Geoff Wooff

This item cannot be seached for on Ebay ,in the normal way, even using its item number , from France... and thus I assume from other countries. So, unless one has the above link one would never find it. Perhaps the seller might want to review his advert to allow easier access to customers from elsewhere in the world.

Yes , indeed slightly smaller than normal, 'normal' being 15.9cm. or 6.25 inches. The number 22690 suggests a Wheatstone made in 1898-1900... I cannot think who else could have made this instrument but it is interesting to me because I have Wheatstsone number 22695.... which , incidentally is of the standard size. Rivetted action can be clearly seen in third photo of the original post. It appears that the very late 1800's was an era of experimentation at Wheatstones, with the introduction of their first metal ended models where several distinct styles of fretwork can be found. Chris Algar at Barleycorn Concertinas ( www.concertina.co.uk) currently shows another 48 treble from the same period with fretwork less open than the example in question here but more open than my own. There is, at least, one other very different style of metal end fretwork from the pre 1900 period. I could be interested to purchase this concertina Stefan .

I'm not sure if this has been mentioned so far but the G row on a G/D is an octave lower than the G row on a C/G... If my memory serves ....

Reduced to €1400 and open to offers of swaps / trade -ins.

Is your Aeola a Treble 56 ? Where one might expect the notes above A to be without valves. Has it been 'restored' recently ? Some restorers replace valves , pads and springs as a matter of course, which does not always improve things. Are there any other issues ? Like internal air leaks around the reedpan . Remove one or two valves that you feel may be causing tonal 'darkening' and see if things improve .

Model 22 . Number 27151 . Bought in 2007 from Barleycorn concertinas and restored by them. It plays well but could benefit from further refinement. The six fold bellows has a few patches and I would replace it if I was going to keep it. Currently tuned to Equal Temperament at A=440hz. An 'improver' for someone at a resonable price . £1500 including modern hard case.

Yes they have the slots on both sides but rarely levers on both sides and often slots but no levers at all. I have seen levers on both sides of a Wheatstone but it is rare.

Yes, you will find these on Wheatstone concertinas. In the Wheatstone Ledgers the 'air' buttons ( where they are present on an instrument) are noted by the designation SV ( for slide valve) or KV ( for key valve). The change over from Slide valve to Key valve happened in the early 1920's . The breather , button or lever, is only on the right but if they are on both sides then they will be 'bowing valves' and only work in one direction each. I have two similar models of Wheatstone , one with and one without the Slide air lever on the right. Although we might utilise this as an 'air' lever these days I feel it might have been meant to be a double action Bowing valve as none of these work very well as a quick way of opening or closing the bellows.

Then I would suggest finding a concertina restorer in England.... there are quite a few.

That is a Wheatstone by the look of it. Where to get it repaired depends which country you live in. In reasonable playing and cosmetic condition these can be worth £1500 - £2000 . The fretwork is a little crude and it is impossible to tell what needs repair. If you can find a number stamped on the woodwork inside ( 5 digit serial number) then it is easy to find out how old the instrument is . Good luck with it.

Often not the case on the cheaper models..... so it suggests a reasonable quality instrument.

A lot to be said for a Teetotal lifestyle!

If the bolt has sheared off ,or is not gripping in the wood, you'll need to open up and take a good look inside. It is the long bolt that takes the force of pulling on the strap. The little screws alone will put too much strain on the end plate.... which can be a big problem for wooden ends but even in a metal ended concertina the central bolt needs to do its job. If in doubt as to what you should do... consult a concertina repair person. Good luck.

The first rule for learning a new instrument should be to obtain the best you can afford, however one should afford enough to make the journey worthwhile. Those old Tutor models were hard work 50 years ago when I started so I cannot see them having improved much since. A good vintage EC should hold its value; they have done exactly that for me, on average, through the years. I've mostly gained monetarily on concertina ownership although of very recent years we can see a softening of prices. All in all the basic rule that you will get your money back if you buy a good instrument but want to pass it on either because you find a better one or because you just do not get on with the system and wish to jump ship. That is a long winded way of saying your budget is too low and the more expensive instrument will /might cost you nothing in the end. Double ( or treble) your budget and play happy music. Good luck.

Lovely photos Peter and wonderfull to see Chris Droney still in great form.... would that we all will keep in fine condition into our 90's.