Geoff Wooff Posted January 2, 2012 Share Posted January 2, 2012 (edited) Last year I progressively replaced the Button Bushings on my Concertinas. Firstly with the metal ended ones because slack Felt shows up quickly with the metal Buttons clicking against the Metal ends. These were really in not too bad a state, other than the noises. Last week I finally got around to doing the same on the one wooden ended model. This had had new bushings put in about twenty years ago and although they were very worn there was no apparent noises because of the wooden ends. My main point here, and thus why I have not put this in the Maintenance forum, is the incredible difference that the new Bushings have made to the playability. This is on a large extended keyboard EC where I use a lot of chords. The slack and wobbly buttons created a degree of uncertainty which I suppose I had become used to. When playing chords on an EC it is often necessary to press the buttons of some notes at quite an accute angle. The resultant semi-sideways action shifts those buttons away from the fingers. The new bushings have given the instrument a greatly enhanced feel, it is like playing a new one. There are several players whose recordings have been a little spoiled for me due to the noisy action of their instruments ! So my tip for the New Year is 'Replace your Bushings' if there is any sign of slackness... it is well worth the effort... and it did turn out to be quite an effort because the previous Bushing job had not been done well which had left the holes through the end plates too large and of uneven sizes. Lots of fiddling about was called for but I am so happy with the result. Geoff. Edited January 2, 2012 by Geoff Wooff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scoopet Posted January 2, 2012 Share Posted January 2, 2012 (edited) happy new year geoff, was nice of you to replace the bushing on your baritone-treble for our impending baritone for baritone-treble swap simon Edited January 2, 2012 by scoopet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoff Wooff Posted January 2, 2012 Author Share Posted January 2, 2012 Hi Simon, perhaps you could send me a couple of pictures of your Baritone.. I really would love to see it so that when you have had enough of all this low down music I will have saved up the money whilst having a picture to lust after. No, really though I hope to pass down in your direction to visit my sister in Penzance at some stage this year and I will bring the Baritone /treble and see if we can meet for a tune.... but the new bushings have made the B/T even more unlikely to leave home. Happy New Year Simon, Geoff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david_boveri Posted January 3, 2012 Share Posted January 3, 2012 glad the new bushings help! another source of a lot of noisiness in old instruments comes from the rivets in the levers expanding over time through repeated use. that's why i am so happy that my instrument has adjustable screw action, which means that i can tweak away that clicking of the rivets, just as you tweaked away the clicking from compressed bushings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michael sam wild Posted January 3, 2012 Share Posted January 3, 2012 Good reminder I reckon bone buttons can get eroded where they meet metal ends as tey wobble about Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Holder Posted January 3, 2012 Share Posted January 3, 2012 Last year I progressively replaced the Button Bushings on my Concertinas. Firstly with the metal ended ones because slack Felt shows up quickly with the metal Buttons clicking against the Metal ends. These were really in not too bad a state, other than the noises. Last week I finally got around to doing the same on the one wooden ended model. This had had new bushings put in about twenty years ago and although they were very worn there was no apparent noises because of the wooden ends. My main point here, and thus why I have not put this in the Maintenance forum, is the incredible difference that the new Bushings have made to the playability. This is on a large extended keyboard EC where I use a lot of chords. The slack and wobbly buttons created a degree of uncertainty which I suppose I had become used to. When playing chords on an EC it is often necessary to press the buttons of some notes at quite an accute angle. The resultant semi-sideways action shifts those buttons away from the fingers. The new bushings have given the instrument a greatly enhanced feel, it is like playing a new one. There are several players whose recordings have been a little spoiled for me due to the noisy action of their instruments ! So my tip for the New Year is 'Replace your Bushings' if there is any sign of slackness... it is well worth the effort... and it did turn out to be quite an effort because the previous Bushing job had not been done well which had left the holes through the end plates too large and of uneven sizes. Lots of fiddling about was called for but I am so happy with the result. Geoff. Hi Geoff. Just taking a breather from replacing some bushings and read your note. I'm replacing the black bushings on a metal button rosewood ended Wheatstone EC with scarlet felt. What are your feelings about colours? Should Anglos be done in an emerald green, for instance? Is there a protocol that I don't know about? Personally I would love mid blue but I've never seen one. Andy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Ghent Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 I have just finished an amboyna ended Anglo with blue bushings. You can find the cloth if you google "willi cloth" and if that doesn't get it add in pool table. They have a lot of shades. It is wool cloth but the substructure, the warp and weft, is poly what ever. Unlike green baize designed for billiard tables I have had in the past it does not tend to disintegrate. And it is the same thickness as the classic red piano baize. Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Ghent Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 I googled it for you http://www.thefeltpeople.com/pages/colorcards/willicloth.htm I was put on to this by Dana... Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoff Wooff Posted January 4, 2012 Author Share Posted January 4, 2012 Hi Geoff. Just taking a breather from replacing some bushings and read your note. I'm replacing the black bushings on a metal button rosewood ended Wheatstone EC with scarlet felt. What are your feelings about colours? Should Anglos be done in an emerald green, for instance? Is there a protocol that I don't know about? Personally I would love mid blue but I've never seen one. Andy. Hi Andy, I suppose it is all down to what you fancy in the way of colours. I have used Black, which was one of the original colours, on Rosewood ended instruments. But I generally prefer Red and did use Scarlet on one of my Metal enders. The Big Ebony EC I have just finnished has a lovely shade of Mid Red that I was given by Chris Ghent when he visited here last summer. The modern makers, like Chris, tend to use a larger palete of colours... a free-er expression for our modern times. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoff Wooff Posted January 4, 2012 Author Share Posted January 4, 2012 I have just finished an amboyna ended Anglo with blue bushings. You can find the cloth if you google "willi cloth" and if that doesn't get it add in pool table. They have a lot of shades. It is wool cloth but the substructure, the warp and weft, is poly what ever. Unlike green baize designed for billiard tables I have had in the past it does not tend to disintegrate. And it is the same thickness as the classic red piano baize. Chris Hi Chris, this "Willi felt" is this what you gave me last summer ? Sounds a bit rude when put like that, sorry. Well, if so I can recommend it too. A very nice finnish and colour. Hope all is well with you and a personal happy new year wish from Gabi and I. Geoff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Ghent Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 Hi Geoff, and a great New Year from Sheila and I. I'll ping you off forum and fill you in on the details..! Yes, it is the same cloth I left a sample of with you. Willi have a lot of colours, plus black. I think I will be buying more from them in future. Dana Johnson of Kensington Concertinas gave me a couple of samples when I was in Washington in early June, the blue and maroon. I have no trouble imagining the maroon in an ebony end. Best Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Holder Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 I googled it for you http://www.thefeltpeople.com/pages/colorcards/willicloth.htm I was put on to this by Dana... Chris Very nice Chris, Sadly, I'm in the UK so can't get from them. However, there are a couple of suppliers of 100% wool felt over here. Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Holder Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 Hi Geoff. Just taking a breather from replacing some bushings and read your note. I'm replacing the black bushings on a metal button rosewood ended Wheatstone EC with scarlet felt. What are your feelings about colours? Should Anglos be done in an emerald green, for instance? Is there a protocol that I don't know about? Personally I would love mid blue but I've never seen one. Andy. Hi Andy, I suppose it is all down to what you fancy in the way of colours. I have used Black, which was one of the original colours, on Rosewood ended instruments. But I generally prefer Red and did use Scarlet on one of my Metal enders. The Big Ebony EC I have just finnished has a lovely shade of Mid Red that I was given by Chris Ghent when he visited here last summer. The modern makers, like Chris, tend to use a larger palete of colours... a free-er expression for our modern times. I must say Red does look good. Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michael sam wild Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 What do people think about coloured 'silk' under the end plates it looks nice but apart from dust exclusion I can see no good reason and doesn't it muffle sound? Now we don'rt have smokers in pub sessions the nicotine effect is rare.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adrian brown Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 I recently bought a large piece of woven felt for concertina bushings from a German organ supplies. It’s red cashmere, 1.0mm thick and is really densely woven. Since the minimum quantity was a piece large enough for about 3 concertina playing lifetimes, I’d be willing to share it on a pro-rata basis. Should anybody be interested, just send me a p.m. (Price was about 70 euros for a piece measuring 1400x500mm) Adrian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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