RustyH

Good question. But upon consideration I get overwhelmed with reasons. I guess it more or less add up to, this being, me, simply enjoys it.

They should make sure they centre it in the lense, and aren't using a wide angle.

The one in Oregon.

Thanks Chris, I'm interested, and we usually spend 6 weeks attending to aging parents, so would have time to organize something I'm sure. English is no problem, I'm open to it! David, good post. I have tried everything, tight straps and loose, and currently I'm just a little looser than snug, with about 1/4" showing on the pull. I noticed when snug I had to get my palms just right to be able to get at all the buttons, with this current setting I can move around more freely, and with a slight pressure on the strap with the thumb, tighten it all up if need be. I'm still open to experimentation and will probably adjust as I go through various instructors. I'm booked into the Noel Hill classes in August, and I'm looking forward to learning his system and taking his advice. I just hope the Rochelle lasts that long...lol Rusty

Well maybe not the president, but certainly a member in good standing.... It did produce "manly scratches" on this simpering wimp, but somehow it just doesn't have the same ring to it as "manly scars". Chris, we've traveled to Leicester often, as my wife's parents and brother live there. We aren't planning a trip this year unfortunately, as the economy will probably (we aren't taking any chances) have an impact on our income (craft based, sales already in decline). But we'll have to go the following year, perhaps we could meet up. It was there last spring that I started my search for a concertina, what a comedy of errors that was.....if only I'd known about this site then, and had the time to read it all. I would have been much better informed.

A few.... My little avatar pic shows me paragliding above the farm. What you can't see is the lower bluff as it is just outside the lower frame. The lower bluff is covered in 10' high rosa rugosa. I was ridge soaring it a couple of years ago, when the breeze quit. I was fighting to maintain altitude (about 10' above the little darlings) but no go. I settled into the roses just as the breeze built again, dragging me across the tops and tumbling me into a little hollow. It took 5 hours to carefully extract my glider, as the roses underneath had to be cut away along the bluff face. Sweaty and not in a great mood, I went home to have a hot shower, as I was feeling more than a little sorry for myself. I think they could hear me screaming at the top of Everest, as all the hundreds of little rose scratches got treated to hot salt sweaty water and soap. I looked as if I'd been mauled by a cat, my wife had no sympathy and kept bursting into gales of laughter, and believe it or not, I'm just leaving this second to fly there now, the fogs cleared......

I like to think of it as unplanned body sculpting.....

War Stories:..... I felt I needed to raise the handles as my left hand has been through the tables saw twice (a year to the day apart, I no longer work in the shop on Feb 3's) I kept getting bad hand cramps when I first started playing and couldn't get to the G row at all. I'm probably still holding and playing incorrectly..... First accident, the tips of the first three fingers got cut a bit (about 1/8"deep) from cutting 1/4" thin boards to repair the paint bucket platform on an old wooden ladder. Late on a February day, very poor light (at that time, as the shop was just getting built), frozen hands, waiting for a certain someone to show up with the car to give me a lift to the house we were renting, and thought I would do one of those nagging little repair jobs that usually get ignored. The second time knuckles got hauled in when I was doing a plunge cuts and a person (not the same one) came into the shop and yelled, startling me, the wood jammed and shot straight out towards me, pulling my left hand back through the blade. That caused the first knuckles to get fused on the first two fingers. It was the thirteenth board of a run of 26 cherry spindles to be turned for a bannister.... The blade in each event was proud of the work by about 1/8" and certainly saved me from much more serious consequences. With the handles raised I can push down and reach out as I can't physically do it if my palm is close, which is why I stopped playing guitar (I tried reversing the strings and switching hands, but brain just couldn't/wouldn't re-organize, no neuroplasticity here, and then the years just seemed to slip away). Most of the time I don't notice the handicap, playing the concertina does make it quite noticeable, but I'm happy and do my best to work around it. Heck, if anything it gives that hand a pretty good workout!

Well I'm not a proper player as I just began last June, however my Rochelle does this as well, but it seems to be intermittent. By that I mean I think the reeds self clear at times. Don't be afraid to take it apart, as a matter of fact, I'd recommend it. There are dust screens that on mine were not totally glued down so I used cynoacrylate #2 (spelling?) and finished the job. Another thing I found inside was small bits of shredded plywood slivers and hot glue bits which I just brushed out (used an artists paint brush). Take a look at your bellows inside as well, mine were/are split on a lot of the inner folds, doesn't seem to be a problem, but I now get in there and look every once in awhile to monitor and see if they are getting any worse for wear. Another thing that was in there the last time I looked was chrome curls shedding off the bends of some of the lever arms. Taking it apart is interesting, you will get a much better understanding of how it all works. The way the reeds are set up you can really only get to the outer sets, but cleaning and checking that things are in running order is a pleasant experience, at least for me. Putting it back together I had penciled marks and you will want to have a box or something similar to place the reed pan on so you can align buttons. When putting the screws back in do it gently and just snug them up, it's easy to tear the threads in the wood. I originally took it apart to build new handles as the stock ones were just too low for my hand size, so you may want to look into that.

