1936 Selmer Balanced Action
The Balanced Action is among the most sought after horns ever made and it deserves every bit of hype it gets. The mechanical design of this very early Balanced Action is nothing short of revolutionary. The radical changes made to the saxophone by Selmer at this time set the pace for saxophones right up until today. The right side bell keys and the left hand table design led to what we now know as the Mark VI design, which has since been copied and standardized in nearly every saxophone since then. So, this is where that started.
This particular part of the run featured an unusual foot less key design. You can see in the pictures behind the lower stack, that there are no feet on D, E, and F. The heights are set by the knurled adjustment screws mounted to posts in between the keys. It is as stylish and as cool as it gets in my opinion.
This was an enormous job. The key work modifications were extensive, all the needle springs were dead and limp and needed to be replaced with larger springs, which means drilling out the posts, the pads were lacquered, the neck was accurately lapped-in, and five new over-sized rods needed to be made, so those hinge tubes and posts needed to be reamed out. Of course, the keys were fit to nearly zero tolerances.
I am genuinely envious of the owner of this horn. How does it play? The intonation is remarkably accurate and the response is enormous and immediate. Many people know I always prefer Conns, and it's true, I do. But this is some extremely stiff competition.
The Balanced Action is among the most sought after horns ever made and it deserves every bit of hype it gets. The mechanical design of this very early Balanced Action is nothing short of revolutionary. The radical changes made to the saxophone by Selmer at this time set the pace for saxophones right up until today. The right side bell keys and the left hand table design led to what we now know as the Mark VI design, which has since been copied and standardized in nearly every saxophone since then. So, this is where that started.
This particular part of the run featured an unusual foot less key design. You can see in the pictures behind the lower stack, that there are no feet on D, E, and F. The heights are set by the knurled adjustment screws mounted to posts in between the keys. It is as stylish and as cool as it gets in my opinion.
This was an enormous job. The key work modifications were extensive, all the needle springs were dead and limp and needed to be replaced with larger springs, which means drilling out the posts, the pads were lacquered, the neck was accurately lapped-in, and five new over-sized rods needed to be made, so those hinge tubes and posts needed to be reamed out. Of course, the keys were fit to nearly zero tolerances.
I am genuinely envious of the owner of this horn. How does it play? The intonation is remarkably accurate and the response is enormous and immediate. Many people know I always prefer Conns, and it's true, I do. But this is some extremely stiff competition.