Glass-buttoned early 56-key Edeophone for sale

[david robertson]

A beautiful example of an extended treble Edeophone - Mr Lachenal's top model, with the rare riveted action and the even rarer glass buttons. It also comes with its original leather case in serviceable condition.

 

I'm selling it on behalf of a regular customer... a man with an eye for a bargain! When he bought it about 40% of the fretwork on both ends was missing. But behind that damaged facade lurked a lovely, unmolested instrument, and now, with all fretwork restored, plus new pads, valves and bushes, and re-tuning to modern concert pitch, it's a little cracker! Remarkably rapid and responsive, with a lovely wooden-ended tone, it's a joy to play.

 

Price: £2300

 

Edited September 12, 2022 by david robertson
Price omitted!

[SIMON GABRIELOW]

I have not heard of glass buttons like this before; very unusual.. are they prone to be.brittle, or to crack?

[conzertino]

They are quite common on Lachenals ( I had a few ), but I never had any problems with them. However they are relatively heavy compared to wood-cored metal buttons!?

 

[david robertson]

The glass rod is set into a brass ferrule, and the combination is much sturdier than Wheatstone's wooden-cored buttons. 

As for the weight, Robert, I suppose they may be marginally heavier than the usual Edeophone hollow metal buttons. Out of idle curiosity, I weighed a bunch of metal ones, which come in at 1.36g each, or 76.2g for a set of 56. If we assume the glass buttons are 10% heavier, the difference is less than the weight of an English pound coin!

The whole instrument, by the way, enters the ring at 1.27kg. For comparison purposes, my Jeffries, with 17 fewer buttons, weighs in at just over 1.5kg. No wonder I feel tired all the time!

Edited October 8, 2022 by david robertson

[RAc]

Alex has made a glass-buttoned instrument and documented the process in depth here:

 

No. 7: A 47 Button Hayden Duet and Leather Case – Holden Concertinas

 

[alex_holden]

2 hours ago, david robertson said:

The glass rod is set into a brass ferrule, and the combination is much sturdier than Wheatstone's wooden-cored buttons. 

As for the weight, Robert, I suppose they may be marginally heavier than the usual Edeophone hollow metal buttons. Out of idle curiosity, I weighed a bunch of metal ones, which come in at 1.36g each, or 76.2g for a set of 56. If we assume the glass buttons are 10% heavier, the difference is less than the weight of an English pound coin!

The whole instrument, by the way, enters the ring at 1.27kg. For comparison purposes, my Jeffries, with 17 fewer buttons, weighs in at just over 1.5kg. No wonder I feel tired all the time!

 

Glass has a similar density to aluminium, which is significantly lower than brass or nickel silver. When I made mine I turned the base part from aluminium, so they were probably about the same weight as solid aluminium buttons of the same size.

 

I have seen pictures of vintage glass buttons that were basically a glass rod and a wooden core connected by a short brass tube.

[conzertino]

David, I'm not so concerned about the overall weight. I have my top Aeolas adjusted for minimum spring-pressure ( 50g  ) and low button-travel for ultra fast playing. At that level I would most likely notice a difference between normal Aeola buttons and glass ones. However, I doubt that "normal" players would notice that difference... Anyway: it is a very fine and desirable instrument at a fair price!

Edited October 10, 2022 by conzertino

[Ivy]

Hi David - Are you still selling the concertina? I'm interested to learn more!