DDF

I have 9008 Geoff kindly told me it was made by H T Crabb in 1927. David.

It opened ok for me @9.25 am,thank you.

I just measured the card in a 12 sided Lachenal bellows from around 1910 and they are 1".David.

I did a bit of reed cleaning and resetting today.I resisted the temptation to bring them back up a few cents to be bang on, as it would be very difficult to replace them if anything went wrong. I also made a new o ring to go under the lid so alls well and harmonious in the tea department.

Almost looks as if some of the valves (in the chambers) are mount on the other end to usual?

Yes solid nickel silver.The only Wheatstone button I had handy was an early one with an ivory core which I guess would be a little heavier than the beech? or plastic cores.David.

Here is a rough comparison of the weights of a Wheatstone button and some made to the approximate dimensions in nickel and titanium.David.

Spent a very pleasant afternoon being entertained by this group on the last gig of their UK tour.It would be easy to get put off by their name or even their album cover but don't be if you get a chance to see them.They were warm ,generous and skilled musicians.Off course the unique setting/set up of the Square and Compass at Worth Matravers is something I would recommend to anybody visiting this part of the world.Regards David. http://www.squareandcompasspub.co.uk/index.php/component/jevents/eventdetail/876/-/d-bize.html?Itemid=5

Here are some I made myself. Maybe not the correct or best way but they are holding up fine thus far. I used 100g/sm good quality printing paper and then laser printed the design on.I gave them a coat of lacquer and fixed them on to the bellows with flour paste.It is important that they are either printed traditionally or laser printed.regards David.

"this photo of the best dressed box player showing that a concertina will attract the attention of elegant ladies! (Nurse on hand too.)​" Nice playing and nice picture even holding the concertina the right way up in the photo! David.

Providing the reeds have not been messed with that should be an excellent instrument once carefully sorted.They were available in 1910 for the princely sum of £4.David. http://www.concertina.com/pricelists/wheatstone-duet/Wh-Pricelist-Duet-c1910.pdf

Another way would be to use the dowel and then cast the tops to whatever thickness straight on top in casein glue( Cascamite or whatever they currently call it) or epoxy .You could use white bath repair epoxy or natural and just colour to your choice.Then use your lathe to shape/tidy and finish. yes Titebond is a pva but it is nice quality, fast drying and as long as it has not been frosted dries opaque tan colour not dissimilar to hide glue.David.

How about making them from dowel as a lot of them seem to have originally been. Like one of the old styles Ive seen you could "top" them with caps made form plastic.Perhaps circles cut from ping pong balls.The larger surface area should then allow a reasonable bond between the plastic and wood. I think the wood dowel to wood lever glued with something like Titebond will probably be more durable than animal glue.David.

This was my first attempt at a Jeffries style case ,plenty of room for improvement.I like that type of case and they seem to seem to last better than most designs and protect the contents pretty well.As Chris mentions one problem with them is they do shrink so with that in mind I used a extra thick lining so it could be replaced with the normal thin velvet at a later date should this be a problem.Many years ago I made a similar shape case and behind the lining I put two layers of corrugated cardboard .That seems to have stood the test of time well as that concertina has been in and out of its case almost daily since 1980.Jeffries cases store on their sides well .I usually store mine with the handle facing one direction then after a few months I face it in the other direction.I guess its like turning a fine wine. David.

Looks like a concertina, but doesn’t sound like one. Yes the credits say "accordion player". That particular instrument has even more bellows folds than an accordion.