Phil_Piper Posted January 2, 2016 Share Posted January 2, 2016 Hi I'm new here and new to concertina anyway. I've bought a concertina. The label reads Wheatstone. When I dismantled it for restauration I noticed the following signs burned into the Wood of the actionplate and the redd pan blocks. "L10" and "R10" On the reedpans itself only L and R are burned in, the No 10 is written with a pencil. Could this be Wheatstone Serial No 10, probably with a later replaced reedpan or at least reeds? Best Regards from Switzerland Philipp Muheim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Chambers Posted January 2, 2016 Share Posted January 2, 2016 (edited) Could this be Wheatstone Serial No 10, ... ? No. Wheatstone number 10 would have been given the Roman number X, and all those earliest models were smaller "open pallet models" (like the first one, which is my avatar photo) with no fretwork and only 24 keys. Your concertina is typical of an inexpensive model built by Wheatstone's during their "riveted-reed" era (about 1865 to 1890) under Edward Chidley senior. The "L10" and "R10" are "batch numbers" - used to identify its component parts whilst the instrument was being made. At this period it was common for the serial number to only be marked on the baffle, in the oval on the left-hand side of the instrument (corresponding to the maker's label oval on the right), and if that is missing the serial number may be lost completely, though sometimes it is also marked on the top edge of the frame surrounding the action board on the left-hand side (only you'll have to take the fretwork off the action board to see if it's there), or possibly elsewhere. The number will be a 5-digit one, no lower than 18,000 (the start of production for these) and anything up to (around) 21,000. Otherwise, at this time the batch number was the last two digits of the serial number, so it may (just) be possible to identify it in the ledgers using the instrument descriptions given there, and the number 10... Edited January 3, 2016 by Stephen Chambers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil_Piper Posted January 2, 2016 Author Share Posted January 2, 2016 Well, then the number is lost... thre's no clue of any number whatsoever. The oposite (left siede) Oval ist not oval but more cross- shaped, probably the place where the number was,,,, Thank you Stephen Best regards Phil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Chambers Posted January 3, 2016 Share Posted January 3, 2016 Well, then the number is lost... thre's no clue of any number whatsoever. Then, after working through the ledger, I'd reckon it can only be one of the following: 18110 Common May 1866 18410 Common July to September 1868 The oposite (left side) Oval ist not oval but more cross- shaped, probably the place where the number was,,,, Then that's more like a Lachenal end, but I think Lachenal's probably made these spindle-cut (machine-made) ends for Wheatstone's anyway - they were one of Louis Lachenal's innovations... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil_Piper Posted January 3, 2016 Author Share Posted January 3, 2016 Thank you for your work, Stephen! Your Quote: "Then that's more like a Lachenal end, but I think Lachenal's probably made these spindle-cut (machine-made) ends for Wheatstone's anyway - they were one of Louis Lachenal's innovations..." I've thought of this too, however, the action levers are Wheatstone riveted ones...as far I have read in some Blogs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Chambers Posted January 3, 2016 Share Posted January 3, 2016 ... the action levers are Wheatstone riveted ones...as far I have read in some Blogs. They're the riveted levers that Edward Chidley senior introduced to Wheatstone's when he started building their concertinas in 1865 (which that firm continued to use until after they took over Lachenal's in 1933) and they're probably the best feature of this instrument. Basically this model is pretty much all of Edward Chidley's design, including the harmonium-style riveted reeds (seeing that he was also a harmonium maker), except for that spindle-cut (not fret-cut) "fretwork" in the ends. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil_Piper Posted January 3, 2016 Author Share Posted January 3, 2016 Thanks a Million Stephen, I have nothing to ask or to add now. I will go ahead restoring that Instrument Phil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Taylor Posted January 3, 2016 Share Posted January 3, 2016 How did theses spindle cutters work? Are they similar to a plunge router bit so that you would not need to pre-drill a hole and could be made to follow a template? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alex_holden Posted January 3, 2016 Share Posted January 3, 2016 How did theses spindle cutters work? Are they similar to a plunge router bit so that you would not need to pre-drill a hole and could be made to follow a template? Don, take a look at the machine 11 seconds into this film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BuuIF6mmRLA I imagine the Lachenal machine worked on the same principle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Taylor Posted January 3, 2016 Share Posted January 3, 2016 Alex: Interesting, so the spindle is fixed and the bed can only be moved within a prescribed pattern. Was the same technique used for reed pans? No face mask or eye protection for the machine operator and then later on they are spraying polyester with just a face mask! Don. (Incredibly snide commentary). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Chambers Posted January 3, 2016 Share Posted January 3, 2016 Was the same technique used for reed pans? You can see the actual machine for that job being used in another British Pathé newsreel Don: Concertina Factory Aka Concert In A Factory (1961) Steve Dickinson uses it now, and reckons it may be the original one that Louis Lachenal made. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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