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Does anyone have any experience of the Duerk D4?
I am asking because I've been looking for an Alex 1103 and I've just been contacted by a UK 2nd hand horn retailer who has a very recent Alex 1103 for £4550 and an equally newish Duerk D4 for a bit less than £4,000.
He says that the Duerk is also a Geyer model, is hand-made, and is a better horn all-round than the 1103 (it's got a detchable bell but the 1103 is fixed) and is 'easier to blow' because the middle tubing bore is slightly smaller than the Alexander.
Opinions please....?

Seriously Mike that is not at all helpful.

Will, why don't you try both horns out? I've not tried a Duerk but my understanding is that these are both Geyer wrap models with medium-large bell throats. It would make an interesting comparison. If the cylindrical tubing bore is different, and there will no doubt be more subtle manufacturing differences, they will feel and sound a little different.

You should judge for yourself which horn has the better all-round response and which suits you best. However, IMHO, the most important thing in judging a horn is the character of the sound. You can adapt your playing over time to get the best out of any instrument but the underlying tone quality has to be compatible with your personal musical ideas. Blind listening tests by friends and musical colleagues can also be very helpful in comparing instruments.

If you do try both horns, I would be interested in reading your thoughts and conclusions!

I can't 'try out' either horn as they are in the UK and I am in Canada!

You didn't say that before!

Seriously though, spending £4k(+) on a horn unseen is a high risk. Perhaps you can find a cheap flight over to the UK, or maybe negotiate a deal with a courier for having two horns sent to Canada for trial and returning one a fortnight later. It depends on your view of cost vs risk, but it seems that there could be a few ways in which you could try these horns out that wouldn't incur unreasonable costs (£100s only).

If after trial you do go for the Duerk, you could still save money compared to your default option of buying the Alex!

er....um... Paul I get the impression that you are rather new to messageboarding (?)
It's unnecessary to say where I am because if you look at the little box on the bottom left that summarises one's profile, it clearly says 'Toronto'!
You are clearly somewhere floating in cyberspace or else you are unwilling to own up to a geagraphical location.

1 -I've always preferred the sound of fixed bell horns.
2 -If you were looking for an Alex 1103, you should probably get the Alex.
3 -If you can't trial a Horn, don't buy it. If someone tells you that's not the wway they do business, because of consignment reasons or anything else this is not a good business for purchasing an instrument that is a very personal extension of the creative process.
4 -Did you get my PM?

yes, and many thanks for that, JohnLoveMusic.
Don't worry, the retailer is at least 100 miles from Gloucester...