Part 2 in the series of restoration of French Horn. This episode concludes the dent work up to the pinky hook, then install new hand guard. Thanks for watching.
Actually that is also middle and high school. That looks like my old French horns. I had some that looked exactly like that. My middle school and high school was too poor to fix the horns. But the percussion and tubas always had great instruments.
Coming from auto body background here, at first I was like "He's gonna have to finesse those dents out I guess..." .....NOPE! Just brute force the living hell out of them, that's it!!! Love it!!
I’m not a musician but I have been working with metal for 30 years now. Seeing damaged musical instruments is very sad. I appreciate the care and time it takes to bring them back again.
My god - I can’t believe it. I’ve watched both French horn restoration videos. Very nicely done! I played the French horn from 6th grade through high school. I’m 71 now. I look back at those years with that one horn quite fondly. My 6th grade granddaughter has begun . Thank you sir.🤜🤛👊👍👍
I see this and admire this gentleman’s artistry and at the same time wonder what the hell did the player do to this horn. I take care of my sax better than I do myself
Stuff happens....even to us older players! My horn was severely damanged at the CNE a couple of years ago, it was utterly mortifying. It was after doing a military band gig...I had to put it down momentarily.....and in that quick moment, it had been dsmanged but I did not see or hear what happened...I picked it up and went to take it back to where our cases were ..it was when I went take it apart that I found the underside had been crushed! Being a brass player is a little different than woodwinds....brass had the issues with dents etc...whereas on sax, it's not dents...it's pads giving out, or keys becoming misaligned etc...It doesn't mean the instrument was not being looked after ....it was probably pretty awful to the person who's horn this is. I've been there and omg you die a little inside...Ron Partch saved my horn!
Kids who are using a horn handed down 15 times. French horns are fairly awkward and heavy. I know as a kid I dropped my horn multiple times and was mortified every time. Doesn’t take much for the horn to bend, and it truly doesn’t alter the sound too much. I’d like to add: sax players can’t talk because they have a strap around their neck to hold theirs ;)
Holy cow! Your line of work is so much more physical that a luthiers. I'm sure you could kill it at a arm wrestling contest! You are a master of your craft sir.
Never tried to bend a piece of Peruvian cherry, have you? That is one of the worst bending woods around, and it can get pretty physical. But yeah, you're right, he does work up a sweat working on those poor horns. It's amazing to see what he can do with sheet metal.
The nerdy French horn section in my high school also were in the nerdy Latin and Latin II class. We called ourselves "The French Hornae." hahaha We sounded like a herd of elephanti when we were at our very best. Especially when we marched. Wonderful video.
This is the definition of a "Master Tradesman"! Skills honed over numerous years with the guidance of an equally or even greater skilled teacher! Bravo!
I truly appreciate and understand why you do this for a living. You take instruments that most people would throw in trashed and bring them back to life
Complete mastery of the medium! This was harder than creating the instrument in the first place. Getting deep past the bell and fixing the dents is a show of finesse with strength!
Your talent and workmanship are top notch. Some of these instruments look like they were run over by a space shuttle. But you make them look brand new again. Keep up the good work.
I was blown away by the first video. I was so positive you wouldn’t be able to reach the second damaged area. Man was I wrong. Brute strength, finesse, a gift. Any way you categorize it, it is “other level skill”. Joy to watch you work!
I thought the bell looked impossible, but this was hard to believe that you were able to get in there and work out those dents. Obviously it took a lot of time and energy and know how with the right equipment. I am sure it is not an inexpensive fix either but it cam out very well.
