Christopher Basses and Resale/Trade Value

[Ken Smith]

Originally Posted by Brian Casey

So, yes, I kept the Christopher these past 18 or so months. I used it primarily for orchestra work, as the Pfretzschner didn't project like the Christopher did - but it had a remarkable sound, especially for jazz.

Now, however, you'll see another post in This New Bass that describes my NEW (to me) German bass. I'm intending to use this German bass for my orchestral work from now on. This means, including the Christopher I now have three basses, so the topic of this thread is still very much relevant.

I've considered putting the Christopher up for consignment at a local shop, or passively trying to sell locally. I'm not hot to sell it, but I don't intend to play it much at all, and I'd rather have it being played than sitting in my basement where it is now. (My wife's limit is two double basses in the house, and until I convert the garage, the living room doubles as my practice room - just after everyone else has gone to bed.)

I might use it as fodder to trade into a REAL bow....

brian

Was there any possibility along the way of trading the Chrissy in towards a better Bass so you didn't end up with the 3 you have now? Like cars, I would rather have just one but basses are easier to park..

Lol.. look who's talking. If you ask me how many bass 'I' have (not my commercial inventory) I would need to sit down and figure it out as well as where the all are as far as the ones out for restoration.

Still, one Bass (or maybe two if the jobs call for it) is all most of us need.

[Brian Casey]

Hi Ken - yes, there was a possibility of trading the Christopher in, but the people that offered me anything for it dind't have what I was looking for - either they had basses that were out of my price range that I wanted to basses that I didn't feel would be a significant improvement over the Christopher.

I'm thinking now that trading it in toward a nice bow ($2000 range and up) is where I want to be headed. I'll probably be checking with my regular luthier to let him know this is my plan. I might also sell it on my own toward the same end, as long as I can find potential buyers in this financial climate. I just shelled out mid-4 figures for a bass, why shouldn't I find someone else willing to spend half that?

I do think that having 2 basses is a good idea, if a person can afford it. If one needs to go into the shop, it's good to have a backup, and for those recurring gigs with a secure storage area, it's nice to be able to avoid cartage every day. I'm contracted to do a run of The Producers this Summer, and I plan to keep a bass on site the 4 days I'm working each week.

Thanks, as always, to everyone for their perspectives.

[Joel Larsson]

Originally Posted by Brian Casey

just shelled out mid-4 figures for a bass, why shouldn't I find someone else willing to spend half that?

The mysteries of life...

Sounds like a sound idea to get a good bow, though! For 2k you could get a good master bow.

[Ken Smith]

Originally Posted by Joel Larsson

The mysteries of life...

Sounds like a sound idea to get a good bow, though! For 2k you could get a good master bow.

And what Master Bow would that be now? A real Master, Classic, new maker or a wannabe? I have not seen Master grade French Bows in the last few decades anywhere near 2k. Even 20 or 30 years ago my Sartory was more than that on the market.

[Joel Larsson]

Ah, hm, just checked where the dollar is at these days... turned out that it was about two thirds of what I thought it was! Oh well. Always the up to date guy.

Edit: Over here in Europe the Döllings, Hoyers and their counterparts starts at about €2-2,5k. The better ones sells for over €3k. €2000 would make about $2600.

[Ken Smith]

Originally Posted by Joel Larsson

Ah, hm, just checked where the dollar is at these days... turned out that it was about two thirds of what I thought it was! Oh well. Always the up to date guy.

Edit: Over here in Europe the Döllings, Hoyers and their counterparts starts at about €2-2,5k. The better ones sells for over €3k. €2000 would make about $2600.

Yes, ok, but Dollings and Hoyers are NOT what I would consider a 'MASTER' grade Bass Bow. Not by any stretch of the imagination.

Survey 100 Pro Orchestra Bassists that play French bow and list what they use. To judge what a Master Bow is, make sure you survey the Master players in the Major Orchestras like the LSO, NY Phil, Philly, National, MN, etc.. I think that the German Bow might be more popular in your area but for French Bow prices in USA, check with the USA and UK Orchestras.

[Joel Larsson]

True, I know only one person who plays a French bow made by Hoyer; he had some copies made of his own old French pedigree bows (which it is safe to presume are still his main bows).
You'll quite easily find a French or German bow by one of the Döllings for about €2k and slightly below, although I see why that would appear as too cheap a solution to some people (which it probably is).

I was just making the point that this is where you will start getting bows made by a real master maker; isn't this what the word "master" refers to?