1921 Buffet Pre-R13 C key clarinet, freshly serviced and ready to play, no cracks!
Up for sale we have a lovely Buffet professional level “Pre-R13” C clarinet. This C clarinet features a forked Eb/Bb “donut” key, allowing you to play Eb/Bb by using the fingering T XOX|OOO. This clarinet was made in 1921 but has just been fully serviced and is in excellent playing condition. The instrument is in good condition overall and only shows light dings and scratches from careful use. The bore of both joints is very smooth and shiny and the wood is free from cracks indicating that it was well cared for. These Buffet Pre-R13s are by far my favorite C clarinets, in fact my own personal instrument is a 1920 Buffet! Compared to other modern C clarinets I find them to be very resonant and responsive while still maintaining good intonation. Unlike Buffet Bb clarinets from the era these instrument have a small bore, meaning they tune well even with modern mouthpieces. As part of servicing this instrument, both body joints were fully stripped, cleaned and oiled with natural almond oil with vitamin E mixed in. The keys were also fully stripped, cleaned and fresh Syntek key oil was applied. Two of the tenon corks were replaced along with any pads that were severely worn or degraded and the instrument was adjusted to ensure both joints have an excellent seal. Finally pad heights were adjusted to ensure even tone and the best possible intonation throughout the instrument. The original barrel measures 44mm which I found far to short to play at A=440Hz, so included with this sale is a custom rosewood 50mm barrel. This barrel has a custom 14.85mm bore which I found not only improved the 12ths on this instrument but also made it even more resonant and free blowing. This barrel is also very compatible with modern mouthpieces as well. The original case was missing, so included in this sale is a brand new WolfPak case from Music & Arts. It is designed for Bb but does hold the instrument fairly well.
Up for sale we have a lovely Buffet professional level “Pre-R13” C clarinet. This C clarinet features a forked Eb/Bb “donut” key, allowing you to play Eb/Bb by using the fingering T XOX|OOO. This clarinet was made in 1921 but has just been fully serviced and is in excellent playing condition. The instrument is in good condition overall and only shows light dings and scratches from careful use. The bore of both joints is very smooth and shiny and the wood is free from cracks indicating that it was well cared for. These Buffet Pre-R13s are by far my favorite C clarinets, in fact my own personal instrument is a 1920 Buffet! Compared to other modern C clarinets I find them to be very resonant and responsive while still maintaining good intonation. Unlike Buffet Bb clarinets from the era these instrument have a small bore, meaning they tune well even with modern mouthpieces. As part of servicing this instrument, both body joints were fully stripped, cleaned and oiled with natural almond oil with vitamin E mixed in. The keys were also fully stripped, cleaned and fresh Syntek key oil was applied. Two of the tenon corks were replaced along with any pads that were severely worn or degraded and the instrument was adjusted to ensure both joints have an excellent seal. Finally pad heights were adjusted to ensure even tone and the best possible intonation throughout the instrument. The original barrel measures 44mm which I found far to short to play at A=440Hz, so included with this sale is a custom rosewood 50mm barrel. This barrel has a custom 14.85mm bore which I found not only improved the 12ths on this instrument but also made it even more resonant and free blowing. This barrel is also very compatible with modern mouthpieces as well. The original case was missing, so included in this sale is a brand new WolfPak case from Music & Arts. It is designed for Bb but does hold the instrument fairly well.
Up for sale we have a lovely Buffet professional level “Pre-R13” C clarinet. This C clarinet features a forked Eb/Bb “donut” key, allowing you to play Eb/Bb by using the fingering T XOX|OOO. This clarinet was made in 1921 but has just been fully serviced and is in excellent playing condition. The instrument is in good condition overall and only shows light dings and scratches from careful use. The bore of both joints is very smooth and shiny and the wood is free from cracks indicating that it was well cared for. These Buffet Pre-R13s are by far my favorite C clarinets, in fact my own personal instrument is a 1920 Buffet! Compared to other modern C clarinets I find them to be very resonant and responsive while still maintaining good intonation. Unlike Buffet Bb clarinets from the era these instrument have a small bore, meaning they tune well even with modern mouthpieces. As part of servicing this instrument, both body joints were fully stripped, cleaned and oiled with natural almond oil with vitamin E mixed in. The keys were also fully stripped, cleaned and fresh Syntek key oil was applied. Two of the tenon corks were replaced along with any pads that were severely worn or degraded and the instrument was adjusted to ensure both joints have an excellent seal. Finally pad heights were adjusted to ensure even tone and the best possible intonation throughout the instrument. The original barrel measures 44mm which I found far to short to play at A=440Hz, so included with this sale is a custom rosewood 50mm barrel. This barrel has a custom 14.85mm bore which I found not only improved the 12ths on this instrument but also made it even more resonant and free blowing. This barrel is also very compatible with modern mouthpieces as well. The original case was missing, so included in this sale is a brand new WolfPak case from Music & Arts. It is designed for Bb but does hold the instrument fairly well.