How to sepaate fames and bekkows fom the rest ?

[JoachimDelp]

Hello,

wnat to spaparate old bellows from its frames

 

ow to realize this work conveniently, cleanly and wuthout nor dammaging bellos nor frames.

 

Someb ody willand and preapred to give me tipp andsome advise ?

 

Thank you i advan ce !

 

Joachim

[Alex West]

Joachim

 

I'm not sure how good your English is or how Google will cope with the translation but here goes!

 

I have done this so it's possible but I won't say it's easy and it is not without risk.  It might be more easy or more difficult, depending on what the concertina is and how the bellows leather was glued to the frame.  In my case, it was a vintage concertina and there was a layer of cloth glued to the frame and the leather was then glued to that, either using a starch glue or a rabbit skin (or similar hide) glue.

 

Basically, I peeled back the chamois gasket at the edge of the frame and slipped a feeler gauge between the frame and the bellows.  If you do this in the middle of a side, the glue seems to be weaker near the brass 'nut" where the end bolt goes and it's easier to get the feeler gauge in here anyway.   Since I was going to re-cover the frame with new cloth, I wasn't worried if the cloth ripped but I was careful to keep the bellows intact.  Once you can work the feeler gauge down the full depth of the bellows frame, you can then work it backwards and forwards to the corners and you should find that the leather/cloth comes free.  You may have to wiggle the feeler gauge a bit and approach the corners from both sides and have a bit of patience. but with a time and small steps, the corners come free and it's possible to remove the frame.

 

If you want any more help and think that I can assist, feel free to PM me

 

Alex West

[JoachimDelp]

6 hours ago, Alex West said:

Joachim

 

I'm not sure how good your English is or how Google will cope with the translation but here goes!

 

I have done this so it's possible but I won't say it's easy and it is not without risk.  It might be more easy or more difficult, depending on what the concertina is and how the bellows leather was glued to the frame.  In my case, it was a vintage concertina and there was a layer of cloth glued to the frame and the leather was then glued to that, either using a starch glue or a rabbit skin (or similar hide) glue.

 

Basically, I peeled back the chamois gasket at the edge of the frame and slipped a feeler gauge between the frame and the bellows.  If you do this in the middle of a side, the glue seems to be weaker near the brass 'nut" where the end bolt goes and it's easier to get the feeler gauge in here anyway.   Since I was going to re-cover the frame with new cloth, I wasn't worried if the cloth ripped but I was careful to keep the bellows intact.  Once you can work the feeler gauge down the full depth of the bellows frame, you can then work it backwards and forwards to the corners and you should find that the leather/cloth comes free.  You may have to wiggle the feeler gauge a bit and approach the corners from both sides and have a bit of patience. but with a time and small steps, the corners come free and it's possible to remove the frame.

 

If you want any more help and think that I can assist, feel free to PM me

 

Alex West

Hello Alex,

Thank you for your advice, which  which is viable and the way to go.

id I would have thought, that possibly it could be also hekpful, if i would wet the thin leather stripe on the frame with some solvent or simly  warm water.

I hope I am right understanding that this tape is glued with water soluble ehie glue, used for glueing paper and wood in general.

Afer reading your recomendation, I understand also that it does not matter to recover the leather stripe J for a impossible re-using.

Shall try to do it  oover the weekend and shall inform  you the result afterwards.

 

Find it funny that we are both enitled by Concertina.Net, as „chatty concertinists“.

This may be correct form e, but I am sure, that you deserve a higher degree !

Looking to your perfile, I read that you are dedicating some time  to restore instruments.

I am starting these days to learn about Concertina repair and rsotore, learning by doing, and if you allow I may ask you one or the other question via e-mail.

 

Once more thank you for helping me.

Kind regards  JD

[Alex West]

Joachim

 

I used this method specifically to be able to re-use the leather end binding without damaging it. The pictures below show the edge binding I wanted to save and the new bellows built around the old leather.  If you want to make a completely new bellows, then you don't need to take such care.

 

If it's a vintage concertina, then it may well be a water soluble glue or a glue softened by heat.  In my experiments, it came off without heat or water.  In fact it may have been less messy as the old glue turned to powder when I ran the feeler gauge along.  In a newer concertina, I would not be sure what glue might have been used to attach the leather to the end frame.

 

No problem to contact me if you want assistance

 

Alex West

[Dana Johnson]

It isn’t the number of posts, but the quality of them that counts🙂

[JoachimDelp]

On 3/20/2021 at 8:04 AM, Alex West said:

Joachim

 

I used this method specifically to be able to re-use the leather end binding without damaging it. The pictures below show the edge binding I wanted to save and the new bellows built around the old leather.  If you want to make a completely new bellows, then you don't need to take such care.

 

If it's a vintage concertina, then it may well be a water soluble glue or a glue softened by heat.  In my experiments, it came off without heat or water.  In fact it may have been less messy as the old glue turned to powder when I ran the feeler gauge along.  In a newer concertina, I would not be sure what glue might have been used to attach the leather to the end frame.

 

No problem to contact me if you want assistance

 

Alex West

Thanks I shall revert a b it later I had written as chatty Concertina Player, thea call me her, almost a novel, al most finished and it disappeared and now i dont feel for repeating . May do it tomorrow

 

[JoachimDelp]

35 minutes ago, Dana Johnson said:

It isn’t the number of posts, but the quality of them that counts🙂

Hi Dana,

 

you make me smile. So much honor for me ?😃

 

I share this opinion, in condition that I understand it correcly, only one post, but a helpful one + the offer to ask fore help if needed.

 

That is more tha enough, I amvery glad. and less work to reply to to other friendly felllows 😄

 

How is ging numger 093 ?

 

I am here speaking with the creme d la creme

 

It seems I am a VIP Thank you

[JoachimDelp]

On 3/20/2021 at 8:04 AM, Alex West said:

Joachim

 

I used this method specifically to be able to re-use the leather end binding without damaging it. The pictures below show the edge binding I wanted to save and the new bellows built around the old leather.  If you want to make a completely new bellows, then you don't need to take such care.

 

If it's a vintage concertina, then it may well be a water soluble glue or a glue softened by heat.  In my experiments, it came off without heat or water.  In fact it may have been less messy as the old glue turned to powder when I ran the feeler gauge along.  In a newer concertina, I would not be sure what glue might have been used to attach the leather to the end frame.

 

No problem to contact me if you want assistance

 

Alex West

Alex, thank you !

I shall reply with mor detaul tomorrow, maybe

 

I had written aleady quite a lot, most likey anyway too much, and now it makes me angry and it is n o fun to write all again. It is again already midmight here, and i do not sleep enough these days, so....