Wakker Replacement Action

[Charles Hunt]

After reading a number of accounts of Wakker replacement actions, I decided to take the plunge and have the action replaced on my 48K Lachenal Salvation Army Crane Duet. (Pictured in my avatar). This concertina had problems with air leakage, and was no where near air tight. Also, the action was continuously malfunctioning. I was having to periodically take it apart and fiddle with it. I am not particularly handy or mechanical and I hated messing with it. I sent it off to Wim hoping that he could do something with it. Two months later the concertina came back totally changed. It was about as air tight as an old Lachenal can get. The instrument was much louder, probably because it no longer leaked air. Also, the action was more consistent feeling. I did have problems almost immediately with one note sounding with no button depressed. I figured out that the offending Key needed to be bent slightly up on the button end. Since then I have not had a problem with that key or any other key. I think this is just what the concertina needed to make it really playable. I now have a functional instrument with a new crisp action. I thought the price for this work was entirely reasonable considering the action, pads, sampers etc were replaced and the instrument retuned. I don't know if this is the right choice for every instrument, but for me it was the correct answer. As a mandolin player, i have always chosen playability over any other concerns. I like my instruments as playable as I can get them. So this is my two cents on this subject. All the best Charlie

[richard]

Hello

 

I'm happy to chime in too. I just got my Lachenal Ab/Eb Anglo back yesterday from Wim with new riveted action and revoiced reeds, button pressure and height also were addressed and greatly improved. I am very pleased!

 

I had recently acquired the concertina from a member of C net. and was very pleased with it. It had a wonderful tone and sound, and played pretty well, especially for a low pitched instrument. Compared to other Lachenals I had played it stood out, and for me didn't lag too far behind Wheatstones or Jeffries I have played.

 

But I wanted to see if I could get the instrument up a few notches and reach it's potential. The improvements are not as dramatic as with Charle's Lachenal and I didn't expect that, or need that. But it plays just that much more precisely and quickly. When I compare it to a recording I made before the new action I can hear the improvements. Triplets are much more articulate, discernable and bounce. It is just that much more fine to play!

 

Bravo Concertina Connection.

 

Richard

[Hooves]

Hello

 

I'm happy to chime in too. I just got my Lachenal Ab/Eb Anglo back yesterday from Wim with new riveted action and revoiced reeds, button pressure and height also were addressed and greatly improved. I am very pleased!

 

But I wanted to see if I could get the instrument up a few notches and reach it's potential. The improvements are not as dramatic as with Charle's Lachenal and I didn't expect that, or need that. But it plays just that much more precisely and quickly. When I compare it to a recording I made before the new action I can hear the improvements. Triplets are much more articulate, discernable and bounce. It is just that much more fine to play!

 

Bravo Concertina Connection.

 

Richard

 

hey this is great news, I never heard of anybody replacing the action on an older instrument, though it makes sense if its not functioning properly. I had read on these forums that some of the lachenals did not have very good action.

 

I'm curious: can you post a picture of your new improved action? Maybe this is a cost effective way to improve an instrument.

[DavidFR]

hey this is great news, I never heard of anybody replacing the action on an older instrument, though it makes sense if its not functioning properly. I had read on these forums that some of the lachenals did not have very good action.

 

I'm curious: can you post a picture of your new improved action? Maybe this is a cost effective way to improve an instrument.

 

John Connor I know has also replaced the action on a number of Lachenals with a new riveted brass assembly. I didn't play any of those instruments with the older actions, but can attest that the rebuilt actions were quite good IMHO.

[richard]

Hi

 

I wouldn't say the original Lachenal hooked action wasn't working properly. It worked well, at least on my concertina. But putting in a riveted action is definately an improvement. It might me more dramatic for some conertinas or more subtle on others. There might be some Lachenals where it won't make much difference, depending on the overall quality of the instrument, but I thought it was worth the investment for mine.

 

There must be past forums that you can find where the" hooked vs. the riveted action" was discussed.

 

You can see good photos of before and after on the Concertina Connection website, under "restoration" I think.

 

Richard

[Hooves]

Hi

 

I wouldn't say the original Lachenal hooked action wasn't working properly. It worked well, at least on my concertina. But putting in a riveted action is definately an improvement.

 

Richard

 

 

Could we still see a picture of this new action?

 

I'm interested because I thought most restorers were passing on concertinas which needed a lot of work on the action as being too expensive to repair, thats why this thread caught my attention.

 

I have though read of restorers re-building the existing action where needed.

 

I have a mini-german anglo I considered completely replacing the entire action more as an excercise than a neccessity, literally "Englising" it, with a home brew rivited action, but have not really pursued it.

 

Could you give us an idea how much an action replacement migth run? For example, say a standard sized 20 button Lachenal or similiar? I think this would be a good option for somebody who wants to Hot-Rod thier favorite box.

[JimLucas]

Could we still see a picture of this new action?

...

Could you give us an idea how much an action replacement migth run?

It was done by Concertina Connection.

Here is the relevant page on their web site.