This has been pretty informative as I'm in the same position as Gusten. However, I'm approaching 63 and waiting for a 4 year list to clear would make me around 70, so I'll purchase a "hybrid", which may be only 3 months. Another consideration is the Canadian dollar, import duties and shipping. For these reasons an Edgley works best for me, I just have to earn the capital (oh those pesky bills, bills, bills....) I feel the time is right to get things underway. I have enough experience with the Rochelle to know I want something better. It's been a total value experience but the limitations are becoming more apparent and I'll pass it on to an interested party when I receive my eventual hybrid.

There can be quite a quality difference in these type of punches. The steel thickness of the handles/frame seems to be the most important factor for longevity, and of course the quality of the punch steels as well. I would think that if you paid what you did, you probably got a higher quality and as a consequence will be able to produce leather belts for thousands......

I'm green......with envy, not New Years over indulgence....ready to sell my first born......

Tried but the snow was too dry, then later in the week it got wet, and finally last night it froze. More on the way tonight. Already lost the grape arbor, and a roof beam over my tractor shed has broken. Hasn't really snowed here in years, apparently Canada has a white Christmas all across the country for the first time since recorded weather (something like that). Cleared a spot at the end of the driveway for a fire pit and put up benches. There is a very steep hill that begins there, and children and parents come from all over the island to sled. The hot chocolate for the kids is running low and the hot cider and rum for the parents is long gone so we are onto mold(?) wine. What a great Christmas!

Season's Greetings from Hornby Island. Guess what I've been doing for the last week.......

Snowed about a foot night before last, and it's -5C, a rare event here on Hornby Island, considered a "modified Mediterranean climate". However, today the sun is brilliant, the war office is out x-country skiing, and I'm going to practice, practice, practice....

Oh, I'm mightily entertained.....hmmmm.....or is that easily?

On the dark grey camera case type foam, years ago for work we had to cut foam for several of those aluminum cases to carry specialized survey equipment. The foam was in three layers, uncut, but the instructions were clear, soak in water the middle layer, squeeze out, place in freezer overnight, take out and cut out shapes required with xacto blade. Worked like a charm. We got the middle layers sliced the way we wanted and the other two layers were to provide the "bottom" and "top" when the case was closed. Having the separate layers negated the need for hollowing out bottoms. The cuts were very crisp and I've used it ever since for weird objects that need a case (cameras, lenses, sound equipment etc.).

Just wanted to post a correction to a statement I made regarding whether Alan will be doing Skype lessons in the New Year. Alan will be taking on new students in the New Year, when this lot is finished their 11 weeks. If you are interested then you should get on his list ...... quickly.

The thing you notice about these shops is the acne laced kid just pounding out licks for half an hour, then hanging the guitar back up and leaving. They were in every shop I went into....... come to think of it, I did the same thing fifty years ago....oh dear.... Scotty there has to be a group of like minded folks in the Inverness area, just keep looking. And what about the fiddle players up that way? They would probably know of someone who knows someone who knows someone...... I had my lesson this morning over Skype and asked Alan about new students. He WILL be accepting new students when this lot is finished, so anyone interested should make inquiries. I'm booked into the Noel Hill workshop in Oregon this August, so that's my next lesson's splurge....

Oh man, glad I'm not the only one..... Just came out here to cruise the site, I've been tearing apart my shop looking for a suitable piece of wood from which to make new ends for my Rochelle, just for fun. I have a nice piece of yellow cedar burl (but think doing the fancy fretwork would likely split the small bits if pushed on), one of quilted maple, and an Australian Blackwood block which is really intriguing me. I'm going to do a mock up first, probably in birch, but I do have some nice quarter sawn western maple platter blanks that might do... The problem might be the thickness of the plate having to be the same as the Rochelle plywood (and I don't imagine I'll come close to it's lightness), I'll have to see if there is room to make it a bit thicker. Well, I'm off to sketch out a fretwork design, I wonder how much new ends would change the sound.....

Hi polutropos, Get your Rochelle as soon as it is possible (Christmas is coming up), you'll learn then whether it's for you or not, and they are relatively inexpensive, with good re-sale, you can't lose. Do you have a place or time to get away from family members when practicing? The constant start and re-start, the over and over repetitiveness will drive them nuts. My wife is now complaining because she plays violin, and instead of thinking about her week's tune, she is walking around with mine rattling around inside her head and is losing her sense of humour. Welcome and good luck...

