According to Edith Reiter's 2014 book, this instrument was completed on 25 September 1926 and originally sold to a buyer in an unknown location.
Howe & Hurd (2004) describe heckelphone #3985 as a model 36i, tuned at A=440;
As of 2004, heckelphone #3985 has been reported to be located in Wilbraham (MA), USA, owned by Robert Howe. Previously, it belonged to the George Peabody College for Teachers in Nashville (TN), now the Peabody College of Education and Human Development at Vanderbilt University. It has been used in Nashville and Cleveland orchestras.
The earlier history of heckelphone #3985 remains largely unclear.