[Pete Dunk]

Could you give us an idea how much an action replacement migth run? For example, say a standard sized 20 button Lachenal or similiar? I think this would be a good option for somebody who wants to Hot-Rod thier favorite box.

 

Concertina Connection quotes € 14.50 per key plus 19% VAT if you live in Europe so that would be € 345.10 for a 20 button instrument in the EC. If I had my old Lachenal 48 button English done it would cost far more than the concertina is worth.

 

(edited to insert the € symbol - that took me a while to find!)

Edited June 21, 2007 by tallship

[d.elliott]

Hi

 

I wouldn't say the original Lachenal hooked action wasn't working properly. It worked well, at least on my concertina. But putting in a riveted action is definately an improvement.

 

Richard

 

 

Could we still see a picture of this new action?

 

I'm interested because I thought most restorers were passing on concertinas which needed a lot of work on the action as being too expensive to repair, thats why this thread caught my attention.

 

I have though read of restorers re-building the existing action where needed.

 

Could you give us an idea how much an action replacement migth run? For example, say a standard sized 20 button Lachenal or similiar? I think this would be a good option for somebody who wants to Hot-Rod thier favorite box.

 

 

In my experience it is rare to want to scrap off an instrument for action wear & tear problems, usually you can recover or replace with similar parts as needed. If the action is that bad, then its odds on that the rest of the instrument is shot too! I have NEVER scapped an ENGLISH MADE concertina for action problems

 

You also need to separate in your mind resortation, repair and upgrade decisions.

 

repair is about making something work again, restoration is about getting back as close to the as-build standard as possible, up-grade is a decision to change something from its as -build design to a different specification.

 

If you are contemplating an up-grade then you should consider if the overall instrument standard and state of repair warrents the expense, and if the instrument design change will show the playing benefit anticipated, or if there are other factors influencing playability as well.

 

Some other up-grade decisions I have been asked to consider are: fitting end plate bushes to un-bushed ends, changing bone keys to metal jacket keys, adding an air button to an English, altering venting on a single action Bass, adding or changing reeds on anglos. replacing/ fitting baffles. Fitting neck strap anchorages. Replacing four fold bellows with six or seven folds. Less obviously altering chamber stoppings to improve tone.

 

Would you do all or any of the above to a brass reeded plain mahogany ended Lachenal 'people's model' instrument?

 

Dave

[paperpunchr]

One of my concertina playing friends has a Lachenal-actioned (non-rivetted) Wheatstone English apparently made after the buyout, and has played it so much that some of the pivot points look like they're about to wear through...That's a lot of concertina-playing.

 

The staples or columns under which the arms pivot don't look like they'd be too hard to duplicate with some brass wire, as long as you can figure out the dimensions and find something slightly wider than a lachenal arm to bend it around...maybe a set of sparkplug-setting feeler gauges would let you work out to the right spacing at the pivot...

 

Wholesale replacement of the action with riveted arms, while nice, seems like pretty major surgery unless the action is really failing from being worn out....would you call that a hybrid, since the action itself and its characteristic feel would have changed.

 

While it's technically possible, there seem to be enough good makers of new concertinas out there that it doesn't seem to make economic sense to replace the action on a standard model...and something that's really rare and collectable probably shouldn't be altered either...maybe better to put that upgrade money towards a whole new 'tina?

[Christian Husmann]

by the way...

 

Is the Concertina Connection working at the moment or is there a sort of *time off* I haven´t noticed?

 

Some weeks ago I wrote an email to them having not received an answer yet...

 

Christian

[Dirge]

As I understand it tired squeezeboxes are being 'broken' for their reeds on a regular basis for use in hybrids; that suggests that if you ask around you ought to be able to find someone with a box of unwanted s/h actions who could supply complete lever assys given some dimensions

[JimLucas]

...something that's really rare and collectable probably shouldn't be altered either...

On general principles I would be inclined to agree with you.

However,...

I had a brief go at playing Wim's personal (and very beautiful) Edeophone, in which he said he had replaced the original action with his own rivetted action. It was definitely the best-playing Edeophone I've experienced, and I've tried quite a few.

Worth pondering.

[d.elliott]

One of my concertina playing friends has a Lachenal-actioned (non-rivetted) Wheatstone English apparently made after the buyout, and has played it so much that some of the pivot points look like they're about to wear through...That's a lot of concertina-playing.

 

The staples or columns under which the arms pivot don't look like they'd be too hard to duplicate with some brass wire, as long as you can figure out the dimensions and find something slightly wider than a lachenal arm to bend it around...maybe a set of sparkplug-setting feeler gauges would let you work out to the right spacing at the pivot...

 

Wholesale replacement of the action with riveted arms, while nice, seems like pretty major surgery unless the action is really failing from being worn out....would you call that a hybrid, since the action itself and its characteristic feel would have changed.

 

While it's technically possible, there seem to be enough good makers of new concertinas out there that it doesn't seem to make economic sense to replace the action on a standard model...and something that's really rare and collectable probably shouldn't be altered either...maybe better to put that upgrade money towards a whole new 'tina?

