Keeping Concertina In Case -- Helpful?

[ragtimer]

Given a new concertina with real leather on the bellows, how important is it to keep it closed up tight in its hard-shell case when not in use?

 

Assuming no cats, dogs, kids, or much dust and lint in the air -- I'm wondering if the case helps protect the leather from drying out and getting brittle? Much as a humidor box protects cigars?

 

My normal habit is to take the instrument out of its case in the morning, play some, then just set it down till another session or two later in the day. Then pack it back into the case when I turn in for the night. Putting it away involves fastening the bellows straps and rolling it over in the case so the hand straps fit in right -- so I don't do it after every little session. I really do like being able to just snatch it up and play whenever I get the time and the urge.

 

Am I shortening its life by leaving it out in the open during the day? FWIW, it's a Stagi Hayden Duet., 2 to 3 years old. Thanks, Mike K.

[Henk van Aalten]

Given a new concertina with real leather on the bellows, how important is it to keep it closed up tight in its hard-shell case when not in use?

 

I learned from Wim Wakker to keep it "out of the box" as much as possible, so I only use the case for transporting my concertina.

[chainyanker]

i keep mine out the case, when i pass, several times a day i give a a quick squezz.

[Christian Husmann]

Hello,

 

I never heard that there were any problems with leaving the machine outside it´s box.

Friends of mine have more (vintage) instruments than boxes so not all of them are stored in a suitable

box at all.

 

Thinking of what the instrument "inhales" (smoky air, humidity out of pubs/ crowded rooms, bit of sweat from the hands) it pretty much makes sense to have it outside it´s box rather than putting it away after using it.

Prefered room should be one with a relativly steady temperature, I´d suppose.

 

Greetings

Christian

[Dirge]

Although I've been told best is nicely compressed in their boxes I leave them on a sideboard; I can get from 'I've just time to go through so-and-so tune before...' to playing in 5 seconds flat.

 

With valuable items, people often get so worried about them that they create barriers to their use to conserve and protect them, (locking things away, not taking them to places, not wanting to wear them out...) and consequently use them hardly at all, thus missing the point completely. I keep my 'boxes at instant readiness, which I'm sure helps me to play several times a day. If that means a slightly more regular refurbishment I'd take that as the price.

[Chris Timson]

Whichever concertina I am using most at the time tends to stay out of its case, which helps encourage me to play it. The others stay in their cases. This is because I believe the case smooths out changes in temperature and humidity, which I think is probably a good thing.

 

Chris

[Geoffrey Crabb]

This has been discussed many times before and of course it is the right of an instrument owner to do whatever they want with it.

 

I offer the advice contained on the attached which is extracted from the maintenance notes that I would supply with any new instrument that I may make.

 

 

 

Again it is upto the owner whether that advice is heeded.

 

Geoff.

[Michael Reid]

Hmmm. So Geoff writes (in his attached handout)

Failure to keep the instrument in the case provided when not in use will allow the bellows to ‘creep’ open and ‘set’ in a partly open position reducing the volume of the bellows by as much as one fold. This condition is usually irreversible.

... and Henk writes:

I learned from Wim Wakker to keep it "out of the box" as much as possible, so I only use the case for transporting my concertina.

I don't think it would be possible to have two more opposing opinions ... each from a respected maker.

 

I wonder what the other makers say?

[Andy B]

I wonder what the other makers say?

In Jurgen Suttner's "Concertina Maintenance" lecture, given at Eigse Mrs Crotty last year, he said that the single most important thing that you could do with regard to concertina maintenance was to keep the concertina in its case (prevention being better than cure).

Andy

[Chris Ghent]

If keeping a concertina out of its case means it will get played more often then my vote is to keep it out.

 

When they are out of the case two different faults can occur.

 

One is to do with airborne dust and insects. These cause small easily rectified faults (except for moths, they will eat out the felt).

 

The other fault is more serious, in that the bellows can relax their set to be more open. When the bellows are first made they are resistant to being completely shut, so they are clamped shut with a lot of force and left that way for a while. The case takes over this function from the clamps, using the corner blocks to hold the concertina shut. Vertical cases rely on gravity for this effect. Especially when relatively new a concertina left out of the case will sometimes start to relax into a more comfortable slightly open stance. This means you will feel slight resistance from the bellows as you approach the shut position when playing. The concertina will also creep open slightly when you leave it sitting.

 

So my position is, leave it in the case a lot when new, and if not new always leave it in the case some of the time.

 

Chris

[Richard Morse]

At our shop we keep most concertinas in their case or "strapped" shut mainly for bellows health preservation which several here have pointed out. The strap thing is great because you can still see (as we have these on display for sale!) them. Also saves us the chore of casing them away and back often. A lot of casing might cause problems by the material wear of the case blocks to filter into the concertina, raw blocks score the end finish, excessive force damaging the ends, etc.

 

Our straps are simply thin, 1/2" wide Velcro we buy by the roll. The fuzzy nap is very fine which we keep toward the instrument side for cushioning, cut long enough to overlap at the top a couple inches for the hook side to secure it together. Easy to put on and take off. Comes in many colors too!

