 The Doublers BBoard
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Author: freeda1ball
Date: 2011-01-26 20:16
My daughter plays oboe in an 8th grade middle school band, but she was recently given an English Horn from the band director to mess around with. It is a Noblet made by Cabart, we think. It does have a crack in it, and we believe it goes all the way through. We do not want to put any money into a repair estimate, as it is a school owned instrument. Any idea how much it is worth or if it is even worth repairing? We were going to make an offer to the school to buy it or ask how much they might want for it?
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Author: concertmaster3
Date: 2011-01-26 22:32
I would think you can get an estimate of how much it would cost to get it repaired for free, and work that out of the price (whatever it might be...I'll let someone else answer that). If no one else here responds, ask on the Oboe section.
Ron Ford
Woodwind Specialist
Performer/Teacher/Arranger
http://www.RonFordMusic.com
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Author: oboeidaho
Date: 2011-01-26 23:04
I agree, usually estimates are free. The school should pay for repairs (although they may not be able to afford it). Pinning a crack is not a cheap repair, and should be done by a good OBOE/EH repair person. Usually the shop used by the band would be unable to do this repair properly (depending on where you live, of course). There are only a couple of places in the US I would have work on my oboe.
Cabart is a decent brand, and it could be a good instrument - hard to say without evaluation. Your daughter's oboe teacher may be able to assess the instrument, or you could call a local college (with a good music program) and ask the oboe professor for advice and guidance. They can do a suction test (I assume the crack is in the top joint) to tell if the crack goes all the way through.
Good luck!
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Author: kimber
Date: 2011-02-01 15:53
I'm not a repairman, but I would guestimate that the crack repair and complete overhaul (because if it has cracked, there are probably other leaky areas at the posts or such due to 'sitting-around neglected' syndrome) would run close to $1k by a qualified technician. If the keywork is complete (left F, not ring, etc) and can be repaired/restored to ideal condition, it might be worth considering purchase...assuming your daughter will be an oboe performance major in college. Otherwise, being in 8th grade, there are probably better things to spend the money on...including a top notch oboe or future tuition to a conservatory. Schools (even community bands) that regularly have instrumentation for EH, have EHs available for use.
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Author: freeda1ball
Date: 2011-02-01 16:07
Thanks for everyones input. We are looking at maybe getting an estimate for repairs.
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Author: Wes
Date: 2011-02-27 05:35
It would be surprizing to find a Noblet-Cabart EH for under $2K in any condition. EHs are just very expensive instruments, costing up to $8k or so for a very good one. The repair might not cost much but you will learn how much from the repair person. Cracks are often fixed well these days by super glue which is good and inexpensive, compared with the pinning method that often was used before. Since it would have cork pads, most probably, a complete overhaul could be expensive. Rarely is this needed on an EH. Good luck!
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