Posted by Rick Denney on November 28, 2001 at 12:26:26:
In Reply to: Re: Silver plating......a Mel Culbertson 6/4 posted by Chris on November 28, 2001 at 12:02:35:
Sorry, but I have to disagree on most points.
If the horn has good lacquer on it now, then stripping the lacquer should leave a horn requiring very little buffing in preparation for plating. A satin finish, on the other hand, will require blasting which will have a much bigger effect on the brass (but not the sound).
Even thick silver plating is way, way too thin to have any effect on the sound. It is possible that removing the lacquer will have some effect, but none that my ears have ever been able to hear.
As to my own preferences, I would suggest bright silver throughout. The satin finish is an old style that looks good on historic American instruments or instruments of similar design. But I haven't seen many new satin finishes that looked much like those old finishes. It seems more like a grainy finish and less like a satin finish nowadays. I'd rather have polished silver. Who wants a tuba with an industrial look?
Rick "offering one man's opinion only" Denney