SOLD: This 1964 tri-colored "Olds Special" cornet is an example of the exceptional quality of the musical instruments that came out of the Olds factory during the Zig Kanstul era.  This horn plays amazingly well, with excellent valve compression. The intonation is marvelous and the sound is deep and rich. In 1964, Olds made only a few models and the company philosophy was that the student line was to be made with the meticulously same high quality as the high-end models. The Special model was considered a mid-level horn, made with the same process, quality and some of the key features of the top of the line (Recording model).  One such key feature is nickel-silver outer slide tubes to eliminate the corrosion that occurs when two copper tubes are in contact. This is the reason why we can offer a vintage 55 year old horn that is in near factory condition. Another feature of this horn, borrowed from the Recording model, is the rose brass bell flare.  (Back in the day, they didn't call it "rose brass." The copper alloy that Olds used on the Recording was invented by a fella named Ray and the alloy was then called "Ray-O-loy.") The remainder of the tubing is yellow brass with it's wide-sweeping bends and  nickel-silver accents on the top of the valve casing and the mouthpiece receiver. The sound has a huge core, thick with wonderful overtones.  The two-tone bell is made up of Nickel-Silver with rose brass at the end of the bell flare. This combination provides a classic, but sophisticated cornet sound. For the professional and the student alike, this horn is a gem.