Wally Carroll

About 2.5- 3 weeks sounds right for what we average but there are also five of us. (2 full time and 3 part time). We can only get about 20 out per year. Part of this has to do with the significant hours spent on other than building. I mentioned design but also client communications, bills, payroll, inventory, purchasing, taxes, shipping, repairs and general shop shenanigans 😃

I included the endplates in the woodworking time. Not counting hundreds of hours of design time, using a laser has reduced the cut time from 4-6 hours per side to about 6 min. Add another 10 min if also engraved.

After 20 years of making concertinas, I would guess that we still put about 120-150 hours into each instrument though I've never timed it as we usually have 6-8 instruments at various stages of construction. The breakdown is roughly: bellows around 20 hours. The finishing process (sanding, applying coats, polishing) is about 15-20 hours. The reeds take about 20 hours to assemble and install. The woodworking is about 15 hours. The case is 15-20 hours. Tuning and setup is spread out over 2 - 3 weeks with the total time on this in the 15-25 hour range. Making buttons, making and installing the action, making the springs, reed shoe and tongue making, assembling it all, etc. another 25-40 hours. This does not include the extensive amount of research and development that we still do as well as the seemingly constant breakdown and repair of equipment 😁

I don't have familiarity with this model but it looks like the bolts (or pins?) are located on the sides of the instrument above the bellows. Not sure what is causing the stuck buttons but my first instrument (a different Stagi model) had this same issue. After using it for a couple of months to learn the basics, I upgraded to what would be considered a midrange instrument: an instrument that was made by John Connor using old reeds and other parts from vintage instruments. It made a world of difference.

I would describe the sound as more resonant and in a weird way, more woody sounding. It's not a huge difference but it is noticeable and I do prefer it. The instrument that I regularly play is one of the two resin instruments that I've made. I agree with Paul about avoiding using laminated wood for the reed pans and actionboards.

All of the traditional wood parts were made with resin. This included endplates, action boards, frames and reedpans.

I've made two metal ended instruments and over three hundred wood ended instruments and haven't noticed much difference between the two. What I do notice a difference in is the amount and size of openings in the fretwork. Getting this balance correct is very important. I'm not convinced that the finish makes any difference on a concertina as the vibrating fretwork is a much smaller component of the sound than the vibrating internal woods. In addition, I don't believe the endplate wood or side veneers makes any noticeable difference as well. However, I recommend not using solid wood for the endplates due to expansion and contraction issues which can result in cracks in the fretwork and/or the endplates separating from the frames. Interestingly, the best sounding instruments (2 to date) that I've made have used a poured resin in place of wood. My own observation in this regard was confirmed by a sound test as judged by a very prominent player who was asked to choose which of three of my small size instruments sounded best. This person did not know there was a resin instrument in the bunch and after going back and forth playing the three, chose the resin instrument as the best sounding. The point in all of this is to say that the internal materials are more important than the external ones.

Some quick thoughts: -All reeds will drop in pitch under high pressure with the lowest notes being more susceptible. Not sure how hard you are playing but generally you would need to be pushing heavily on a note to notice this effect - particularly in the middle and upper octaves. -If the metal has been overly thinned this could cause the flattening to occur at lower pressures. -If your second instrument is not as airtight as your first, you might not notice the effect as much when transferring the notes to the second instrument. -Leaks actually often cause the opposite effect of raising the pitch. If you have an instrument tuned for playing in tune at medium pressures and play a note very softly, it will be slightly sharp. Pulling at a medium pressure will bring it down into tune. Pulling harder will make it flat. Longer, lower notes have a much more pronounced effect in this regard.

Alcohol can dissolve certain finishes such as French Polish (shellac) and can soften lacquer finishes. Definitely make sure you don't get any of this on your instruments.

On that instrument I used EVA foam.

I recently made this change to both the reed pans and action/pad boards in order to better keep the pieces from warping. It works really well. That being said, warped pieces are often not a problem as they are usually flattened out sufficiently when the instrument is bolted together. I would only go the route I outlined above if you are unable to get a good seal after bolting the instrument together.

Thanks Bruce! I think I was missing the second step. I was choosing the pic but didn't realize I also had to to hit the attach button.

Thanks Bruce! I think I was missing the second step. I was choosing the pic but didn't realize I also had to to hit the attach button.

Sorry, can't get the photo to attach. I've tried several times now. It might be too large. Anyone know how to lower the resolution on an iPhone?

