Buffet, E11 B Flat Clarinet
A good condition Buffet E11 Bb clarinet, in Grenadilla wood, which is a commission sale for Clarinets Direct. The Nickel Silver plating is in good condition, with no wear, only some slight "blueing" mainly to the tenon rings. All pieces are matching and original, and the m'piece is an up-grade to a Vandoren 5RV. The pads are all used fish skin which are sealing well and in good condition. There is one old, stable, repaired crack to the upper joint, which has been partly filled on the exterior and glued on the interior [see the photo of the register key]. The last owner of this clarinet used it throughout her time at school, achieving advanced Associated Board Grades, and the crack gave her no issues over a period of several years. This instrument is Buffet's semi-professional model, and this example has matching serial nos. 9342331. In recent years the Buffet badged "France" Bb clarinet E11 model, which was made in the old Leblanc factory, gained an extremely poor reputation for build quality. So much so, that Buffet have deleted this model from their line up and, confusingly, renamed it the E12. Fortunately this E11 was made in Germany, before the move to manufacture in the French Leblanc factory and is, therefore, a significantly better made instrument.