Screws

[Paul Draper]

Could anyone recommend a good source of screws suitable for an 1896 Lachenal Anglo? The major hardware stores don't seem to stock the smaller sizes needed.

[LesJessop]

I had a similar problem last year. I got some from the Vintage Screw Company, but  the long thin screws used to fix the finger rest and thumb-strap bracket were unobtainable: I ended up buying slightly larger screws and sanding them down to size (see the thread on thumb strap screws).

[Paul Draper]

Thank you for the quick reply Les. What did you buy? I need a couple for the grills and also a long thin screw (or maybe more) for the wooden plate that holds the buttons in place. I don't know much about screw gauges.

[Leonard]

LesJessop seems to have an English concertina, and Paul's is an Anglo.

Your problems are the same, the solutions will differ.

[LesJessop]

Leonard - thanks for pointing this out, and probably saving a bit of confusion. I'd better leave this for the Anglo experts !

[Alex West]

Actually, the problems aren't the same.  Not all anglos need long screws to connect the action to the fretwork and the handrest or to connect through the fretwork support pillars to the bottom of the action.

However, all vintage English concertinas need long, very small gauge screws to connect the fretwork to the action base through the thumbrest and the pinkie rest (usually 2 different screws). These screws are pretty well totally unobtainable nowadays and are only available occasionally fron the vintage screw suppliers or from 2nd hand applications.  

 

Solutions are available by selecting slightly larger gauge screws and drilling larger diameter holes through the fretwork support pillars 

 

Alex West

[Paul Draper]

Les, what size screws did you buy?

[Tiposx]

This is Les Jessop's earlier thread, he states the sizes used.

 

 

[LesJessop]

The screws I needed were 1" long, No 1 but the smallest I could get were 1" long No 2 (i.e. slightly bigger in diameter). Of course, as Leonard pointed out this was for a repair on an English concertina and I've no experience of Anglo concertinas so these could well be not the sizes of screws you need. 

[Paul Draper]

Thank you for that. I've ordered a selection from ScewsOnline,

[Thomas Moore]

On 1/15/2026 at 3:01 AM, Paul Draper said:

Could anyone recommend a good source of screws suitable for an 1896 Lachenal Anglo? The major hardware stores don't seem to stock the smaller sizes needed.

Find an old hardware store still in operation.  They usually have many things that big stores no longer carry, such as a large supply of screws, nuts, nails, bolts, etc. that were generally used years ago.