I love my old Buescher tuba. It was never one of the best tubas on the planet, has some intonation problems, but is very well built and a kick to play. If you look at the history of the company (and Buescher himself), you should develop confidence in the brand. They've always been highly respected. When I was playing saxophone so many years ago (60s-70s), Bueschers were highly prized by amateurs and professionals alike. And in brass, Bueschers (in the early 20th century) were known for quality and innovation. I can tell you that the silver plating on mine takes some effort to get through with a hack saw.
Now, the real question about this instrument your'e interested in is "What is its pitch?" If in fact (ASSUMPTION!) the horn was built in the 1930s then it SHOULD be pitched at A=440. BUT ... the estimate of its age may be off a few years OR it may still have been pitched at either lower than 440 or higher than 440. Mine was at 435. The fact that it says "low pitch" is a good sign (it will have this stamped on the second valve casing). To a lot of people this means A=440. HOWEVER, it could be LOWER. Mine is stamped "LP" and was pitched at 435.
In my experience (IN MY EXPERIENCE), you can't just believe someone who says that his instrument is pitched at standard pitch (A=440). A lot of people are really insensitive to pitch and think that "lipping" every note is something you just have to do on any instrument. And a lot of people just really don't have much of an ear. So you just don't know.
If it IS pitched low, this can fairly easily be fixed by a competent repair tech by cutting down the valve circuits. I did mine myself.
The horn looks really nice. Once you get it polished, that satin silver finish is just BEAUTIFUL.
I'd say $500 is a bit high for one of these. But given its condition -- and the fact that it's front action (mine is top) -- that may be justified. I paid $250 for mine, but it was in MUCH rougher shape. You might offer him $400 and see what he says.
These horns are interesting and fun to play. You will likely discover that it has excellent "ghost tones" and so will play a chromatic scale all the way down to its fundamental (mine does). Honestly, this looks like a great horn. I'm just skeptical that LP means 440 -- but it might. And if it doesn't, it's worth fixing.
Gary Merrill
Wessex EEb Bass tuba (DW 3XL or 2XL)
Mack Brass Compensating Euph (DE N106, Euph J, J9 euph)
Amati Oval Euph (DE 104, Euph J, J6 euph)
1924 Buescher 3-valve Eb tuba (with std US receiver), Kelly 25
Schiller American Heritage 7B clone bass trombone (DE LB K/K10/112/14 Lexan, Brass Ark MV50R)
1947 Olds "Standard" trombone (Olds #3)