Welcome Scotty, I beat you to it. I was all over the highlands last April (stayed at a friend's static caravan just outside of Lossiemouth, and for those of us in North America...that means a double wide), and the music stores looked at me as if I had two heads when asking about concertinas. One even went so far as to indelicately suggest just how I could leave his store. I guess they wanted me out once they realized I wasn't going to buy a drum set, electronic keyboard, or guitar..... You could look into Arran next October, but there must be players somewhere around where you live, just post here with an inquiry.

And I found this brass glue pot, others may be interested..... Brass Glue Pot

I've been watching this thread and thought from the beginning that the staining of the wood that the shoe is attached to, might pose a problem of sorts. I have an extreme example. I was down on the beach log hunting several years ago, looking for cedar to mill up for decking in 2 " slabs. I came across a 4' at the butt log in very good shape, except for the steel rods every 12' (log was 60' long). I removed the rods, a story in itself, and began the process of quarter sawing the log. To cut a long story short, it took 6 times as long, and destroyed several saw chains in the process. The staining had blossomed inside the log from each steel rod almost in a 4' diameter (stayed 4' from rod hole, but diameter of log reduced as I traveled from butt to tip). It looks to me like it was a combination of salt water and the iron ions (?) replacing the tree's moisture in the cells, then drying into the log from hell. I used 4 chain saws, having two sons sharpening while I did the grunt work. I have to say it is lovely decking....but never, ever, again.... The wood was absolutely stunning, in a deep purple/black way and this ordinary western red cedar, which is a pretty soft wood, was as hard as nails and destroyed my planer blades (gave that up real quick) and saw chains the moment they came in contact. So I would assume steel shoes that eventually stained the wood enclosing it, would also change somewhat the mechanical characteristics of that wood. I wonder if it would be for the better or worse? I'll assume worse, but you never know...

Sure Pam, But the bad news first. I believe Alan is full up and when these lessons are done, he isn't planning to continue. His problem with teaching, as I've recently discussed with him, is the time it is taking away from his studies at university, so there is a limiting factor to what he can provide, which is unfortunate, as I'd love to continue on. That said, I'm sure other people might be enticed to teach via Skype, we just have to get them to supply their information, somewhere here. The lessons, as Alan has set it up, goes as follows. I call at an agreed upon time (he's in Cardiff, so time zones must be taken into account). He then sends me an ABC of the week's tune, in MSWord. With the ABC opened in MSWord, we allocate a coloured block over various letters (notes), indicating I should use the note's alternate button. There may be some other things like brackets indicating a group or pair of notes that ought to be played fast together, etc., etc. When that is done, I then print it off, on 120lb paper, the kind used for cards. I find this is useful as it stands up better because it's more rigid. I play my way through the tune, always clumsily, one note at a time as I fumble along. With that all accomplished, and discussions completed the hour is pretty well up. As I'm on the west coast and Alan is in a student dorm (noon here, 9pm there), he records the week's tune as a mp3 file and sends it the next morning (so other students won't be disturbed while studying). There is then another meeting mid-week (we meet on Thursday and again on Sunday or Monday) which is just 10 minutes. This is to see how the tune is coming along, to get questions answered and advice given. The cost was 400 Pounds ($800CDN), expensive? I thought so at first, but there was no alternative locally, and the idea of using Skype this way and helping a student financially towards his degree appealed to me. Once I made the decision and met with Alan, I had no qualms. I was paying for his expertise, experience, and talent. To be truthful, there is a modicum of "perceived value", in that, if I am spending this kind of money, I'll be sure to do the work to get the return I desire (it doesn't always work, as life has a way of interfering when you can least afford it). However, I keep plugging along regardless, and I've noticed several levels of substantive improvement, so I'm more than satisfied. What are these levels? I have been able to discard my system of notation for Alan's preferred way, difficult at first, but so, so, much easier now. That was a remarkable transition, and relatively fast I might add, enough so, that I surprised myself. Being able to read the ABC and pick out the appropriate button and direction of bellows, albeit sloooowly, stuck a smile on my face. Each week the first run through gets faster as hunt and peck recedes to be replaced by my fingers just going to where they are supposed to (not perfect, lots of room for improvement here, but it's noticeable to me). Another important, at least to me, activity is broadening the scope of my learning to play by d/l'ing ABC tune collections, purchasing CD's, watching and listening to Youtube extracts, spending untold hours here at concertina.net, all to immerse myself as best I can. I find the history captivating, all the different types of concertinas, and how they are made, really, really fascinates me. I'd love to build one, and have the tools and related experience to actually get the thing done, but sadly lack the whole tuning end, which just might be important.....but one day for sure, soon, I'll have a go at upgrading my Rochelle (new bellows first, then new ends) just for the heck of it. Rusty