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Is this a Jones?


Daniel Hersh

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It does look a bit like a Jones but somewhat different. I had a look in the concertina museum collection but couldn't find anything matching the concertina on Ebay.

7 hours ago, Takayuki YAGI said:

The fretwork reminds me of Jones too. But 7 buttons in a row looks unusual to me. In the photo above the 6th button has riveted action but 7th one (and air button) have hooked action. So this might be a result of a modification.

 

Looking at the fretwork pattern, it appears that a few buttons have been added to both ends, as you say. Looks like a 30 button Anglo with additions!

From what I can see in the fretwork pictures, the levers in the main section of the ends are riveted action. That would suggest a better quality anglo but dreadfully abused!

An interesting project for whoever wins it.

Edited by Peter Smith
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5 hours ago, Takayuki YAGI said:

It might be a 42-key chromatic anglo described in Jones' 1884 patent. http://www.concertina.com/jones/index.htm

 

It's possible.  There are good pics of one of those put up by Jim Lucas at http://www.nonce.dk/Jones-42/ .

Edited by Daniel Hersh
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It just happens that I own a 42 button Jones 'Perfect concertina' restored by Andrew Norman last year (& am thinking of selling it!). The concertina on Ebay measure 205mm across the face (flat to flat) according to the seller, whereas my Jones 42 button measures only 6.75 inches or 172mm across the flats. The fretwork is also quite different - see below.

If the Ebay anglo is that large across the face, could it be a baritone or bass?

 

Peter

21-01-12 Jones 42 button concertina.jpg

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I would have assumed it was a Jones, too, as the fretwork seems similar to a number of their anglos. One of the rivet posts also has that keyhole shape that I've seen in Jones concertinas, but since this is a right Frankenstein, who knows whats original?

 

The amount it sold for in this condition makes me wonder if someone knows something we don't. This jeffries here has simpler fretwork, could it be some bonkers jeffries? Probably not, but one has to tick all the boxes.

 

 

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  • 3 months later...

I was the eventual owner. The sale was a bit of a disappointment - it was an absolute butchers shop inside, but then i got interested in trying to work out the story of the machine, which was lots of fun.

In short it was a jones - there is a stamp on the reed pans. however the reed pans have slots for 26 reeds and the machine has more than 30 keys.

There were a LOT of additional reeds. It had been heavily modified at some point - there was a stamp from Envoy Worthington (a concertina repairer and member of the salvation army here in the Uk many years ago.)

He had converted it to double reeds (so a lot of extra holes made in the reed pans), and turned it into a duet (I think - I'm not sure what it started as - there is really no way to tell.)

The reeds bolted on had all been retuned, so I had to do a lot of leg work to try to work out the plan - it is mostly a double reeded duet, with some 'chord' buttons using the top and bottom notes of the triads.

My guess is he converted it to use as part of a salvation army orchestra - he would have wanted to emphasise volume (for playing out in the street) and would have wanted notes and chords to accompany hymns.

 

The levers are mostly riveted posts, with some spring held ones added in odd places to make the most of the space and get the most buttons in.

After that it seems, based on what else i found, to have been sold to a merchent seaman, dropped in the sea and then repaired on the boat by a plumber using a pocket knife and whatever he had to hand - but thats another story...

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