Ruairi

Been thinking about this a lot too, Simon, here in Midwest USA; I just got a hygrometer yesterday that showed about 43% humidity in the house. Introduced some hot water and it went up to about 50 which I think is normally recommended. This morning it showed 68% humidity. I wonder if these fluctuations are too much for instruments (esp. my concertina) or is that an acceptable range. I don't want to spend the rest of my days checking these levels but I do want to keep things in the proper range too... Thanks, Ruairi

Having just received my order from Mark at Concertina Spares, I hope everything goes well for him. I will mention that on my first (of two, and no more!) concertinas there developed an issue with one button/spring catching it's neighbour and sounding both notes at once. Since I have no proper concertina people nearby I ended up clipping a tiny amount of safety pin and ever-so-gently tapping it into the gap between the two, and it worked perfectly. I admit I would have taken it to someone who does this properly but it wasn't an option; sometimes necessity can force you to get creative, but I don't think I would like to push it too much:). Good luck, Ruairi

Interesting, Frank Edgley; do you incorporate the sharp end to affix it or do you use a different method? Just curious, thanks... Ruairi

That's a relief to know, thanks Chris, only 999 concertina problems left to solve,,,,

Also, it just occurred to me that if you don't enjoy the confusion you might want to choose a different instrument than concertina (he said, crying a little inside )

Hi Geraghty, it does indeed seem like you don't want to make any concrete plans... that being said the gear looks perfectly fine and in a bizarre way I almost enjoyed the confusion :). The real problems will start if I ever try to replace these parts.... Best of luck Ruairi

Hello All, Just checking in say that my order did arrive yesterday, so it looks like it's just a slow process but still working. All the best, Ruairi

Hello All, I was just wondering if anyone has a further update on this topic, since I placed an order about three months ago with no response; like JackJ I don't want to make a big deal of it; but I do work for my money so would appreciate any information.... Thanks very much, Ruairi

That's very helpful; I think I live in the same kind of environment in Ohio, very hot and humid summers and very cold and dry winters, so I will definitely follow this advice. Sohcahtoa, my tenor banjo has never exploded despite my wife's wishes, but we'll see how summer treats the new concertina (which she loves!) Also, it was mentioned in a related discussion that certain woods react differently to humidity and such, which I assumed to be true but I don't know the extent of their reaction; my concertina has Rosewood ends, mainly due to my preference for it on guitar necks which is probably not the best reason for picking it; does anyone have any thoughts on how this affects these issues? Many thanks, Ruairi

Jody, that's good to knonononononononow But on a serious note, can I just clarify that you're saying that the tension/tightness of the end screws is that relevant to helping with expanding/contracting frames? Are they not at risk of being stripped if they're not sufficiently tight? And I don't mean really tight, but just more so than you mention? Or is it the opposite case? I'm returning to my natural state of confusion with this instrument.... Thanks Ruairi

PS Also, Simon, I did go through a routine of boiling a pot of water and leaving it in the room where I keep my instruments, but I honestly don't know how much difference it made; I feel like it helped and certainly didn't harm, but really the concertina seemed to just recover overnight when I took it out as a side note to a gig I was playing in a balmy outdoors setting. Mysterious stuff, but again I am new to all this. I used to live with an uilleann piper who would make a point of doing this boiling water thing, so I picked up that habit there. He sounded good Ruairi

As per recent postings I've made, John, I couldn't agree more - I'm now playing my wonderful Irish Concertina company Eiru for what feels like the first time, after a few months of torture that was brought on by extreme changes in temperature and humidity. After numerous tinkerings and such it feels like it suddenly came into it's own with a little warm weather here in Ohio, after a brutal winter (during which it was shipped over from Dublin, via who knows where..). Anyway, yes, the lesson is to pay attention to humidity - which is probably beneficial to humans also.. Hope you're able to fully restore your instrument, I'm still amazed at how my own seemed to recover itself with just a little help from me and nature; my wife mentioned to me last night how it sounds like she thought it should all along... All the best, Ruairi

Ah, I think I see what I'm missing here, thanks; but as long as I live I don't think I'll understand a C/G# option, which again is probably my own fault. I think I've been conditioned from years of playing Irish music with a wonderful uilleann piper to understand the term 'drone' differently though. Howard, would something like a C/D option make any more sense? I honestly don't know, I think I might be exhibiting a too-narrow view of the concertina's capabilities... All the Best Ruairi

My instrument has a wonderful D/D drone which I'm really enjoying; gives a whole Hardanger fiddle feel to suitable tunes which is great. Following the concept of the uilleann pipes (also D drone) I also find it sounds good even on some tunes that aren't in D, perhaps G mainly? I'm a bit confused by the idea of a drone button that has two different notes but I think that's more a lack of experience on my part. Thanks, Ruairi

