Should I Buy My Next Concertina in Ireland?

[Dylan W]

Hi everyone,

I’m a newer Anglo player from Pittsburgh, PA, and I’ll be traveling to Ireland in May 2026. I’ve been learning Irish trad for a few months and am starting to think about my first upgrade from a Rochelle. Since I’ll be in Ireland, I really like the idea of purchasing my new Concertina in Ireland. It looks like the only instruments made in Ireland are from the Irish Concertina Company and I've heard good things. 

Right now I’m torn between:

• trying instruments in person before choosing,then hope they have something in their case or

• pre-ordering a custom box and picking it up in person during my trip.
   

For those who have done something similar:

• How painful was traveling with a concertina internationally?

• Any customs issues or paperwork I should expect?

• Are there any headaches I’m not considering?

• Is this a good idea, or a dumb idea? lol

Also, are there any lesser known shops or resellers in Ireland that don’t immediately show up on U.S. Google searches? I'm curious if there are places worth visiting while I’m there.
 

My budget is around 2500-3500, but I’m looking at the intermediate tier so between the Clare (accordion reeds) and the Vintage(concertina reeds). I know concertina connection has their trade in program so could go clover to clover custom(both accordion reeds), though I wouldn't mind keeping my rochelle. Or open to other suggestions. 
 

Any advice or personal experience would be hugely appreciated!

Thanks,
Dylan

[Oberon]

I'm not sure how Ireland customs works, and even worse, now that America has gotten intense about imports this year, I'm not sure how you'll be billed when leaving Ireland or coming into the country.

 

However, as far as my input on the concertinas themselves, if it's between the Clare and the vintage, do the vintage. It's not quite as nice as the Eiru, but it's a much better sound and feel than the Clare in my opinion. The vintage has enough of that concertina sound vs the accordion reed Clare.

 

I have played many a hybrid and they can be incredibly fast instruments, some of which sounded very close to 'traditional' concertinas, and if the price or build is worth it, I'd consider one again (like the Morse Ceiling, AC Norman Standard, Bob Tedrow's Zephyr which is superb). But between the Clare and vintage, vintage is the winner. I was never really into the tone of the Clare 

 

There are still differences between the vintage and other antique concertinas in that the reeds, while more like concertina reeds than accordion reeds, are built differently and last I checked the bellows are thinner continuous card, meaning that each card section is not comprised of individually cut pieces, which normally makes for a more supple bellows. The difference tends to mean the bellows want to open more on their own a bit more aggressively. The vintage I've tried was pretty played in so the bellows weren't shabby, but I believe the Eiru models take it to the next step. 

 

Anyway, I'm not sure what other options there are in Ireland, maybe Custys? But if you come across some decently priced wheatstones or nicer lachenals, it might be worth giving them a try too. Finding a fast lachenal isn't impossible, but with all things the cost has an impact. 

 

Hopefully buying in person will be better though, for multiple reasons, but not least of which that you may avoid exorbitant shipping costs and maybe, just maybe, you'll avoid gnarly fees bringing it back to America via carry on 

[Jillser Nic Amhlaoibh]

You'll not be likely to find a big selection of concertinas at Custy's. You may want to consider taking a quick trip over to England to go to Barleycorn and check out their selection of concertinas since you'll be so close relatively speaking.

[Lappy]

No, no! Concertina Connection! You will absolutely love it……guaranteed!

[JimR]

It would be worth your time looking into the Minstrel from Concertina Connection.

[Ryan Galamb]

I went to Ireland earlier this year with the same idea. Long story short, I decided it wasn't the best way (for me) to get a concertina.

 

Your mileage may vary, but I had a lot of trouble communicating with the guy who runs ICC, just trying to get into the shop. It may have been a fluke, but it made me consider how painful such flukes could be if I had any issues with my concertina and needed to send it across the pond for a fix.

 

A day trip to England is surprisingly affordable from Ireland. Like, cheaper than fees associated with shipping/importing a nice concertina. If I had to do it again, I'd check out barleycorn as @Jillser Nic Amhlaoibh recommends.

