Conn Elkhart French Horn Serial Numbers
A Conn 8D with a six digit serial number and no letter prefix is not necessarily an Elkhart 8D. When Conn moved to Abilene, Texas they did make horns with six. 'Conn & King Musical Instrument Serial Number Info' This list is not correct for Conn saxophones (see Conn Woodwind Serial Numbers) or Conn bugles (see Pan American Brass Serial Numbers). See Conn Reed Instrument List at Bottom of Page, or Click Return To Link Page.
Wrong on all counts. Conn started using letter prefixes on serial numbers in 1963. Those serials started with a 'C'. I have a 10M with a serial number starting with the letter 'L', made in 1968 in Elkhart, Indiana. The 10M production stayed in Elkhart until the end. It was not moved to Nogales Arizona or Nogales Mexico.
The student horns were made there beginning in the 1970's or so. The 'M' prefix was used on earlier saxophones, too. See some commonly referenced serial number charts. Don't believe all serial number lists. They have mistakes.
Also, Conn did some unusual things at times. The comment on production move date to Mexico is wrong in this next one. There were 2 sets of Conn models that had M prefacing the serial number, and this often a source of confusion.
Conn started putting 'M' before the serial numbers during the New Wonder II (Chu Berry) line in the 20s. Not all NWIIs have an M in front of the serial number. As Bruce stated, the 'M' stands for saxophone. BTW, officially, even NWIIs were listed as '6M' in Conn's catalogs, even though the 6M stamp didn't appear until after the Conn transitional period.
The Ms you have to be careful of are the ones in the 60s.Conn ran out of serial numbers and started putting letters in front of them in the late 50s or early 60s.starting with 'C'. I'm not certain of this, but I believe that an 'M'-prefaced serial number from this vintage will only have 5 digits. 'M'-prefaced horns from the 20s-30s have 6 digits after the M. You'll see a NWII or 6M on eBay occasionally listed as a late 60s horn because someone consulted the serial number chart and misinterpreted it. As Bruce says, it's best to have a pic of the horn. Go to saxpics.com and check pics of various Conns so you know your forms, or you may end up paying 6M prices for a Mexiconn. 'My Conn Bari Sax has a n at the beginning of the serial number so this [the earlier post that N = clarinet] must be wrong.'
Post by keltonshields here is a list from a google search on vintage saxophone serial numbers according to this, the horn could be an 'M' [that is, a saxophone] and have a serial number 'N 12345' [which would mean it was built in 1970. Assuming that the site has the correct info. 1963 C00S0l 1964 C E H K L 'M'-Pretix[sic] 1970 'N'-Prefix 1971 'P'-Prefix 1972 'R'-Prefix. Nattupura pattu movie mp3 songs download masstamilan.