wunks

For what it's worth, My Wheatstone /Jeff duet #32045 listed as December 1928 doesn't have the A. G. or anything other than "duet". The pattern is a bit unusual and the reed pan is radial but it doesn't appear to be a conversion.

Button Box is listing the Rochelle for $380.

And it is often belated in appearance which is confusing when combined with the above.

I did lower the angle of the spring, and the thought occurs to me that maybe the slight increase in volume ( and clarity) is due to the pad being closer rather than further from the hole, a sort of Venturi effect. Is that possible?

I don't seem to be having these particular problems and after playing it in I don't notice it at all. Perhaps a good idea would be to order a few spares. Are they generally Identical for any given instrument?

As a duet player (about a year and a half in) I really want a thumb cluster of base notes. It's difficult to find the space in the box however, and to set up the action without a spaghetti tangle. The Jeffries system that I play could incorporate such a thing but would need a major re-working of the innards as well as a modified end plate. Of the two instruments I have (one pictured above) both could squeeze in a note or two. If I ever find a nice old box with a wrecked interior I have a plan! One more thing to consider is that if you move the strap behind the thumb the hand rest obstructs free thumb movement towards the buttons.

I suspect I will need to soon at any rate as this first failure may be a harbinger of springs to come...? Is an increase in volume with new springs a thing?

That's the only reason I could think of other than that the remaining springs are weak with time and the instrument would benefit from replacing them all. It's over 100 years old after all! I'm going to let it play in for a while and see what happens. I set the spring arm at a lower angle than the originals as it was a bit stiffer and it didn't appear to be affecting the post. I'm not sure the lower end of the spring seated all the way into it's tiny anchor hole however. That could be it. Thank you Frank.

Take heart Tinker- it- your-selfers! I just replaced my first broken spring with a safety pin modification and didn't lose an eye or otherwise bloody myself...? If I can manage it, so can you! The new spring is slightly stiffer but not annoyingly so.....The affected note is also noticeably louder and I don't know why this would be ....? I thought I was saving some money but now I'm thinking I might need a whole new set...? anyway, I'm declaring victory and moving on....

"It's all about the bass, 'bout the bass, no treble!". Harry Guens Makes a Bass au Pieds which was apparently popular in the vintage concertina era, but I haven't been able to find an older example. I wonder if harmonium reeds would allow space for a bass thumb cluster (perhaps split between both hands) on a regular instrument.

Don't do it. It's one of several non-tertiary (fart, belch, sneeze) activities which will cause you to explode ( assuming your professed gender is correct), like flipping your concertina end for end and playing "the Banks" while whistling " the Feather bed Jig".

Wonderful, both!

You might provide a page of different note layouts so folks can co-ordinate their particular instruments with your efforts. There seems to be lots of variation outside the core key, mostly in the low range and overlap area.

Yes our objectives differ somewhat but sharing our conjectures is very helpful.......?

I completely agree Ted and here is my main reason not to respond to such requests for seemingly irrelevant personal information: I'm always suspicious of solicitation regarding race, ethnicity, political affiliation, age or gender because although they may seem harmless in themselves, there's always some infernal "phishing" 'bot bundling your info. from different sources for political or commercial purposes. I know I can't stop it but I'm not going to make it easy.

I still can maintain control with the strap across the base of the thumb and I do play with a loose strap ( on that hand, for now). The added incentive for me is to bring the thumb into play for the lowest notes. I don't know about other duets but for the Jeffries, the lowest notes are bottom row far right with an additional mid range F# thumb key ( on one of mine but not the other) which means dropping the index finger down for harmony. Because I'm playing a two finger melody line when ever possible and using the overlap region as a pair of mini EC's, I really want that thumb for the low notes. Thus the need for a modification of the hand rest.

I don't think it's compulsory. I just left it blank. ?

Forgive me for being curious but 69 buttons is a "standard "Jeffries duet count. Are the bisonorics self- inflicted or indigenous?............?

How about keeping one of the reeds and having a uni-directional air button?

Yes, I'm just suggesting possibilities. I've reduced my own subjective desires to 2 or 3 buttons and have yet to make a move.

Co-opting the air button seems to be the best solution for an existing box but what about some of the rarely (or never) used notes elsewhere? For a chromatic instrument (or uber-chromatic such as duet with the overlap region) there are bound to be duplicated or little used notes ( depending on individual play). I'm thinking at the high end of the range and in the overlap area. Suppose one takes an indirect approach and combines two less used squeekers for bisonoric, freeing up a button for the pirated air or something more desirable? I could see merging 6 high notes into 3 buttons and changing a couple of notes in the duplicated mid-range. Both operations would be at the margins of the pattern.

The Button Box key chart for that one shows f/f, bflat/a for the thumb keys.

In the photo you can see that the lower reeds have been weighted to save space ( I'm told). Thumb key on the left is F# on the right is air. I'm seeing some space proximate to the air opening for my F and perhaps an extra thumb key.......?

-I agree that F is a lovely sounding key. -The fingerings for F are better situated ( for my style ) than any other even the home key of C. -This instrument is tuned in old pitch ( slightly below C#). Because I have another Box in modern C, I'm considering tuning this one up to D so the F becomes G etc.. Much better fingerings for all the modern dance tunes.