CLARINETS DIRECT

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BUFFET RR13 ACADEMY Bb CLARINET, £895

An extremely rare " Academy Model" vintage Buffet R13. This is an R13 "Second". In the 1950's when a fault occured during R13 manufacture the instrument was stamped " Academy", and sold at an approx. 20% discount on the R13 price. In some cases the fault can be difficult to find, however with this instrument it is obvious: There must have been a problem with the reaming of the lower part of the lower joint flare, because this part of the bore has been metal lined, see photo 9. The tuning on the F/C and E/B lower twelfths is excellent, so I am confident this is Buffet; the manufacturers' work.
The German Silver key work is pristine throughout. The wood is in good condition with no cracks or damage, only slight surface marks The instrument has just been re-padded in Pisoni Premium Deluxe Fish Skin Pads, and is sold with our full `1 year warranty` The matching serial nos. are 41291 which dates to 1952. Back then this was the finest professional instrument Buffet made, with unstained, matched wood. This was before the introduction of the ""Prestige" range, which effectively downgraded the standard R13 considerably. These days R13's are made from inferior quality wood which is stained to hide imperfections. Buffet are currently attempting to recreate this Gold standard of manufacture in their current "Vintage R13" range please go to www.buffetcrampon.com for more details. The case is the original Buffet, worn but fully functional. The m'piece is in ebonite, used, but playing well.