500. Is it possible to source inner slide tubes (readily available for some other brand) which will fit ?

Thanks
Dave

IF they are the original "fluted" inner tubes then no replacement are available.

Otherwise, yes, new tubes can be sourced. Just need the measurement of the stockings.

A Special should have round inners. Even if it's an oddball with duo-octagonal tubes, you can always replace them with round ones. It won't be "original", but you're buying it to play, not to display.

As regards duo-octagonal tubes - I believe Mike Bulow (M/K Drawing & Bending) has some original dies and has produced a few tubes, but it's not something he offers on his website.

As our resident Olds expert JohnL wrote, Olds Special trombones typically had cylindrical slides (0.485" and 0.500" bore, as noted), for which replacement tubes are apparently available. The "duo-octagonal" slides were supplied on Super and Recording trombones (I presume to reduce friction & drag?).

At any rate, I have an Olds Recording R20 (0.495/0.510" dual bore, w/ F-attachment) made in 1976. The upper tube was replaced with a cylindrical tube of the appropriate diameter, the bottom tube remains duo-octagonal (still in good shape). The slide is near perfect - impeccably smooth - and It plays great!

davebb wrote: ↑Wed Mar 10, 2021 1:58 am It's difficult to pin down the details but I think it's from the 1950s - It looks like it is from before the tri-color era.

This has nothing to do with the OP's question, but what IS the date range on the tri-color bells? I have a 66-67 Special (Fullerton) in tri-color from my high school days that I just got repaired, buffed and re-lacquered but I couldn't find any details about when that scheme was used by Olds. I think I've only seen one other Special in tri-color, on Reverb, and that one is from the LA years if I remember correctly.

Based on catalogs in my collection (viewable on my site) and other places around them web, I think the tri-color Special was introduced in 1957-1958 and was replaced by the nickel-plated version sometime around 1970-1973.