What are metal ends made of?

[Geoff Wooff]

Of  course, there are  alternatives:

 

A  few  years ago  I  had  a  beautifull  Maccann  duet  which, according  to  the  Wheatstone  Ledgers,  had  ends made of  Brittania Metal.   The main  thing  I  remember  about  this  instrument  was  its  TONE  .  I  have  never  heard  better!!

 

Stainless  Steel, Brass, Aluminium alloys, Sterling  Silver  and  even  Argentium  could  be  used.  For  the  amount  of  metal    in the  ends  of  a  concertina  the  cost  of  the  metal  is  surely  a small factor  compared to  the  work  involved in  making  them ?

 

My  current  needs  for  Nickel Silver  sheet, if  anyone  finds a supplier,  include  thicknesses  of  0.6 , 0.8, 1.2, 4 and 5mm  sheets.

 

 

[alex_holden]

29 minutes ago, Geoff Wooff said:

Stainless  Steel, Brass, Aluminium alloys, Sterling  Silver  and  even  Argentium  could  be  used.  For  the  amount  of  metal    in the  ends  of  a  concertina  the  cost  of  the  metal  is  surely  a small factor  compared to  the  work  involved in  making  them ?

 

I quite like aluminium as an end material; I've used it on two instruments now. It's lightweight, easy to cut and polish, doesn't tarnish quickly, easy to obtain, and inexpensive. The main caveat is that it looks slightly different from nickel-silver, so if you want an instrument with a very authentic vintage appearance you might prefer to go with NS, either unplated if you like the dull patina that old instruments develop or nickel plated if you want it to remain bright. A significant drawback of NS or nickel plating is that reportedly around 10% of people are allergic to nickel.

 

I've used Sterling silver and Argentium for jewellery and small decorative inlays. At today's prices, a pair of Argentium end plate blanks for a 6 1/4" instrument would cost about £600 - £650.

 

I couldn't comment on any possible difference in tone resulting from different end plate metals. I think the openness of the fretwork is probably more significant.

[Chris Ghent]

When I last scored German Silver the only source was jewellery supply houses.  It was not 5mm! They had .8 and something thicker, maybe 1.6. 
 

To add to the list of potential end materials;  about 15 years ago I cut out two sets of .7mm titanium ends.  One of them is out there somewhere, the other is here somewhere on a shelf. I did it by engraving right through the metal (quite a few passes) with a 60° cutter with corner sharpening software.  
 

The titanium was OK to look at, not harsh like chrome or dead like SS. I prefer german silver for its warm yellowish tone and its constantly changing finish. The titanium would probably stay shiny for ever. 

[d.elliott]

On 9/7/2023 at 10:57 AM, Andy Holder said:

Thank you Geoff. Do you think there would be any disadvantage in using chrome plated brass?

 

 There is a disadvantage, Chrome is deposited in platelets, (fine scales) and is this porous, it is easier for corrosive elements to penetrate and a scratch to cause surface deterioration. Nickel plate is more homogeneous.  

[Geoffrey Crabb]

23 hours ago, d.elliott said:

On 9/7/2023 at 10:57 AM, Andy Holder said:

Thank you Geoff. Do you think there would be any disadvantage in using chrome plated brass?

 

 There is a disadvantage, Chrome is deposited in platelets, (fine scales) and is this porous, it is easier for corrosive elements to penetrate and a scratch to cause surface deterioration. Nickel plate is more homogeneous.  

Davids first sentence is true and all our brass tops were nickel plated first. 

However, if the choice of an individual (customer) commissioning an instrument was for a chrome finish, that would be added to the platers instructions. i.e.  nickel then chrome plate.

 

Geoff

[Geoffrey Crabb]

On 9/8/2023 at 8:01 AM, alex_holden said:

 

I quite like aluminium as an end material;

And it can be colour anodized if required.

 

I favour stainless steel for tops and fittings myself although it can be a 'pain' to pierce, it polishes up well, doesn't tarnish and is scratch resistant. Above all it doesn't have to be entrusted to outside platers.

If piercing SS by hand (traditional), to avoid wrist strain, small sections of pattern should be done spread over a series of sessions. DON'T ATTEMPT TO DO IT ALL IN ONE SESSION.

 

A G Crabb 30 F/C Octo Anglo S/S Ends. 

Edited September 10, 2023 by Geoffrey Crabb
Wrong description. I,m too darn hot

[Clive Thorne]

On 9/10/2023 at 5:53 PM, Geoffrey Crabb said:

And it can be colour anodized if required.

 

I favour stainless steel for tops and fittings myself although it can be a 'pain' to pierce, it polishes up well, doesn't tarnish and is scratch resistant. Above all it doesn't have to be entrusted to outside platers.

If piercing SS by hand (traditional), to avoid wrist strain, small sections of pattern should be done spread over a series of sessions. DON'T ATTEMPT TO DO IT ALL IN ONE SESSION.

 

A G Crabb 30 F/C Octo Anglo S/S Ends. 

On the other hand stainless steel laser cuts really well and easily.

[Fanie]

On 9/8/2023 at 9:01 AM, alex_holden said:

 

I quite like aluminium as an end material; I've used it on two instruments now. It's lightweight, easy to cut and polish, doesn't tarnish quickly, easy to obtain, and inexpensive.

 

Alex, what thickness aluminium plate are you using?

[Bassconcertina.net]

I've just bought a bass with aluminium end plates, but they were a replacement for the wooden ones.

[alex_holden]

1 hour ago, Fanie said:

 

Alex, what thickness aluminium plate are you using?

 

They are 1.2mm thick 5251-H22. I went thicker than the nickel silver I use (0.7mm) because it's a softer metal. It would probably be OK to reduce it to 1mm if your fretwork pattern isn't very delicate.

[Dana Johnson]

I was lucky to be able to buy my NS C735 with only a 50 lb. minimum, though I am near the end of my second 50# coil.  I was able to get it rolled to the exact width and temper ( 1/2 hard ) I wanted.  
    I made my wife’s 25 years ago and it is still bright as the day it was made.  NS comes in a number of different alloys which vary in properties as well as color.  The C735 is used primarily for things that require a silver appearance  like ornamental belt buckles, jewelry etc.  people with corrosive sweat will dull and erode it if not wiped down regularly.  Some environments also dull it after a few years.  Nickel is no remedy  for corrosive environments.  My sweat ate through the nickel plate on my old bastari exposing the brass underneath which then got eroded as well.  Chrome is very resistant, but unpleasantly cold in color to my tastes.  A jewelry polishing cloth used occasionally will keep up the shine, but more aggressive polishing is required for badly dulled ends.  Plating also has a nasty habit of flaking away especially where it has worn through.   I had one set of ends nickel plated many years ago, with the NS alloy I was using, you couldn’t tell the difference do I didn’t do any more.  
Stainless is easy to get laser cut, while copper alloys like NS may require something other than s CO2 laser since it doesn’t couple well with infrared wavelengths and requires much higher power.  Stainless can be a bit cold too though.