A video demonstration of this horn can be seen here.

This horn started life as a worn out, but rare Yamaha 861, SN 01551. These Geyer horns were made from 1978 to about 1995 (see this chart) and are regarded by many to be the best double horn made by Yamaha. These horns are highly sought after, so when this horn came into my shop, I knew this was a perfect candidate for a full rebuild. The valves were still in excellent shape, but there were other major issues that rendered the horn completely unplayable.

The bell had been replaced with far too short of a bell, and the original leadpipe had some damage on it, so I set out to replace the bell and leadpipe. I eventually, with the help of several people, was able to find the original bell tail, and found that Miles O'Malley had actually reproduced the original bell tail from this horn for one of his customers. I was able to purchase one of these copies of the bell tail, and custom fit it to this horn. I cut the bell and paired it with an excellent Yamaha flare, which keeps the horn distinctively Yamaha while retaining a custom horn feel.

I also needed a leadpipe. The other was damaged and I didn't feel comfortable using it on a horn I hope will be in the hands of a professional. Around the time I was starting my search, Alex Strachan reached out and offered to send me a couple of brand new leadpipes he wanted testing done on. The leadpipe he sent turned out to be a perfect match for this horn. I custom bent and cut them to this horn, and after extensive testing decided to keep it on this build. It made the horn sing! This is an excellent pipe I most certainly endorse.

The end result is a horn that I believe to be one of the best to have come through my shop. It has a beautiful, clear, and rich sound, the articulations are crisp, the slurs are smooth and easy, the intonation is clean. I am fully confident that this horn will serve it's new owner for many many years. I'm very happy with this build!

A few details on the horn you should know about:

• This horn is a rebuild, so there are a few minor scratches in some of the original parts.

• There are no major dents in the horn, but there might be a few very, very minor dings.

• The cut bell is Alexander threads NOT the dreaded Yamaha threads that render trying other bells useless.

• The valves have been professionally rebuilt. I do not know who rebuilt them, but they hold near perfect compression and feel very good in the hands as well.

A brand new (lightly used by me as I tried the horn out) Protec ProPac case is included. It is the more compact model they sell, and includes backpack straps that are actually very comfortable.

Please feel free to contact me with any questions you have! It has been a privilege to work on this horn, and I look forward to passing it on to the next owner!

You can watch the rebuild of this horn here.

A special "thank you" to the people who were either directly or indirectly involved with this build. Each of these individuals either gave me feedback or helped me find parts that helped this horn become what it is today:

• Miles O'Malley

• Alex Strachan

• John Ericson

• Jeff Simms

• Peter Erb

• Jake Waldsworth

• Robert Whitfield