Trumpet: Choosing a Finish

   To my mind, finish on a trumpet is no big deal.  Although there is no shortage of trumpet players to consider it a "very big deal".  These are the people who consult computers, slide rules, calculators and sound chambers in  their quest to prove finish on a trumpet affects quality of instrument sound.
   Sorry.  I do not ascribe.  Besides, trumpet playing is inundated with enough theory without getting into argument over finish on the instrument.
   To inject legitimacy of difference in sound, stick with legitimate sources: bell (weight, taper, size) leadpipe (taper and rate of constriction) and type(s) of material (as well as weight) of which the instrument is constructed and, to a lesser extent, bore size.
   Choice of finish on a trumpet is about preference.  Not sound.  In fact, there is absolutely no difference in sound (or quality of sound) if the instrument is left "in the raw" or if you manage to talk Porsche into giving your trumpet a spiffy silver plate job.
   Possibly a good analogy is clean car versus dirty car.  Have you noticed how comfortable the ride is in a clean and freshly waxed car as opposed to a car which has not seen a bath (or coat of wax) in two months?  The former is a joy.  The latter is a pain.  But reality tells a different story.  Fact is, there is no difference.  No difference except what you formulate in your mind.  And so it goes with finishes on trumpets.
   Durability of the finish is another matter entirely.  Here you find plated instruments have a definite advantage.  Especially for players who hold a trumpet bare handed.
   Gold plating is the most durable of all finishes on a trumpet.  And gold is followed by nickel and silver.  But silver plate has a price in the form of chronic pain: tarnish.  I have owned silver plated horns over the years and I grew weary of having to remove tarnish from every crook and cranny.  Besides, silver plate takes on an aged appearance in time (probably due to scrubbing it with silver polish).
   Gold plating is my favorite.  And the stuff stays relatively pristine.  Lacquer, on the other hand, is the least durable of all finishes.  Skin oil removes it around valve casings in short order.  And too, lacquer tends to crack and flake on its own.
   Finally there is the "no finish".  Raw brass.  Fine if you can stomach the smell of brass.  Especially when it is combined with the odor of valve oil.  But raw brass has a huge disadvantage (in addition to odor) it turns a putrid green.  In splotches.  In fact, the instrument comes to look as though it suffers a terrible disease.
   Somehow the thought of a splotchy horn does not add to the appeal of its tux wearing player.  One of the two is out of place.