The most helpful thing for me was hearing the variety of high end concertinas at sessions. That gave me a clear idea of what I was looking for, so I could pounce as soon as it came up for sale on the buy/sell forum. (Keep an eye on the buy/sell forum. Some great concertinas move through here.)

[Dylan W]

Thank you everyone for the replys! These are extremely helpful.

Oberon- That is helpful, so would you recommend the Eiru over the Vintage? Its really not that big of a jump up...(relatively lol) Tone is my biggest complaint with the Rochelle currently so concertina reeds are very appealing to me. I havent actually heard or played any other concertinas in person though so nothing to compare to really. 
Thats very interesting I've looked into the reeds differences but didnt know about the different bellow constructions. I can see the case for the Eiru then. I was leaning more towards a new concertina for my first then maybe keep an eye out for antiques if i ever feel like expanding or trying like a g/d. Skipping shipping costs and maybe other fees would be sweet. 

 

Jillser Nic Amhlaoibih - thats what i suspected with custys, that is an interesting idea of hopping over the pond. I know its a short flight idk if that would fit into our current schedule though lol I'll think about it though for sure! 

Lappy and JimR - have either of you played both ICC and CC. Just curious if you love your CC or if you played both and prefer the CC. This route is also sounding very tempting. The rochelle is a nice starter instrument and theyre in the US so it would probably just make life easier. 

Ryan Galamb - well great minds.... haha but yes youre bringing up good points. I'm leaning towards a new instrument for my first because of the difficulty getting repairs, so yeah needing to ship something internationally is a factor to think about. 
Yeah thats an interesting idea, ill look into if i could maybe make that happen. Or what it would take. 
I could see that being incredibly helpful! I dont think there are any other concertina players in my city though unfortunately lol  

Maybe ill just need to go with the Clover and visit ICC and try those out and see if i made the right decision haha 
 

[Johanna]

53 minutes ago, Dylan W said:

I'm leaning towards a new instrument for my first because of the difficulty getting repairs, so yeah needing to ship something internationally is a factor to think about. 
 

If there's any chance that you'll ever want to get into the vintage concertina game, you'll want to get comfortable doing basic repairs yourself.  Maybe, in parallel with getting your next "real" instrument, you could get a cheaper vintage concertina, like a 20-button Lachenal that's in good-but-not-great shape, and a copy of the Concertina Maintenance Manual, and just practice opening up the ends and doing some basic things like changing a valve or a spring.  Then, if you ever do decide to get a nicer Lachenal, Wheatstone, Jeffries, etc., those kinds of tasks won't seem so intimidating.

[Lappy]

You could “trade up” your Rochelle for a Minstrel….all in the USA. I’m more than happy with my Concertina Connection Troubadour. I have never played an ICC.

[Don Taylor]

Worth mentioning that the sales tax (VAT) in Ireland is 23%.  I am not sure that you can get that removed if you are going to export the concertina yourself. Worth checking with the Irish Concertina Company.

 

On top of that you may be charged a 20% tariff on EU goods when you carry it into the USA.

Edited November 27 by Don Taylor

[PaulDa321]

I wanted to jump in and give some info that seems pretty relevant:

 

I owned a 2017 Clare and now have a 2023 Vintage. The Clare is different now than it used to be so it’s not really the same comparison  I made a video that I’ll link to where I go over the differences

I’ve played all 3 in the shop and it’s worth getting the Vintage over the Clare because you get a lot more for your money with the traditional reeds. I played the Vintage against a Wheatstone (not sure the year, maybe early 1900s) and I couldn’t tell the difference in tone. I really love the tone and don’t feel the need to upgrade based on tone. I actually loved the Clare’s tone at the time, but now I could never go back. 
 

The Eiru is a bit warmer, but I think that the increase in finger space is the biggest difference—you get nearly an extra cm of distance from the handrest, which I would love to have. 
 

I’ve played a Minstrel and liked the Clare better. The Minstrel seemed similar to the Phoenix in feel, but is a better built instrument. 
 