I've watched a few of your repair videos and read some comments to think I may be the first to type 'Your upper body strength must be very high!' to 'push' that brass around like you do! 😍
Sir, I just recently came across your channel, and I must admit that I am thoroughly impressed. As a string instrument builder who dabbles in sheet metal, I recognize that building and repair are two separate skills. You DEFINITELY have the repair thing well in hand. Honestly, I have to wonder just what the customer did to put this instrument in this condition, but it doesn't seem to matter, as anything seems to be within the realm of your skills. Big kudos. A trumpet player friend of mine ran over his horn length wise, one very dark night. It was his horn that he had worked for several summers to buy as a kid, and he was in his 60's now. I told him he should just frame it and put it on the wall. He sent it back to the factory and they had to replace the bell, but could pound everything else out. He still has and plays that horn to this day. It cost him about 4 times more to rebuild it than to buy it.
I would never have thought that twisted mess would be a beautiful horn again. Fascinating set of stakes and burnishers used to do that job. That and brute strength. :D
I love your work - thanks for taking the time and effort to make videos! I chuckle every time you use a snare stand to hold your work - that's a fantastic idea!
I imagine Mister Lee and every other instrument repair specialist raised a glass to the person that decided to make removable horn bells. Not having to manhandle the entire horn to fix the bell and not having to worry about the bell to fix the lower pipe must have made life a little easier.
Some members of our school band had loaners too but for some reason nobody ever mistreated their instruments like that. Unbelievable. Excellent restoration!
Damage like that is reasonably common on french horns, it is a heavy and quite awkward instrument and they do get dropped. Metal on the bottom is quite thin and soft so damage like this can easily occur.
When I was in the band at university we had a storeroom full of French horns in this condition or worse. Even a couple double horns. Director always said it would cost too much to fix them.
@@brushbros untrue, as an aspiring organist I find it hard to practice at home (for obvious reasons), so I practice in person with my wonderful teacher :)
@@brushbros Yeah, schools have realized online classes suck so they're pushing for more in person learning, it's a breath of fresh air for someone like me!
Watched both videos. Very impressive! Thank You for entertaining me. I acquired a French Horn when I was a kid. Hand me down. I played Bugle in school. I don't recall what happened to either one. I dropped it for guitar when I was 15, before the relationship with the French Horn got physical. I actually didn't like played Bugle because of all the parading around I did as a Cub and Boy Scout. The school band was good, it encourage my interest in music.
If you're treating something gingerly for all the time you have it, you will never understand how truly fragile it might be. I have learned that shocking lesson just a few too many times; seeing someone else's folly makes me glad it wasn't mine. Great work fixing this wonderful instrument.
👍....Bravo!, gut gemacht!.. Ich bin deutscher Büchsenmacher und habe auch schon einige Jagdhörner ausgebeult. Dabei hilft keine Elektronik, nur echtes Handwerk!!...
OK, I'm hooked, I am a musician and a craftsman, I really enjoy watching the metal finishing work, I know how to do it with steel, but have never done it with brass.
Pure magic... Loved metal working: nothing along the lines what you do, as an HDR/W operating engineers, A mixing company one of the cement trucks, the upper hopper was tweaked / bent way out of shape, I told the shop foreman, or said something to him, why don't you straighten that out, there's nothing wrong with it; he laughed at me, I said I can fix it, bear in mind, it's partly doubled plated steal, stiff, heavy duty., Much to my liking, took me a couple of days, they didn't think it could be fixed, teamsters. showed them. You need to know how to talk to it. I'm retired now. Love it, your finished work is awesome.......
Yes. Besides destroying the finish, it would not have gained me anything. Did not anneal because I didn’t use forces enough for making the bell brittle. Have to be delicate with how much force you use. However, In another circumstance, if I were overhauling with a refinish, after I get most all of the scarring out, I would anneal or “normalize” the brass. Can’t do a full anneal because of the soft soldered in wire rim.
@@wesleemusicrepair9820 In watching this video....what would be the difference between the large patch you put on the horn (because you couldn't reach the dents as they were too far in, and instead cut off the bell so that you could get deeper, push out the dents then reattach the bell with a sleeve? I would think (and mind you I know NOTHING of your profession) that a sleeve would maintain a more harmonious and pleasing sound than a patch would that creates asymmetry in the tube
Amazing work! Crumpled metal gradually transformed into something as supple and smooth as human skin. Incredible. One question: why tackle the bell before working on the throat of the horn? Although I must add, while working on the throat, you didn’t seem to do the bell any damage. Beautiful craftsmanship!
