hoy there,

Our high school band room and storage rooms were just remodelled, and while moving back in the directors had made a large junk pile of mostly broken instruments to trash. Anyways, i was searching through them, opened a beat-up case, and lo and behold, a bassoon! i play horn, but have for some time been fascinated by the bassoon, and to think, one just sitting around, free for the taking! There is significant cosmetic wear, the corks are terrible, but i can`t find any cracks or anything to indicate that the instrument isn`t still playable. there are a few minor pad problems, and a small plastic stick is missing in the boot joint (a few of these run through the body of the instrument to interact with keys on the opposite side). first off, anything special to look for when checking for damage?

and as for identification: the bassoon is wooden, Heckel fingering system, and reads: Moennig Bro.s Artist Special. i can`t seem to find a serial number for it. any ideas as to the age, type (student, intermediate) or worth of such an instrument? i want to try and get it playing again.

thanks,
fish