The Vintage feels wonderful to play and sounds great too. I think ICC has two bellows makers and they both have their pros and cons. I’m still a novice after 3 years of lessons and I think that its action is good enough for most players, but I wonder how it would feel against a pro-level concertina like a Suttner or a Carroll. If anybody has played them back to back, I’d love to hear their feedback. 
 

One more thing I should add is that there have been some discussions of the forum about the limitations of the mechanics of the action on the Vintage and Eiru. I agree with these assessments and think that a little tweak in design would be a good idea so that the arms can’t wiggle laterally. That being said, it’s still a joy to play, so I can’t figure out if that mechanical bit is really a drawback in actual playability.  I would consider an upgrade in the future if they started using flat posts on the Eiru and if that led quicker action. 

[David Lay]

Sean Garvey said he was shifting to one sided lever arm pivot posts for all his models rather than having the yoke style on the better instruments.  He mentioned the weight loss being a benefit, but with a tight rivet the critique that there was too much play in the pivot would be eliminated on new instruments.

[PaulDa321]

2 hours ago, David Lay said:

Sean Garvey said he was shifting to one sided lever arm pivot posts for all his models rather than having the yoke style on the better instruments.  He mentioned the weight loss being a benefit, but with a tight rivet the critique that there was too much play in the pivot would be eliminated on new instruments.

I remember there was a bit more snap in the Suttner recordings vs the Eiru, but it was subtle. Would you say the button feel or responsiveness differs a lot?

[David Lay]

4 hours ago, PaulDa321 said:

I remember there was a bit more snap in the Suttner recordings vs the Eiru, but it was subtle. Would you say the button feel or responsiveness differs a lot?

I will have to check when I am back home after our USA Thanksgiving holiday.  My recollection is that the Suttner feels "better" but the bellows can be a reason for such a difference in perception.  (Of course, one can still order an ICC, but not a Suttner...)

[Caroline]

Hi Dylan,

I am a very satisfied owner of both a CC custom Clover and a Carroll. I keep the Carroll at home and the Clover travels with me all summer. Concertina Connection was very easy to work with and William was very helpful when I had a minor reed problem. The Carroll definitely has a more mellow sound but I enjoy them both.  I’d give a deep consideration to CC.

[PaulDa321]

3 hours ago, David Lay said:

I will have to check when I am back home after our USA Thanksgiving holiday.  My recollection is that the Suttner feels "better" but the bellows can be a reason for such a difference in perception.  (Of course, one can still order an ICC, but not a Suttner...)

My question has always been about the distance between an ICC and a Suttner when played. You don’t see many pros with ICCs outside of the demo reels, but I have to wonder at what level of playing you have to be for that that gap to matter. I hope the one-sided flat posts bring some benefits that narrow that gap between them. 

[davidevr]

I am also super curious about the distance between a Suttner and a Eiru. I got the latter because I was upgrading from a Clare and the tradeoff program made a lot of sense. Also, ICC made my Eiru in 2 months, a Suttner would have taken years.

In any case, the Eiru feels super snappy: I am not the fastest player but the instruments feels very responsive to me: cuts, rolls and even those "draw the bellow slightly and then cut" or similar embellishments, they sound crisp.
Buy of course I never laid my hands on a Suttner, hence the curiosity 🙂

[Jake Middleton-Metcalfe]

On 11/28/2025 at 8:36 AM, davidevr said:

I am also super curious about the distance between a Suttner and a Eiru. I got the latter because I was upgrading from a Clare and the tradeoff program made a lot of sense. Also, ICC made my Eiru in 2 months, a Suttner would have taken years.

In any case, the Eiru feels super snappy: I am not the fastest player but the instruments feels very responsive to me: cuts, rolls and even those "draw the bellow slightly and then cut" or similar embellishments, they sound crisp.
Buy of course I never laid my hands on a Suttner, hence the curiosity 🙂

 

My understanding is Suttner is no longer open for business, though of course they are likely to appear on the 2nd hand market now and then.