Posted by Rick Denney on September 26, 2003 at 15:12:35:
In Reply to: Re: Re: Re: York Master? posted by EdFirth on September 25, 2003 at 04:28:57:
Yes, I know where there is one.
Oh, you mean one that's for sale?
Rick "smarta$$" Denney
(Though mine isn't for sale, you might be able to adapt a King upright bell to the YM. The King collar is a bit smaller, but the YM bell is shorter, and those are somewhat offseting penalties. The King bell might fit into the YM collar far enough such that it becomes short enough. The YM collar fits on the outside of the bell completely such that the sheet brass matches against sheet brass. This is unlike the King arrangement that exposes an inch or so of collar on the inside of the instrument.
If you want to experiment with a completely different bell, I believe a Miraphone 186 bell will fit into the bottom-bow ferrule if trimmed a few inches. That trimming will make the bell as short as the standard upright bell. There's a chance the instrument will even play a bit better, too, because the Miraphone bell has a wider taper and throat then the YM, and I seem to like instruments that have that shape in the bell stack. I've not attempted this myself, of course, but I have made a few preliminary measurements, and I think it would work. You'd have to reposition the leadpipe slightly.)