I've been playing tuba/sousaphone since 1965 and I've never seen a brass instrument with this much damage (watched the first video before this one). Can you tell us how this horn got so beat up?
I can tell you have doing this for a long time, but may I suggest using a line laser above your work to shoot a line at the ball you are working with? I don't know if you ever have problems with but it would help you find the center of the ball when you are trying to smooth out the dented spots. Just a suggestion. Nice work, by the way!!!
I can't tell you how many public school instruments look just like this. So sad. Kids who don't own the instrument don't take care of them very well. I assume that's what this was. I suppose it's possible it was a yard sale find that the new owner actually cared about too. Nice job restoring it.
This was a great orchestral battle, judging by the state of the armor. Deeper-Deeper Harder-Harder. You can rarely find videos on RUclips in which a dude intensively pushes his long stick deep, uses various tools and gallons of lube to stretch the pipe. I hope that she, who is the owner of the pipe, was satisfied with the result of his efforts
Wow, does any of the metal work change the musical characteristics of the instrument? What are the tools called that are forced by hand along the surface to smooth the finish?
As long as there are 4th graders learning how to play, this guy will always have a job. You do amazing work.
Actually that is also middle and high school. That looks like my old French horns. I had some that looked exactly like that. My middle school and high school was too poor to fix the horns. But the percussion and tubas always had great instruments.
Coming from auto body background here, at first I was like "He's gonna have to finesse those dents out I guess..." .....NOPE! Just brute force the living hell out of them, that's it!!! Love it!!
I’m not a musician but I have been working with metal for 30 years now. Seeing damaged musical instruments is very sad. I appreciate the care and time it takes to bring them back again.
My god - I can’t believe it. I’ve watched both French horn restoration videos. Very nicely done!
I played the French horn from 6th grade through high school. I’m 71 now. I look back at those years with that one horn quite fondly. My 6th grade granddaughter has begun .
Thank you sir.🤜🤛👊👍👍
I just got my own French horn and I’m 25. I got one just to play my junior and senior solos.
I see this and admire this gentleman’s artistry and at the same time wonder what the hell did the player do to this horn. I take care of my sax better than I do myself
Stuff happens....even to us older players! My horn was severely damanged at the CNE a couple of years ago, it was utterly mortifying. It was after doing a military band gig...I had to put it down momentarily.....and in that quick moment, it had been dsmanged but I did not see or hear what happened...I picked it up and went to take it back to where our cases were ..it was when I went take it apart that I found the underside had been crushed! Being a brass player is a little different than woodwinds....brass had the issues with dents etc...whereas on sax, it's not dents...it's pads giving out, or keys becoming misaligned etc...It doesn't mean the instrument was not being looked after ....it was probably pretty awful to the person who's horn this is. I've been there and omg you die a little inside...Ron Partch saved my horn!
Kids who are using a horn handed down 15 times. French horns are fairly awkward and heavy. I know as a kid I dropped my horn multiple times and was mortified every time. Doesn’t take much for the horn to bend, and it truly doesn’t alter the sound too much. I’d like to add: sax players can’t talk because they have a strap around their neck to hold theirs ;)
@@thomasnewton8223 i play sax and clarinet, the neck strap can come off very easily sometimes
I think he ruined it on purpose, to show his restoration skills.
Yeah, this damage looks deliberate... there are no accidents that cause this kind of damage.
Holy cow! Your line of work is so much more physical that a luthiers. I'm sure you could kill it at a arm wrestling contest! You are a master of your craft sir.
Never tried to bend a piece of Peruvian cherry, have you? That is one of the worst bending woods around, and it can get pretty physical. But yeah, you're right, he does work up a sweat working on those poor horns. It's amazing to see what he can do with sheet metal.
