Azalin

Yeah, it's truly raining vintage now! I'd like to put mine for sale again but the market is a bit scary, and you're left to wonder how low (in price) you're willing to go. But I hate the idea of owning a good concertina that's not being played, such a waste. (Ben, I havent forgot my promise of providing some video of the Dipper, it will come!)

With a few more hours to go, that one will be an interesting gauge of the market. I bet the reserve is around US$3000, we should get the answer pretty soon.

<Gasp> Watch out, there might be children reading these forums!!

But, but... who'd pay that much for an english?!?

Ouch, if what you're saying is true, I can understand why you feel cheated. I'd feel that way too. This is when you wish you had had some contract signed just in case, but we never expect to need such thing do we.

Ah, that's ok thanks I was just curious. Since I got my Dipper I ended my search for my ultimate concertina. It's a strange feeling, being able to look at any concertina and not feeling the urge to own it :-) When I think of it, both G# would make some sense to me compared to both Eb, since I end up playing G# a bit more than Eb. Kind of useful for A major tunes.

Marien, you're sure the Suttners have G#s on the first two buttons on the right accidental row, and not Ebs? If it's G#, it seems to be like a modified Jeffries layout or something.

Good luck Paul, I hope this time it's going to go smoothly. I'd like to relist my vintage but I'm kind of hesitant right now, with the financial chaos.

If I understand correctly, the problem here isnt that a buyer retracted his bid, it's that he won and didnt pay. Those are different problems. At least, if he would have removed his bid, it would have been easier for Paul to settle the matter.

Well, one thing is certain, it doesnt seem to be the ideal time to sell stuff on eBay, or anywhere for that matter.

Thanks for the info Paul. Sorry you have to go through that much s%it. Isnt that impossible now to leave a negative feedback no matter what when you're a seller? So it seems buyers who "pull the plug" can do it without being too much concerned, they can do it at least once or twice I imagine. Some people refer to eBay fees, but they're only around 60 cents if you put some extra pictures and nothing else, is it such a big deal? (when it comes to eBay fees). EDIT: Oops I just realized you mean you have to pay the ~3% fees on a sold item... but by the time you need to pay it, you'll have won the dispute and won't need to pay it won't you?

Ah yes, didnt think about that. Fortunately most recent browsers have anti-phishing functionality that protects people against this.

How do you hijack an identity? As far as I know, you need the password for this. There must be some anti-fraud systems on eBay that will lock your account if there's too many login attempts.

How come this seller has 100% feedback on thousands of sales, and he ends up with this scam? It's quite amazing.

Yeah I agree, these side by side comparisons are very rare and are of great value.

Only one bid for 3000 pounds for the Dickinson Wheatstone, it seems the buyer got a great bargain?

After analysis I'd say this is the right side of the concertina, and you were using the G/A, C/B and ?/? buttons. Now, I don't know what is your first button on your accidental row. Let's say it's a C#/Eb, then I'd say you were using it for the C#, which means you were playing a tune in D or Em/Edorian (never sure which one has the C#). So, am I right??

Very nice! I'm going to bring my Dipper to my grave, too, no way I'm ever going to sell. How careful are you with the instrument when you go in pubs with it? I'm thinking I'm never going to leave it by itself, even bring it with me in the toilets :-)

So, by hybrid, we are talking accordion reeds, rather than concertina reeds? I do think I know what you mean about the tone, the bell like clarity of someone like Noel Hill. Yep that's it. They're also hybrid accordeon reeds because they are a bit modified, in my understanding, to be a bit closer to concertina reeds than standard accordeon reeds would be. As for the concertina sound, yeah, listen to Noel Hill, Tim Collins, Edel Fox, etc, and the attributes of the sound is light years away from accordeon reeds, in my opinion. I couldnt describe why exactly I like it better, but I definitely do.

I agree hybrids are the best bang for the bucks. I'd say some of them even play as well as a good vintage. To me, the sound of real concertina reeds is simply magical, compared to hybrid accordeon reeds. It's more than just the sound, but the frequencies of the chords, the mixture of different notes etc. It's hard to explain, but there's a richness and brightness unmatched by accordeon reeds. But, if I had the choice, I'd do what I did. Start with a hybrid, then switch to a good vintage or a Dipper/Suttner/Caroll/Dickinson/etc. In term of playability, it wasnt a major switch, but the sound is totally different. I personally think playability should be a priority over sound when you start playing, but then that's a personnal opinion, others might prefer harder to play instruments with real concertina sound.

Darn lucky ba$ta%^ !!! I wanted to go, but I'm pretty much bankrupt so I'm stuck in town. If you see a cute young english blond woman playing lovely flute, she's my friend Kate, say hi to her :-)

She's an awesome player but I find her selection of jigs even more impressive. I don't know if she selected them herself but they're some of la creme de la creme jigs in my opinion.

Thanks all. Yeah, Colin answered me and told me you couldnt damage the reeds by playing them in dry weather, but yeah the wood is another matter. Anyway, knowing this, I'll play the concertina anyway until I get my humidifier, which should solve the potential problems.

I bought a hygrometer and saw humidity go from 45%, very acceptable, to 30%, very dry, while heating. I am in the process of buying a humidifier to try to keep humidity above 45% in my bedroom, where I'm going to store my concertinas. I've been told the ideal humidity level for the Dipper was 55%, I imagine it's the same for my vintage concertina. I will be happy with humidity between 45% and 50%. But the real question is, until I get the humidifier, can I damage the reeds on my concertinas? I'm taking great care of my vintage and Dipper concertinas, and the Dipper was making some strange noises through some reeds, same sound you'd get if you had some dirt in a reed that needed to be cleared out. Is it bad? I remember Colin telling me the reeds can rust if humidity is too high, but I don't remember what can happen if it's too dry. Any info appreciated, thanks!

Please explain, what is the problem if the winner simply backs out, so the seller has to pay the eBay fees but doesnt follow up on the second and third bids. It seems totally within the rules, as Paul is saying.