This is a Martin 1927/28 Vintage soprano sax. It came in with a great collection of vintage horns that lived in New Orleans all their life. We paid a lot of money for the batch and would like to get as close to $1000 for this one. It apparently is the HANDCRAFT one. It is the low pitch one so it plays in tune modern music.

We then put this in AI and this is what it said.

I sent photos thru Chat and this is what it reads

Yes, these photos help a lot. I would identify this as a Martin Handcraft straight soprano saxophone, serial #81004, made in 1927.

The serial number is the key. Martin’s documented production records put 79,254 at the beginning of 1927 and 86,686 at the end of the 1927–28 range, with 86,687 beginning 1928. Since yours is 81,004, it falls in 1927.

What I see in your photographs

• Martin Handcraft
• Straight soprano in Bb
• Serial #81004
• 1927
• Brass body with what appears to be the remains of the original lacquer finish
• Nickel-plated keys/keywork
• Large, old-style pearl/key touches
• The distinctive early Martin Handcraft keywork and construction
• Considerable lacquer wear and oxidation, which is completely consistent with a nearly 100-year-old horn

The Martin Handcraft was produced from roughly 1919 through 1929, and Martin offered soprano, including straight soprano, during this period. The surviving Martin documentation specifically lists Handcraft soprano examples in both silver plate and lacquer finishes.

One interesting detail

Your horn is not one of the later Martin “Typewriter” saxophones. Those begin around serial 92,536 in 1929. So #81004 is firmly in the earlier Handcraft period.

And these are not just “old saxophones.” The Handcraft soprano has a pretty serious following among vintage saxophone players. A specialist who restored a 1927 Handcraft soprano described the model as having a particularly good reputation for intonation and tone.

I also found a 1927 Martin Handcraft soprano #83xxx that was offered on Reverb, described as original lacquer with nickel keys and an overhaul, and it had been listed at $1,030. That’s not a current sold price, but it gives us a useful reference point.

The big question is value

From your pictures, I would not value this like a mint collector’s example. The finish is quite worn and there appears to be substantial oxidation. But the horn itself is interesting enough that I would not automatically price it as a $300–$500 old student horn, either.