 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: dc55
Date: 2012-03-17 16:41
ok, so i had bought a used clarinet as an R13 for $1200 and it sounds beautiful. when i came home i checked the serial number (41334) on buffet's website and these two results came up:
Brand : Buffet Crampon
Instrument : Clarinettes E12 Master Model
Serial number : 41334
Year of manufacturing : 11/06/1979
Brand : Buffet Crampon
Instrument : Clarinettes Nickel�es
Serial number : 41334
Year of manufacturing : 07/11/1977
here are some pictures of it: http://www.flickr.com/photos/75975464@N03/sets/72157629239807550/
i just want to know exactly what i have and if i do have the E12 master model how different is it from an R13. thanks everyone
Post Edited (2012-03-17 17:14)
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Author: pewd
Date: 2012-03-17 18:12
Appears to me to be a c. 1950 professional Buffet, pre R13
Looks like a common top joint G#/A post, which is makes it a predecessor to the r13.
The real gurus will pop up shortly with more definitive responses.
- Paul Dods
Dallas, Texas
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Author: jbutler ★2017
Date: 2012-03-17 18:46
I agree with you Paul. Serial numbers were lost between 1945-1958 so one has to guess but there is a concensus that there were about 3000 units made per year during this time. 1945 began with serial numbers in the 28000 range and 1958 began with 58835. I guess it was made in 1950 or 1951 and most likely not made with a polycylindrical bore as the R13.
jbutler
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Author: Ken Shaw ★2017
Date: 2012-03-17 20:38
The keys mark it as a pre-R13. The bottom of the throat Ab key and the right (looking from the front) of the throat A key share a single post. On the R13, the post is not shared.
Also, the key guide for the two top trill keys has flat, triangular sides. The R13 has a cylinder with a slot cut down through it.
The highest serial number I've seen for a pre-R13 is 48707 (late 1954), and the lowest for an R13 I've seen is 48829 (early 1955). I've played two experimental, transitional clarinets from 1954 or perhaps 1953, but the owners said that most of they were bought at the factory and had no serial numbers.
According to http://www.woodwind.org/clarinet/Equipment/HowOld/Buffet.html, production was around 3000 per year in the gap in Buffet's records from 1946 through 1957. The actual average was 2569, but presumably production was lower during the years following W.W.II, so it seems fair to assume 3000 in the early 1950s through 1957.
The first s/n for 1958 was 58835. Subtracting 3000 per year, your s/n of 41334 almost certainly comes from 1952, well before the R13 was introduced.
Ken Shaw
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Author: pewd
Date: 2012-03-17 21:18
And I should have said it looks identical to a 1950? 51? model John restored for me a few years ago, mine is s/n 418xx.
- Paul Dods
Dallas, Texas
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Author: dc55
Date: 2012-03-17 21:29
how big of a difference in quality is there between a pre-R13 and an R-13 from 1955?
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Author: jbutler ★2017
Date: 2012-03-17 23:54
There are some mechanical differences that Ken has already described in a previous post. The keys are not plated but raw German (nickel) silver unless the keys and posts have been plated sometime during its life. Tone and intonation differences exist as well. If you are happy with the instrument as described in your original post then these differences won't matter much to you.
jbutler
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