The nerdy French horn section in my high school also were in the nerdy Latin and Latin II class. We called ourselves "The French Hornae." hahaha We sounded like a herd of elephanti when we were at our very best. Especially when we marched.
Wonderful video.
This is the definition of a "Master Tradesman"! Skills honed over numerous years with the guidance of an equally or even greater skilled teacher! Bravo!
That's hands down the cutest oxy/acetylene torch I've ever seen.
Love the idea of using a snare stand on a French horn!
I don't even play french horn, but this is just beautiful to watch!
the owner of that horn didnt either apparently
I truly appreciate and understand why you do this for a living. You take instruments that most people would throw in trashed and bring them back to life
Dude no one's throwing away brass instruments...
Complete mastery of the medium! This was harder than creating the instrument in the first place. Getting deep past the bell and fixing the dents is a show of finesse with strength!
It's nice to see and know there is people out there who care!!!!!
Your talent and workmanship are top notch. Some of these instruments look like they were run over by a space shuttle. But you make them look brand new again. Keep up the good work.
I was blown away by the first video. I was so positive you wouldn’t be able to reach the second damaged area. Man was I wrong. Brute strength, finesse, a gift. Any way you categorize it, it is “other level skill”. Joy to watch you work!
What a difference and what a phenomenal job you did! Thank you for allowing us to see how it's done.
Wow!! This is like visiting Gepetto's workshop. I didn't think people even had these skills any more. What a master!!
I thought the bell looked impossible, but this was hard to believe that you were able to get in there and work out those dents. Obviously it took a lot of time and energy and know how with the right equipment. I am sure it is not an inexpensive fix either but it cam out very well.
I've watched a few of your repair videos and read some comments to think I may be the first to type 'Your upper body strength must be very high!' to 'push' that brass around like you do! 😍
I would have assumed that horn dead and would have given it it's last rites. But you preformed a miracle and resurrected it! Amazing work!
If we did that then every school would have kids wanting to learn the French horn with nothing to play.
No music. No talking. Pure art
What a refreshing change to see an actual craftsman.thats some serious skill thankyou
Didn’t know instrument repair can be so elegantly violent, awesome video
I mean, precision violence is extremely elegant
Sir, I just recently came across your channel, and I must admit that I am thoroughly impressed. As a string instrument builder who dabbles in sheet metal, I recognize that building and repair are two separate skills. You DEFINITELY have the repair thing well in hand. Honestly, I have to wonder just what the customer did to put this instrument in this condition, but it doesn't seem to matter, as anything seems to be within the realm of your skills. Big kudos.
A trumpet player friend of mine ran over his horn length wise, one very dark night. It was his horn that he had worked for several summers to buy as a kid, and he was in his 60's now. I told him he should just frame it and put it on the wall. He sent it back to the factory and they had to replace the bell, but could pound everything else out. He still has and plays that horn to this day. It cost him about 4 times more to rebuild it than to buy it.
Wth did I just watch? This is sick. And very much impressive.
I would never have thought that twisted mess would be a beautiful horn again. Fascinating set of stakes and burnishers used to do that job. That and brute strength. :D
I love your work - thanks for taking the time and effort to make videos!
I chuckle every time you use a snare stand to hold your work - that's a fantastic idea!
Do you mean you put your snare drum on a French Horn stand? Wow!
Wes your ability to make strawberry jam out of pig shit is awe inspiring.
I imagine Mister Lee and every other instrument repair specialist raised a glass to the person that decided to make removable horn bells. Not having to manhandle the entire horn to fix the bell and not having to worry about the bell to fix the lower pipe must have made life a little easier.
Some members of our school band had loaners too but for some reason nobody ever mistreated their instruments like that. Unbelievable. Excellent restoration!
Damage like that is reasonably common on french horns, it is a heavy and quite awkward instrument and they do get dropped. Metal on the bottom is quite thin and soft so damage like this can easily occur.
