Temporary Bellows Repairs

[BillErickson]

What's the recommended method for doing a temporary bellows repair, to keep an instrument playing until I can find the time/money for a formal repair? Any suggestions on a type of repair tape (scotch? electrical? duct?) that would minimize sticky residue on the bellows for when it's sent in for a real repair job? Or would you recommend *not* putting any tape on the bellows?

 

Thanks for your comments!

 

Bill Erickson

[Brian Humphrey]

Hi Bill,

 

It could be helpful for you to tell us what kind of concertina, what kind of leak, and where on the bellows. Repairs that may be reasonable for a Bastari or Stagi may not be good for a vintage instrument.

 

Here are some articles and forum topics on this site that may be useful:

 

http://www.concertina.net/bellows_patching.html

 

http://www.concertina.net/gs_stagirepair.html

 

Under Instrument Construction and Repair, the topics "Leak" and "Glue", among others, may give you some ideas.

 

Brian

[BillErickson]

It could be helpful for you to tell us what kind of concertina, what kind of leak, and where on the bellows.  Repairs that may be reasonable for a Bastari or Stagi may not be good for a vintage instrument.

Brian

 

Brian, thanks for your comments..

 

It's an English Lachenal -- here's the eBay ad that I bought it thru -- several of the pictures there show the damaged bellows:

 

eBay Lachenal

 

The antique dealer that was selling it really didn't know alot about it, so I took a gamble on it. Seems to have paid off -- I've opened it up, and found that it's in pretty good condition -- the reeds and action are good (some notes don't sound, but I probably just need to tweak them a bit), a label inside indicates it was serviced back in 1973, the pads still seem to seal pretty good, and it plays in A=440 pitch (probably retuned back in 73). The only major problem is those cracks in the bellows. Oh yeah, and it needs a valve job -- but I can live with that for now.

 

[EDIT] Oh, and it was missing the thumb straps. But that was an easy fix, with parts courtesy of David Leese at http://www.concertina-spares.com

Edited June 2, 2004 by BillErickson

[Brian Humphrey]

Do you think the bellows would best be repaired or replaced? That may have a bearing on your decision. I was all set to make some temporary repairs to a bellows using hide glue found at an art supply store and some thin leather I cut from a wallet, along the lines of ideas in the links I sent you, but was spared that task when my turn came up for a proper restoration job (for the concertina, not me...).

 

Brian

[JimLucas]

Do you think the bellows would best be repaired or replaced? That may have a bearing on your decision.  I was all set to make some temporary repairs to a bellows using hide glue found at an art supply store and some thin leather I cut from a wallet, along the lines of ideas in the links I sent you, but was spared that task when my turn came up for a proper restoration job (for the concertina, not me...).

The hide glue and leather route should work fine (I got my first bellows leather from a bookbinder's supply, not a wallet), though one should also check inside to see if any of the cloth hinges or carboard stiffeners also need reinforcement.

 

From what Bill said about the oversight by his Chief Financial Officer, I suspect a new bellows isn't yet in the budget, though a full overhaul probably should be, soon. Definitely worth the expense.

[Alan Day]

Do not forget to feather the edges of the leather to make a smooth finish.Without the feathering the rough edge will catch and gradually peal back.I would think that this is covered in the link above.

Al

[Chris Ghent]

Do not forget to feather the edges of the leather to make a smooth finish.Without the feathering the rough edge will catch and gradually peal back.I would think that this is covered in the link above.

Al

With a repair in this area it might be best to thin the entire patch down as well as tapering the edges, otherwise the folds will have trouble sitting together. Aim for very thin, say less than 10 thou (.25mm).

 

I fitted about 15 similar patches to my Jeffries and that was a couple of years ago, and they are still holding without trouble after much playing.

 

As someone mentioned, renewing the cloth hinge behind the damaged fold first looks like a good idea from the photo. The external patch should be long enough to cover the crack and then a few mm after that, and about wide enough to come up to the beginning of the papers.

 

If the bellows have gone in a place like this they may be ready to go in other similar places as well, but you can keep up with a bit of leather, a knife and a glue pot. An old skirt is often a good source of leather patching.

 

Chris

[Brian Humphrey]

I just talked with Bob Snope at the Button Box about the ongoing restoration of my Crane system Jeffries, and he kindly let me pick his brain about temporary bellows repairs. Bob was happy to have me pass along his views; so here they are, to the best of my understanding:

 

Bob says that he prefers to see temporary repairs made on the inside of the instrument, when possible. His first choice would be to use thin leather, as from a pair of kid gloves, and to use hide glue. According to Bob, hot hide glue stays flexible after it dries, and it is easy to clean up during restoration because it is water soluble. He suggests PVA glue (polyvinyl acetate?- available from craft stores) as a second choice for a flexible, water-soluble glue. He says that Barge cement (I'd look for this in shoe repair shops) is effective and stays flexible, but it is not water soluble, so it is harder to clean up. Although carpenter's glue (e.g. Elmer's glue on this side of the pond), is a possibilty, I understood Bob to say that carpenter's glue loses flexibility as it dries. Bob's last choice is contact cement, because it is neither water soluble nor flexible. He says that he favors patching with leather because when tape is used, there may be problems with getting an airtight seal.

 

Brian

 

edited to correct a typo

Edited June 3, 2004 by Brian Humphrey

[JimLucas]

According to Bob, hot hide glue stays flexible after it dries,...

In my experience, so does liquid hide glue (the same in a solvent, I believe), and one doesn't have to heat it. I usually apply it with a cheap paintbrush (portrait-painter type, not house-painter). Franklin is the brand I'm used to in the US.

 

As for 2nd, 3rd, etc. choices, I've never needed them, though I do have some of those other glues, which I use for other purposes. The Franklin hide glue comes in squeeze bottles of various sizes. If you're careful to stopper the tip, the same bottle remains perfectly usable for years. (I use it rarely, so I have an 8-oz. bottle that's 9/10 full after more than 10 years, and it shows no sign of hardening, but it still dries properly when used for glueing wood or leather.)

[d.elliott]

For this type of repair, ie the outer leather valley hinge.

 

David Leese sells leather binding in two or three widths (3/8 & 3/4) in either green or black.

 

I would:

 

lift the gusset leather at each end of the split hinge, to reveal the full width of the hinge and the full extent of its ends (by dampening with wet blotting paper to soften the glue)

 

lift the lower edges of the adjacent papers (wet blotting paper again)

 

probably remove the old leather hinge & replace, or just cover over with new leather binding, ensuring the binding went fully under the lifted gusset edges (PVA glue)

 

refix the gusset edges (PVA glue)

 

refix the papers (gum)

 

Sounds hard work but it is easy if approached sytematically

 

This same technique can be used to remove and replace a complete gusset, should one evet need to do so.

 

I have assumend that the inner hinge has been attended to or is in good nick.

 

Dave