No matter how many of these I do I always feel privileged to work on vintage instruments; and to get the opportunity to restore such a beautiful instrument as this is a real pleasure - not that they don\'t come without their issues and headaches, for sure they do! I was astounded how playable this saxophone was prior to restoration, given that, amongst all the many other issues, some of the pads were almost completely rotted away.
The saxophone laid out ready to be dismantled.
A testimony to the great pads Gordon Beeson used to make - even though this Bb key pad leather is so old it has worn through, the saxophone still played well in spite of it - mainly due to the polythene membrane Gordon put between the leather and felt.
This was like many saxophones I get in for re pad - long, long overdue a service. The finish was well pitted and corroded, the felts were stuck on with sellotape, there was green gunk and residue build up on the pads and around the toneholes.
Here I have the keywork cleaned and laid out ready for new corks and pads to be fitted.
The new pads fitted and seated.
Key work regulated and ready to play test.
Complete! The part of the job I love best: the final play test. To hear and feel the difference of a silky smooth, silent action and responsive right down to Bb, just great!<br />
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