When I was in the band at university we had a storeroom full of French horns in this condition or worse. Even a couple double horns. Director always said it would cost too much to fix them.
University music is all on line these days. How old are you?
@@smh95826 History, Philosophy, and Art as well. Have you not heard? hahaha
@@brushbros untrue, as an aspiring organist I find it hard to practice at home (for obvious reasons), so I practice in person with my wonderful teacher :)
@@Professor_Sex I appreciate that I am wrong. Thank God.
@@brushbros Yeah, schools have realized online classes suck so they're pushing for more in person learning, it's a breath of fresh air for someone like me!
Amazing work!
blcouch Thanks!
Beautiful workmanship. A real pleasure to watch you work and resurrect this instrument.Cheers!
What a master you are on fixing those instruments, glad you can save them!!👍👍😊
Watched both videos. Very impressive! Thank You for entertaining me.
I acquired a French Horn when I was a kid. Hand me down. I played Bugle in school. I don't recall what happened to either one. I dropped it for guitar when I was 15, before the relationship with the French Horn got physical. I actually didn't like played Bugle because of all the parading around I did as a Cub and Boy Scout. The school band was good, it encourage my interest in music.
If you're treating something gingerly for all the time you have it, you will never understand how truly fragile it might be. I have learned that shocking lesson just a few too many times; seeing someone else's folly makes me glad it wasn't mine.
Great work fixing this wonderful instrument.
👍....Bravo!, gut gemacht!..
Ich bin deutscher Büchsenmacher und habe auch schon einige Jagdhörner ausgebeult.
Dabei hilft keine Elektronik, nur echtes Handwerk!!...
Und darin zeigt sich der Meister.
Brings new meaning to being one with the metal. Props!
Te odgłosy wydawane przez Ciebie podczas tej naprawy, westchnienie, stękanie itp pokazują, jak ciężka fizycznie jest to praca. Wieki szacun.
Amazing craftsmanship ….thanks for sharing 👏🏻👏🏻
OK, I'm hooked, I am a musician and a craftsman, I really enjoy watching the metal finishing work, I know how to do it with steel, but have never done it with brass.
Absolutely amazing! I'm in awe! You opened my eyes to new possibilities. Thank you
Watching your videos I can’t help but think you would be an amazing masseuse.
Over the decades I have heard how they do it but until RUclips came around now we know. Great Job.
You have to see it to believe it is a real work and artist. Well done.👏
Pure magic... Loved metal working: nothing along the lines what you do, as an HDR/W operating engineers, A mixing company one of the cement trucks, the upper hopper was tweaked / bent way out of shape, I told the shop foreman,
or said something to him, why don't you straighten that out, there's nothing wrong with it; he laughed at me, I said I can fix it, bear in mind, it's partly doubled plated steal, stiff, heavy duty., Much to my liking, took me a couple of days, they didn't think it could be fixed, teamsters. showed them. You need to know how to talk to it. I'm retired now. Love it, your finished work is awesome.......
Jeez. Who needs the gym when you have this?
It’s a workout for sure. Thanks for watching
Amazing. I thought it was totalled but you brought it back to life. Bravo.
Thank you for your hard work and dedication
You are a master at your craft! Superb work!
O homem certo com as ferramentas certas! Maravilhosa sua arte!!
That guy must have many spirits looking over his shoulder learning things and being amazed.
Is there a reason why you don’t heat treat/anneal the metal before reshaping it? You do beautiful work!
Yes. Besides destroying the finish, it would not have gained me anything. Did not anneal because I didn’t use forces enough for making the bell brittle. Have to be delicate with how much force you use. However, In another circumstance, if I were overhauling with a refinish, after I get most all of the scarring out, I would anneal or “normalize” the brass. Can’t do a full anneal because of the soft soldered in wire rim.
