Sax repair guy

[BFrank]

Nice little piece in yesterday's SFChronicle about a Berkeley guy and his saxophone repair shop.

Eric Drake knows saxophones inside and out

[AllenLowe]

it took me 10 years to find a competent sax repair man in Maine - and now I have an incredible one. One thing I have learned, however, is never trust even word of mouth.

[golfcrazy1984]

Totally agree about how long it takes to find a repair guy that "gets it". Or rather understands how to set your horn up to your specifications or how to bring the best out of a horn.

I live in the Minneapolis area and usually take a 3.5 hr. drive down to see Randy Jones (Tenormadness). I've bought a ton of horns from him and had all of my saxes and clarinets overhauled from him. He's a good friend now, but again, he may not work for everyone.

I love how he makes my horns feel, great key action, height, spring tension, etc.

I've heard good things about Eric Drake.

[jeffcrom]

My guy in Atlanta is a genius - and he knows how I play: how much air I put into the horns, how I want to sound, and how I like the action to feel.

[BFrank]

Good to know that this guy is "somebody". I liked the article, anyway.

[Big Wheel]

This guy is arguably not even the most legendary repair dude in Berkeley - that would be the oboe guy at Forrests Music further down University. That guy...well, let's just say I know some extremely talented double reed players who have had run-ins with him. My sense is that the more, uh...fastidious top technicians almost enjoy being a pain in the ass to the knowledgeable musicians who need their services. To them the instrument is the most important thing and it's just temporarily allowing itself to be associated with its flawed "owner."

Edited February 9, 2012 by Big Wheel