[Trombone-l] Butler carbon fiber bells

[Craig Parmerlee]

I bet that was the DeCarbo.  I have not had hands on one of those.  They 
look nice, but it is a lot of money for a horn that hasn't really taken 
the community by a storm.  I think Steve Ferguson was keeping one in 
stock awhile back, but maybe not anymore.


On 2/5/2021 10:22 AM, Jeff Albert wrote:
> I played one at NAMM a few years ago. I forget the maker, but they are 
> European (Swiss?). It was an interesting proportion, .525 slide and 
> 9in bell.  I think I liked it, from what I could tell on the 
> convention hall floor, but , as Ray said, it was pretty crazy 
> expensive, especially for something that may have ended up as a failed 
> experiment.
>
>
> ----
> *Jeff Albert*
> +1 (504) 315-5167 (Signal/SMS/Voice)
> http://www.jeffalbert.com <http://www.jeffalbert.com>
>
>
>> On Feb 5, 2021, at 07:24, Raymond Horton <horton.raymond at gmail.com 
>> <mailto:horton.raymond at gmail.com>> wrote:
>>
>> I played the  carbon fiber bass Trombone that was at Muncie for the 
>> ITW summer 2019. I liked the horn, the way it looks, the way it 
>> sounds, and especially the light weight. Not so fond of the high price!
>>
>> Raymond Horton
>> Composer/Arranger
>> Minister of Music,
>> Edwardsville (IN) United Methodist Church
>> Retired Bass Trombonist,
>> Louisville Orchestra, 1970-2016
>>
>>> On Feb 5, 2021, at 12:19 AM, Jeff Albert via Trombone-l 
>>> <trombone-l at trombonelist.org <mailto:trombone-l at trombonelist.org>> 
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>> Does it look cool?
>>>
>>> For as much as I used to dig into the minutiae of gear choices, in 
>>> my old(er?) age I am finding myself much more in the camp of play 
>>> something that feels good and forget about the rest. It sounds like 
>>> a cool addition. Congrats. I’d love to hear if your perceptions are 
>>> similar after a month or six with it.
>>>
>>> -Jeff
>>>
>>> ----
>>> Jeff Albert
>>> +1 (504) 315-5167 (Signal/SMS/Voice)
>>> http://www.jeffalbert.com <http://www.jeffalbert.com>
>>>
>>>
>>>> On Feb 4, 2021, at 20:35, Craig Parmerlee via Trombone-l 
>>>> <trombone-l at trombonelist.org> wrote:
>>>>
>>>> I have been interested in adding a carbon fiber bell to my Edwards 
>>>> bass setup for a long time.  While I have not had any lasting 
>>>> shoulder or other joint problems, but I have known several bass 
>>>> trombone players who gave up playing early because of the 
>>>> ergonomics of the instrument.  One way to deal with this is through 
>>>> braces and other gadgets that make the instrument easier to hold. 
>>>>  I have used those for a long time.  Another way to address the 
>>>> problem is lighten the weight on the instrument, and carbon fiber 
>>>> is an option.
>>>>
>>>> I made some inquiries 5-10 years ago and nobody was in a position 
>>>> to supply carbon components other than slides.  That has all 
>>>> changed recently, with Butler and some others leading in the 
>>>> expanded use of carbon fiber.  Butler is now making a complete 
>>>> carbon bass trombone (it still has a lot of metal in it, but is 
>>>> much lighter than traditional trombones.)  In my case, I wanted to 
>>>> keep my Edwards horn intact and change only the bell.  Butler is 
>>>> now able to do this, at least with Edwards trombones, and probably 
>>>> others.  They famously updated one of Doug Yeo's Yamaha trombones.
>>>>
>>>> So I received my new Edwards-style carbon fiber bell last week. I'd 
>>>> rather not do a detailed report on an open Internet forum.  I can 
>>>> say it is well made.  It is about 1/3 the weight of the bell it 
>>>> replaced.  I don't notice the weight reduction as much as I feel 
>>>> the better balance.  I never really thought of the original Edwards 
>>>> as particularly nose-heavy, but with the carbon bell, it seems to 
>>>> float on its own.  Timbre is good, intonation is fine.  I notice no 
>>>> reduction in sound volume.  There are a few other differences, but 
>>>> I don't think they are any greater than the difference between a 
>>>> heavy or light bell or yellow versus red brass.  If anybody has a 
>>>> serious interest, I'd be happy to provide additional information 
>>>> and sound samples off list.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> -- 
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>>>>
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