Selmer Series III Alto Saxophone Black Lacquer

Description

The retail prices of Selmer Series III alto saxes just went up in July by about $500. That makes a virtually mint condition used horn an even better choice than it was before. This horn comes from its original owner having been played only at home. He took excellent care of it, so that there is hardly a scratch on the whole horn. There have been no dents, dings or past repairs at all. The black and gold looks really great and it seems to give the sound of the horn a bit more guts. It is slightly darker in tone than the lacquered Series III currently in the shop.

Of course, this horn has a great clear round tone like all the new Selmers, as well as excellent intonation and excellent ergonomics. On top of that, it has almost all new pads. I stand behind the horns I sell, and I want them to be right when they go out the door. A major problem with new Selmers is that the pads they use are too thin and they have no shellac behind them at all. This means that there is no way to adjust pads when they get leaky, and there is no way to replace one of the ultra thin pads with a replacement pad that will be the same thickness and provide the same key heights across the instrument. As a consequence, these horns unfortunately need to be repadded almost as soon as they come from the factory. This horn has just almost all new pads put in by Matt Stohrer, who is one of the best in the business. All of the sprung-open pads are new, and most of the sprung closed ones are as well. Now it feels like it should. Firm, snappy, and sealing perfectly for 5-10 years with minimal maintenance.

So you are getting a like-new horn cosmetically, which is (far) better than new mechanically. That’s hard to beat, for half the price of a new one.

This horn ships in its sturdy Selmer Vanguard case, which is also in excellent condition.

LOTS more Pictures down below.