I had a PM regarding my mention of the adapting blocks I made for my Rochelle handles. I have relatively long fingers and the way the Rochelle came was very awkward for me, hence the search for what to do.

These little blocks just raise my palms, so my fingers are a little more comfortable. I couldn't figure a way to include the pics in the PM so I'm posting here.

I made several sets in about a half hour, and this set works the best. These are not permanent, more to get an idea of how high from the original handles I needed to be. It seems 5/8" works well in my case.

The main slot is a snug fit over top of the existing handles. They are just snug enough to slide on and stay put. The material is yellow cedar, which is around here in abundance, but I would assume you could use almost any type of wood or plastic (1" cutting board kind of stuff I get from Industrial Plastic's scrap bin).

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I constructed these by dado-ing out the main slot in 2" x 1" x 16" board. The groove was 3/4" deep. I then chopped them into 3 1/2" lengths and divided them into sets. Next I cut the slopes from end to end at the various thicknesses I thought would work. The best for me was 3/16" at one end and 5/8" at the other. Finally I cut the angles on each end of the block to clear the wire leather strap retainer.

I had the higher side at the top in the beginning, as this was where my palms were naturally, but flipped them around after seeing the "ergonomic handles" topic. That's the reason there are 45 degree cuts on both ends, so the ends clear the wire that pulls the leather strap into the body of the concertina.

I'm actually surprised at how well they work and find I don't notice them at all anymore as I become more proficient and comfortable with the Rochelle. I still have pinky problems on the right side as my pinky seems to be on the inner row when the rest of my digits are on the middle row. I have to twist my hand a little to get it over there. I suspect this will become more natural as I progress, so I'm not too concerned.

Hope this helps others,

Rusty

The above was the test handles, used for gaging the correct height for my hands. After writing that, I decided today I would make the "final" finished handles. As often happens, the wind came up, so I was torn. Do I stay and finish them, or do I go flying?

No choice. Flying. You gotta go when the wind is right and it's never 'right' enough. Got home around dinner, after flying for the afternoon in some pretty severe turbulence, so now I'm too tired to finish them. I'll post the results tomorrow.

Okay, okay, I got a little carried away. I always like to add a touch of my own if I can.


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If anyone else wants to change their handles, make sure you get some stainless steel screws the same size as the ones used to attach the Rochelle handles. Even with pre-drilled holes, three of the original screws broke, and with the added height I would recommend stronger screws.

As well the air screening wasn't always glued down well, so I laid in some crazy glue and it re-attached nicely. In a couple of places the screening was partly over button holes and a quick cut with the xacto knife cleared the material away, so reduced the chance of fouling a button.

Rusty