Hi Marcus and others, Not sure if you're still following this thread but I can say that having bought a newly-made Eiru model from the Irish Concertina Company (and after some teething problems that I asked about recently - caused by shipping and weather assaults on the instrument) I'm really starting to warm to this instrument. I'm not an expert or even amateur concertina player but I'm also not a complete novice to quality instruments so I can certainly recommend the make. I am happier with it every time I play it, so I would heartily recommend their products, and they (ie Sean) seems like a very decent fellow - he also leant me an Eiru model to try out while I was back in Dublin which was extremely decent and helpful. Anyway, you've probably figured something out by now, and I hope it worked out great. Ruairi

Hello All, I just thought I'd check in with an update that the concertina is still sounding really good, even the lower bass notes that were not feeling well from the get-go; in fact, they sound really great and solid, for want of a better word.. Such a relief to listen to it now and know that apparently it has recovered from it's earlier 'trauma' - I'm really grateful for all the help on here and am off on my next adventure with online lessons from the wonderful Caitlin Nic Gabhann, thank you again. Ruairi

Hi Sohcahtoa, That's very good to know about the Czech reeds, I was a little worried about that due to me not knowing anything about reeds, never mind the rest. I'm particularly glad to hear your reassurance about the wood probably rebounding from the whole shipping debacle, which I'm now fairly convinced was the main issue. I honestly think the instrument is very well put together and I'm finally playing it with confidence in what I'm going to hear. I'm sure I'll open it up again at some point soon and will definitely take pictures; for now I just have to learn to play the damn thing Ruairi

Thank you, Don, I think that's the correct diagnosis; happy to report that everything still sounds really good, almost hard to believe that it's the same instrument. I really appreciate everyone's input and advice on this, and I will be stepping up the humidity situation to try and avoid some of this in the future. I can't help wondering / worrying that there might have been permanent damage done by the extremes of humidity and temperature though? Recent signs are positive, and as Simon mentioned, I'm expecting some more of this down the road but I feel more equipped to deal with it now, so thanks again to everyone. All the best, Ruairi.

Thanks, Simon; I'm a bit overly obsessed with sound issues myself, so will take what I can get at the moment and accept the inevitable annoying stuff along the way. Just glad to have had a glimpse of this instrument in all it's glory, as it were. I probably just jinxed it

Hi All, Sohcahtoa, I've no idea what these reeds are and honestly I don't know what Czech reeds are, or if that's a really bad thing; if I find out I'll post about it, thanks. In a weird turn of events, I took my concertina to an outdoor gig this weekend, where I mostly played guitar, banjo, but I did play some tunes on the concertina, thinking it might benefit from a little change in humidity, conditions being perfect for once. It sounded, to my ears, exceptional. Then I tried it back at home yesterday and today and it still sounds really good, by which I mean that it feels like all the notes are coming in fully and evenly, no volume discrepancies and no buzzing or weirdness that I can discern. I'm confused but happy; was it perhaps just a little warmth that it needed, I have no idea, but it is currently sounding like I hoped it would all along. I hope to be able to say the same thing after a week or two but for now I am so much happier with what now sounds like the instrument I envisioned. Strange! And if I do take it apart again I will post pictures of the innards, but I don't want to tempt fate right now. PS As an aside to this conversation, I was playing the concertina through my acoustic Fishman amp, miced by a small CAD condenser microphone, and the sound itself was unbelievably pure and good, almost like I knew what I was doing... All the best and thanks again, Ruairi

I will try and send a picture of the reed pan, Dave, thanks. Simon, I agree completely and am proceeding in more of a look-and-learn way than actually making much in the way of changes, certainly not permanent ones. I did fix an overlapping note on my old concertina which I am proud of to this day , but caution/expert help is my approach for sure. Thank you! Ruairi

Dave, I meant to reply that as far as I know these are concertina reeds, clamped. Wish I knew more to add, but there you go. I don't notice any abrupt change in levels that I'm capable of hearing anyway. Many thanks, Ruairi

Thank you, Jack, very helpful and within my range of ability, I think. I will explore more of his videos - love the fire extinguisher cameo too Ruairi

Thanks, Geoff, not sure that I'm up to the level of bending levers though, but maybe down the road. Much appreciate all the assistance here, thank you. Ruairi

I tried to reply already so apologies if this posts twice; I wanted to stress that I am happy and getting happier with the instrument, I just think it took an awful hammering from the transport and the weather - the whole time it was in transit over here the temperature was about 20 degrees Ft below freezing. So no complaints or regrets about the choice of maker, just to be clear; if I had such a problem I would be speaking directly with them. Still would love the satisfaction of solving these minor issues myself, if only to give me confidence for future issues. Thanks! Ruairi