natevw

Thanks, Bill and John especially for the detailed answers! It sounds like the transition doesn't have a specific tipping point (such as "post-WWII" or "in the 20's" or anything…) but basically went along with growing demand for cheap instruments wherever and as often as it happened? (Unsurprisingly the "vintage" Bastari I bought on eBay does indeed have accordion-style reeds in blocks, and other evidences of mass production.)

I understand that there is a distinction between "concertina reeds" and "accordion reeds", which if I'm not mistaken is mostly a matter of layout. As far as I can tell the design is essentially the same in that with both, each reed or pair of reeds is attached to a metal plate. The main difference being somewhat the size of that plate, but primarily how/where the plate is attached to the concertina? With accordion style the plates are "standard" large rectangles that usually need to be arranged in a block that sticks in to the bellows area, whereas the smaller concertina plates usually can be arranged all on a surface parallel to the outer end plates/handles. At some point the accordion style reeds/plates became easier and cheaper for manufacturers to get a hold of and most concertinas now are made that way. If I'm even understanding the situation properly, my main question is really: at what point did that change happen? Presumedly if I buy a new entry-level concertina now it would have accordion style reeds. What about the many vintage boxes (my guess would be 1950's/60's era?) available on eBay for a few hundred dollars — do those still have the old-style reed arrangements?