Hey everyone! I'm about to enter my freshman year of college as a trombone performance major and have been looking into getting my very first large bore tenor to hopefully last me a long time. I came across a 42T which has been swapped to the instrument innovation axial flow valves pretty recently. I've heard lots of good things about some of the 42T's but I have also read about some gripes that people have. Do any 42T owners here have any major green or red flags that I should look out for when testing the horn?
Also if anyone can inform me what are the production dates of the 42T before it became labeled as the 42AF. I haven't been able to find a clear answer anywhere
(I'm still a newbie here on the forums so I don't know if its appropriate or not to post a direct link to the listing of the horn so I'm playing it safe and not posting the listing)
I believe the 42T became the 42AF when the "Infinity Valve" was introduced, which is just the Instrument Innovations version.
There were several different iterations of the 42T. I think the first ones had Orla Ed Thayer valves, while later ones used O.E. Thayer valves. I also remember hearing that the gooseneck pipe was changed over the years in terms of the "s" shape. Originally they just used the ones supplied with the valves.
Now, I will say that the biggest problem seen with 42T trombones is that Bach did not fit the valves properly, often shipping them out with significant end play, leading to a bad seal in the valve.This could leave too much space in the casing as well, and in general negatively affected the valve action, and more importantly, the sound.
When properly fit and assembled, a Bach 42T should be a great horn. One thing to look out for, if it hasn't been addressed: make sure that the outer slide isn't warped.
My 42T came from the factory with a warped outer slide, and a valve that had end play. I was in college, and didn't know how to properly evaluate a horn at that time. Once I had the issues taken care of, it became an incredible horn.
David S. - daveyboy37 from TTF
Bach 39, LT36B, 42BOF & 42T, King 2103 / 3b, Kanstul 1570CR & 1588CR, Yamaha YBL-612 RII, YBL-822G & YBL-830, Sterling 1056GHS Euphonium,
Livingston Symphony Orchestra NJ - Trombone
A definition of end play: with it all assembled, you shouldn’t be able to move the valve up and down significantly. Put your thumb on stop arm and see if there is available ‘wiggle’ in any axis other than the planned rotation of the valve.
