Veneers?

[catswhiskers]

I am looking to buy an old Lachenal or similar as a restoration project. Concertinas for sale usually claim to have rosewood or mahogany ends and I have followed some of the the discussion about the relative merits of these in this forum. But I have noticed in the photos of some unrestored instruments, rosewood in particular, what appears to be worn or missing veneering. So I am wondering whether when an instrument is said to have rosewood ends, does that mean solid rosewood or rosewood veneer, and if it's veneering, what base wood would be used? Or is what I am seeing just an effect of ageing of the wood surface? Can anybody enlighten me?

[OLDNICKILBY]

Fret Not. I have never seen a laminated Rosewood end. They are "always" cut from the solid. Just buy a cheapo Anglo or English as well as Dave Elliots book and learn by making mistakes . Good Luck

[catswhiskers]

Thanks Nick.

 

I've already done a bit of restoration on an old Rosetti Rambler. It was virtually unplayable wih several stuck and duff reeds, and buttons which disappeared inside the holes and stayed there. It now plays quite well, is largely in tune and actually sounds quite good. But the tone and action is not a patch on the restored Wheatstone English I borrowed from a friend about 40 years ago. I learned a couple of simple tunes on it and can still hear its lovely buttery tones in my mind to this day.

 

My success in bringing the Rambler back to life starting to learn to play it has definitely given me the concertina bug. And since I enjoy tinkering, but not yet ready to shell out a fortune on a restored instrument, I'm taking your advice.

 

I've ordered the Elliot book and have a dilapidated looking English-made anglo on the way!

 

Watch this space.....

 

John

[DDF]

Most of the rosewood ends seem to be solid but here is a photo of a late almost unused Lachenal with rosewood ends that are laminated.Three plys by the looks of it. David.

[Dana Johnson]

Just looked at an old Lachenal English in Rosewood under my microscope. Ends are 3 ply, rosewood inside and out with something lighter in between. Layers are equal thickness. This is an old instrument and it is easy to see how the end might appear solid especially if the layers are not oriented so the difference is clear (45 degrees to either layer grain direction). I have repaired old Wheatstone Linotas that had solid ebony end, but they were too fragile for such a brittle wood. Laminating in this case is not a mark of inferiority, but sensible engineering that actually costs more to produce. The laminations are not what we think of as veneer today normally about a fortieth of an inch thick, but about .04" thick sheets. About 1/8" overall This produces a much stronger end while still providing sound qualities associated with the primary wood.

While very pretty woods make for nice looking instruments, they aren't really that great for making concertinas from. They are often resinous and hard to glue, are heavy, and some sorts ( not rosewood or ebony ) while very pretty can be acoustically problematic especially if used in relatively thick ends. They can have a surprisingly large and not always good influence on tone and reed response in some cases. Using them to clad a wood better suited for construction is the best use of them. That way you get the best of both worlds.

Edited October 22, 2014 by Dana Johnson

[david robertson]

Exactly right, Dana. If you remove the reddish French polish from any rosewood Lachenal, the lighter middle sheet of the laminate is immediately obvious where it is exposed in the edge mouldings. (I like to preserve this contrast by using a clear French polish.)