arkwright

Do you have any music arranged for concertina quartet? It might be possible to round up four people on the internet using some software (which I've heard exists) that allows you to play without a delay in the sound (more information needed).

Nowadays we order so much stuff on line that we always have lots of bubblewrap and styrofoam arriving almost daily. Accumulate a bunch of that. Then use bubble wrap to fill the space between the concertina and the inside of the case. This is so the concertina won't bounce around inside the case. Then get a corrugated cardboard box slightly larger than the case, and stuff styrofoam or bubble wrap to fill the space between the case and the inside of the box. Then get another slightly larger corrugated cardboard box and repeat. Use duct tape as described by others. I think how you pack it is more important than who ships it . I have shipped safely using United Parcel Service in the United States, it was about $42. I would also trust the USPS. Get a tracking number.

Have you ever played the harmonica? The 20 button anglo is like two harmonicas, pitched in C and G. Then in the 30 button box, the "farthest from your body" row (or top row) is the sharps and flats (black keys) and some white keys in the other direction.

Hold it by one end and let the other end descend by gravity. If it moves more than 1 cm per second that means air is leaking into the bellows. But the leak may also be through pads or ends that don't seal well. To locate the leak, try gently squeezing the bellows, with no key open, while holding it in front of your closed mouth. You may feel the air, coming out, that will locate the leak. I suppose you could also use a candle to locate a leak. Then if it is a cheap concertina, you might find some kind of tape or sealing material in a hardware store that might work. If it is a good concertina, the bellows are probably leather and it would be worth finding a repair person who has done this before.

Thank you both for the answers!

Does anyone here know what import duties will be charged if an American sells a vintage UK-made instrument to someone in the UK? Some prospective buyers have expressed concern about the added cost.

Serial Number 19363, made in 1876. This is one octave below the standard English. It is in good tune with itself (G sharp = A flat, etc.). Single action plays on the press only; when you open the bellows, flaps allow instant refill of the bellows. Private message me for more information. In Northern California. See photos, some damage to fretwork. "Double decker" reed pan to accommodate long reeds. Reeds are riveted to frames and screwed to reed pan.

Sent photos to your gmail address.

In the US there is a brand of paint called "flex seal". I have never tried it but I understand it "dries" to a flexible rubber-like material. (sort of like room temperature vulcanizing silicone rubber ), It also comes as a spray. If you had access to the inside of the bellows, you could dab a little inside the leaking corners and that might stop the leak and be almost invisible from the outside. If you don't have access to the inside, you could try painting it on the corners from the outside, or spraying it on. As I say I have not tried this but it seems like something to try if you have no better solution, and if you do try it, I'd be curious to know how it worked. It is rather expensive, though, like $90 per gallon; a spray can seems to be about $13.

I guess I was wrong! Thanks for the correction.

I think there are reeds. In the fingerboard there are buttons of a sort so you press the buttons like fretting a string. The buttons are connected to pads so if you "fret" a button then air goes through the reed for that note , which may be hidden inside the body of the fiddle. So if you know the fingering on a fiddle (or for that matter a mandolin) you can play this instrument and move the bellows as if you were bowing strings. I actually saw an instrument shaped like a guitar that worked that way (but no bow, I think it was hand-pumped). Wheatstone may also have made that.

Thank you!

In the Wheatstone Ledgers, some concertinas are tagged "K.V.W.S." Does anyone know what that means?

Do you want the original hexagonal box or just a box that will fit?

He's playing an English system, singing the melody and playing sustained chords (as opposed to oom-pah) behind the melody. So the chords are contributing harmony but not rhythm. You may be responding to the chord progression, (from minor to major in the third line) or to the arrangement of notes in the chords. They are very good and so is his playing and singing.