@@wesleemusicrepair9820 In watching this video....what would be the difference between the large patch you put on the horn (because you couldn't reach the dents as they were too far in, and instead cut off the bell so that you could get deeper, push out the dents then reattach the bell with a sleeve? I would think (and mind you I know NOTHING of your profession) that a sleeve would maintain a more harmonious and pleasing sound than a patch would that creates asymmetry in the tube
Amazing work! Crumpled metal gradually transformed into something as supple and smooth as human skin. Incredible. One question: why tackle the bell before working on the throat of the horn? Although I must add, while working on the throat, you didn’t seem to do the bell any damage. Beautiful craftsmanship!
You are scary amazing at what you do. Truly. Respect!
I’m a big fan of this guy he is so amazing at what he does the question that I have is I wonder how many instruments he fix in a day
This is a very gentle man that you do not want to get into a fight with.
Friggin' magician you are man. As we say in french, CHAPEAU!
If this gig doesn’t work out for you, you may still have a career in chiropractic… ;~)
Great job!
Great skills, great hands!
Unbeliavable! Fantastic job!
I've been playing tuba/sousaphone since 1965 and I've never seen a brass instrument with this much damage (watched the first video before this one). Can you tell us how this horn got so beat up?
Я не думал что такие реставрационные работы не проводят, супер
I can tell you have doing this for a long time, but may I suggest using a line laser above your work to shoot a line at the ball you are working with? I don't know if you ever have problems with but it would help you find the center of the ball when you are trying to smooth out the dented spots. Just a suggestion. Nice work, by the way!!!
I mean, absolutely incredible.
I just wish my shop was this organized!
Still the result is amazing!
you need to do customer reactions this was an amazing repair!
Great work by the way!
Kind of reminds me of my wedding night.
Artist!!! For sure
Its a very hard work. Respect!
Would the horn need re-tuning after this restoration? Might it have changed shape a little?
Brass instruments almost all have adjustable tuning slides. You actually tune them every rehearsal, just like you would a string instrument.
@@danliebster9894 Thank you, I didn't know that.
A true craftsman
I can't tell you how many public school instruments look just like this. So sad. Kids who don't own the instrument don't take care of them very well. I assume that's what this was. I suppose it's possible it was a yard sale find that the new owner actually cared about too. Nice job restoring it.
Absolutely amazing hats off sir😍
This was a great orchestral battle, judging by the state of the armor.
Deeper-Deeper Harder-Harder.
You can rarely find videos on RUclips in which a dude intensively pushes his long stick deep, uses various tools and gallons of lube to stretch the pipe. I hope that she, who is the owner of the pipe, was satisfied with the result of his efforts
I am astounded that such damage can be repaired at all.
Had to see the conclusion!
Skills and a Boss Hat!!
It would be a nice addition to your videos to get the player’s reaction to the fix and to hear it played by them.
West, you are a damn genius 👏
Would it have been worth it to do the bell last, so you wouldn't have had to worry about hitting it when you did the other work?
I've watched parts one and two and am amazed you were able to do this in less than 15 minutes!
OMG! So amazing!
That´s a nice shop.
Most impressive sir.
A tad off topic, but what kind of torch is that? It's so clean burning and precise!!!??
God bless. Now a child can learn horn! I know who to come to if I want to rescue a horn myself! #frenchHornsAreExpensive
It is a holton!
Wow, does any of the metal work change the musical characteristics of the instrument? What are the tools called that are forced by hand along the surface to smooth the finish?
His apron was made less than a mile from my house! Sweet!
How does this work get done without work hardening the metal and needing to anneal it?
That's amazing.
Why did it need soldering? I failed to find a crack during inintal insection part. Did it snap when was work being done?
More physical than I imagined to restore the form. Could you show us how you restore the finish of the brass to a factory finish?
Am I the only one watching the bell slam into the vice repeatedly?
Amazing work just asking why didn't you use heat to anneal the metal wouldn't it make it easier to straighten
Todo un maestro, Bravo!!!
So how long did this take to do?? Did you completely buffit out??