 

At home I almost never put my concertina in it's case as I like it ready for instant use. I should use the strap more often though as my bellows has acquired a bit of unclosed "set". In any case (no- I mean in any eventuality...) I always put a light music sheet music book on top of my concertina when I'm done playing it as I find that that keeps dust from accumulating on it. I don't have a particularly dusty house but when I don't do that I do find that over time the bellows acquires a coating of dust deep in the folds which can be hard to clean. Simply putting a book or cloth over the concertina prevents this.

 

-- Rich --

[Greg Jowaisas]

I agree with Geoff that "bellows creep" can be a problem and that an instrument should be left in a properly blocked case as much as possible. I have several vintage concertinas which came to me with the "creep". It remains uncertain whether I can help them recover fully.

 

For those who want their instruments accessible perhaps putting them back in the case but leaving the case lid open would be a viable compromise. The instrument would still have bellows compression and some added protection but not be out of sight and mind.

 

Greg

[ragtimer]

I agree with Geoff that "bellows creep" can be a problem and that an instrument should be left in a properly blocked case as much as possible. I have several vintage concertinas which came to me with the "creep". It remains uncertain whether I can help them recover fully.

Having read thru the replies (thanks, everyone!) I don't understand why "bellows creep" is a problem. Just because the bellows natural rest position becomes slightly open, doesn't mean that you can't squeeze the bellows further closed than that, when playing on the "push" stroke. That is, I don't see that you lose any air-moving capacity between fully closed and as far open as you normally dare to pull.

 

Is it jsut a matter of neatness and convenience, to have the instrument stay fully closed up when placed on a table? I admit it bothers me sometimes when the bellows keep expanding untill the ends threaten to hang over the ends of a small table!

For those who want their instruments accessible perhaps putting them back in the case but leaving the case lid open would be a viable compromise. The instrument would still have bellows compression and some added protection but not be out of sight and mind.

Greg

Well, usually I do put mine back in the case, but "loose" (without fastening the straps), and withoout rotating it so the hand straps fit properly into the case. And I leave the lid up open. So it is mostly compressed, but not dust protected, and instanly available to snatch up and play.

 

BTW, it appears most tinas don't have accordion-like straps to keep the bellows closed. Mine does -- they snap on with gripper-snappers like a jacket. I'd gladly do without them, but they do keep the bellows closed tight when not in use.

--Mike K.

[Robin Madge]

Don't forget to protect the concertina from direct sunlight as well as humidity etc.

 

I have come across a concertina that had one end exposed to sunlight over a long period and nearly all the reeds in that end were out of tune or sticking. The other end was OK.

 

Robin Madge

[yankeeclipper]

Dust can be surprisingly abrasive. Once settled in the concertina's folds, the abrasive qualities of dust or any foreign material will become aggravated by the action of playing, and shorten the life of your bellows. I keep my Wheatstone cased...but the case is always to hand for spur-of-the-moment playing.

[Greg Jowaisas]

Ragtimer,

I work primarilly with vintage instruments. In my experience bellows that have a "memory" for being open are much more difficult to squeeze close. In some cases this renders the last inch of contraction difficult to unusable for practical playing. Since a concertina performs better when the bellows are less than half open you are in effect giving away 30% of your best playing area.

 

I think the really critical time to impart a closed "memory to the bellows is in the first six months or break in period of an instrument.

 

When I got my new Carroll the bellows needed to be broken in. Their natural inclination was to remain open an extra inch from full compression. As the bellows played in I religiously kept it in its blocked case when not in use. Over 3 or 4 months the bellows developed a memory and a tendency to stay closed at rest.

 

I don't worry about keeping it out for hours at a time now that the bellows are "trained" but I still keep it stored in its blocked case when not in use.

 

Why not do the little extra to give your concertina its best chance to perform at its full potential?

 

Just one repairperson's opinion.

(But I feel in good company if someone as august as Geoff Crabb has a similar recommendation!)

 

Greg

[richard]

Hello

 

I wonder if with an older (bellows) instrument the bellows creep is less of an issue? In the course of a day I will leave a concertina out of its box or in the case but not "wedged in" with the little padded balls, which I use as substitutes for blocks. Lately I can play my concertina at work a few times in the course of the day so I like to keep it ready to go and I keep it in an old soft case for easy access. At night the concertinas are always wedged in their cases. I hope this is alright.

 

It always seems Noel Hill transports his intruments to the U.S. at least, wrapped in towels and stuffed into old suitcases, seemingly without ways to really compress the bellows.

 

AND....Is there a way to determine if your bellows have "creeped"?

 

Richard

Edited May 21, 2007 by richard

[d.elliott]

I always advise keeping instruments in their cases, with bellows firmly compressed for all the reason's that Geoff Crabb states, but also to make sure that the intrument is stood with its bellows axis horizontal to prevent valve curling. The old hexagonal boxes tend to be left stood up with the instrument on its end, not a good idea!

 

I am with you on this point Geoff!

 

Dave