Expert: Kenton Scott - 4/13/2009

Question
My Dad is about to turn 90, and he has been reminiscing about his days playing in the Army Band (and subsequent to WW II dance bands) with his C G Conn Coprion (copper bell) cornet.

It has no dents, but the bell is very dark.  The rest of the horn appears to be gold plated.

The patent number is 340149.

Is it possible to discover when it was made?

Generally speaking, is it worth "refurbishing?"  I've read (online) that trying to refurbish the copper bell will turn it pink.  Is that true?

Why am I asking these questions?  I'm thinking of refurbishing this instrument as a 90th birthday gift for my father.

Any information and advice you can give would be appreciated very much.  Thank you!

Answer
It was made in 1941.

I have never heard that about a copper bell, but I've never tried to refurbish one either.  So, I can't give you any advice on that.  But logically, I would think that there is some proper method to bring it back to something near its original look.  

I would suggest that you contact someone who specializes in refurbishing rather than simply doing repairs and see what their thoughts are and what the costs would be.