Sorry to be a little late on this . . . In my experience the only way to really keep it flat is to somewhat crush the wood fibers by bending it in the opposite direction. See photo. A few notes on the process . . . Make sure the paper towels are damp and touching the pans. A damp sponge would probably work better. Apply a small amount of pressure to start the flattening then walk away for an hour. Add a little more pressure and redampen towels if needed then walk away for another hour. Repeat this process until you go about 1/8" - 3/16" past flat. Remove towels and leave for 24 hours. Next day remove all pressure and let it sit for a few hours. You may need to reclamp and take it even further. Please be extremely careful when doing this as you can easily crack the pan!

This instrument is now sold!

This instrument is still available. The seller has lowered the price to $4500. I've attached a picture below. This instrument will ship from the Carroll Concertinas factory. Thanks!

The owner is asking $5000 for this instrument.

On behalf of a client, I am selling Carroll Concertina #168. This instrument has a brand new exterior (woodwork, buttons, action, and bellows). The reedpans are from an older instrument where the original owner had ordered an extra set of reedpans and now the current owner has decided to have a second instrument made out of the extra pans. This instrument is a Walnut Burl Wheatstone Design in the key of Bflat/F. This instrument has a lovely warm tone and is a fast player. Please PM me if interested or contact me through www.carrollconcertinas.com. Also, an appropriate donation to C'Net will be made in the event of a sale. Sorry but I wasn't able to attach a photo through the mobile version of the website. Contact me for a photo. Thanks, Wally

I just added a couple of files Edel Fox sent me playing her small size Carroll Concertina at last year's Willie Clancy week. They are in the middle of the page at: http://www.carrollconcertinas.com Also, I will be at Willie Clancy this year for the second half of the week (Wed. through Sat). If anyone is interested in meeting up, send me a message. Wally

Maugham is one of my favorite authors as well. Sadly he is not read much on this side of the pond. I haven't read the "Moon and Sixpence" in many years and didn't recognize this passage so I think it is safe to say that it must have been before I developed an interest in concertinas. Over the past 15 years or so I have been slowly making my way through Maugham's works. Currently I am reading "The Narrow Corner." That is to say, I will soon be reading it . . . it has been sitting on the side of my bed for two weeks now in the "on deck" position and my Tivo recordings are nearly exhausted so it will be any day now that I begin.

Hey all, if anyone is going to be in the Cincinnati, Ohio area, I'm going to be hosting Noel Hill for a house concert on Sunday August 12th at 7pm. PM me if you would like to attend and I can send you more details. Thanks, Wally Carroll

We're going to do the concert again this year at my home on Thursday August 4th. Noel will start at 7pm. A session will follow. For mapping purposes, my address is 912 Squire Oaks Dr., Villa Hills, KY 41017. Please let me know if you are planning on attending - either PM, email or call 513-604-1340. If you are travelling, this would be a great opportunity to also attend the Dublin, OH Irish Fest which is the weekend after the concert and is about 2 hours away. Also, if anyone is interested, I can arrange for a tour of the new shop earlier on Thursday. Thanks and Hope to see you there! Wally

Greg Jowaisas does not know that I am writing this but I think you who are in the market for a high quality instrument should know about the Lachenal he is selling. I believe it is a 40 button c/g. It has metal ends and has a great tone and response. This is not your typical Lachenal. I have seen 1 or 2 others of this calibre and it is easily worth $4000 if not much more. I'm not sure if Greg posted it here but I'm sure he would send pictures if you contact him. Wally

It can be done either way though it is much easier accomplished if the embossing/stamping is done before the leather is attached to the frames. On an instrument such as a Jeffries where you have lines that go all the way around the bellows, you almost have to do the embossing/stamping first. If you look closely at a Jeffries bellows near the corners, you can sometimes see in the lines where the pattern breaks and begins again. The Suttner (discussed above) might be able to be stamped though it would be a difficult job (unless new end runs were made up with the stamping done first). Also, it should be noted that not all leathers take stamping well, and if there was a finish applied to the bellows, this also might present problems. I'm not certain but I seem to recall that Bob Tedrow might have mentioned somewhere that he does his stamping after the leather is attached to the frames. If this is true, and if you want to keep the original leather I would have him do the job for you rather than a local bookbinder. Otherwise, have Greg make up new endruns and attach them for you. Wally