 

Doug,

 

one of the frailties of the Lachenal action is that the lever arms can twist as well as pivot up and down, this is usually on cranked arms that are shaped around other keys on the action. To recover this wear resulting from twisting, I have soft soldered reclaimed bits off broken brass reed tongues to the worn flank of the pivoting portion of the arm, and re-shaped its pivot profile as necassary. I then dress out the wear from the pivot post window, finally dressing back the repaired arm so that its a snug fit in to the window. The old reed tongue material makes a superb bearing surface.

 

This repair sounds more complicated than it is, and it works a treat.

 

Dave E

[Pete Dunk]

One of my concertina playing friends has a Lachenal-actioned (non-rivetted) Wheatstone English apparently made after the buyout, and has played it so much that some of the pivot points look like they're about to wear through...That's a lot of concertina-playing.

 

The staples or columns under which the arms pivot don't look like they'd be too hard to duplicate with some brass wire, as long as you can figure out the dimensions and find something slightly wider than a lachenal arm to bend it around...maybe a set of sparkplug-setting feeler gauges would let you work out to the right spacing at the pivot...

 

Wholesale replacement of the action with riveted arms, while nice, seems like pretty major surgery unless the action is really failing from being worn out....would you call that a hybrid, since the action itself and its characteristic feel would have changed.

 

While it's technically possible, there seem to be enough good makers of new concertinas out there that it doesn't seem to make economic sense to replace the action on a standard model...and something that's really rare and collectable probably shouldn't be altered either...maybe better to put that upgrade money towards a whole new 'tina?

 

Last weekend I had the opportunity to try out quite an array of concertinas, one of which was a Wheatstone the like of which I've not encountered before. To descibe the action as crude really doesn't do it justice, your description 'staples' is correct and makes the Lachenal 'hinged' action look like a triumph of engineering! It was a pile; priced at £999 purely on the name. That said, my favourite vintage 'tina (of a dozen or so Wheatstones and Lachenals including a well restored and very playable Edeophone with slightly twisted (replacement?) bellows at a mere £1800) was a metal ended Lachenal treble that played like a dream. Sadly the asking price of nearly £1000 is in my opinion vastly over-inflated for the quality of instrument offered for sale. It is after all a basic Lachenal with the added banefit of plated ends and metal buttons, the bellows are servicable, a bit scuffed but not restored or replaced. I'd pay £800 gladly but no more.

 

As sad as it makes me, I'll walk away from this lovely 'tina because it's time to say enough is enough. To be frank I'd rather save up £3500+ and buy a brand new top flight antique of the future from Wim Wakker. That way I'll experience the joy of a custom built instrument made in the traditional manner harnessing the power of modern technology. I think Sir Charles Wheatstone would approve.

[JimLucas]

by the way...

 

Is the Concertina Connection working at the moment or is there a sort of *time off* I haven´t noticed?

 

Some weeks ago I wrote an email to them having not received an answer yet...

Try again. Or even phone.

Emails sometimes disappear without a trace.

And that "sometimes" may be far more often than we're led to expect.

E.g.,

• Last night from a friend's computer I sent myself two emails, containing information I need to do some work for her. By the time I arrived home, the one had arrived. So far this morning, I have yet to see a trace of the other, which is the first one on which I hit "Send".
  
• A couple of days before the recent SSI, I phoned co-perpetrator Louise to complain that she hadn't replied to an email requesting last-minute information. She was surprised, saying she had. I have yet to receive it.
  
• The same day as the Louise incident, I sent an email to a friend with whom I'm also in frequent touch by phone. Now, nearly a month later, it has not been received, though many sent since then have been.
  
• And I recently received a phone call from a friend in Seattle, who wondered whether I was still alive. She said she'd sent me numerous emails over the past year and received no reply. I never got them. And I had also sent her several, though not in reply to hers, which it appears she never got.
  

There are more. And these are the ones I know about, because I learned through other means that the mails didn't reach their destinations. How many others have there been? There seems to be no way to know. And there seems to be no way to know how or why. But if you don't get a reply to your email, I suggest trying again and/or trying another means of communication before blaming the other person or giving up.

[DavidFR]

And these are the ones I know about, because I learned through other means that the mails didn't reach their destinations. How many others have there been? There seems to be no way to know.

 

One of the beauties (or flaws) of the email network is that it was designed, in part, to provide communication avenues even in case of a nuclear strike, ie if a substantial part of the network is down. Therefore, no email takes a direct route from one computer to another, but instead travels through any number of potential pathways before arriving at the destination. Your two emails probably went two different routes, despite having the same origin and destination. There are any number of reasons your email could have gone missing en route, and spam filters unfortunately add to it. A problem quickly becoming more prevalent, without any immediate solutions in sight.

[Christian Husmann]

by the way...

 

Is the Concertina Connection working at the moment or is there a sort of *time off* I haven´t noticed?

 

Some weeks ago I wrote an email to them having not received an answer yet...

 

And there seems to be no way to know how or why. But if you don't get a reply to your email, I suggest trying again and/or trying another means of communication before blaming the other person or giving up.

 

Hello Jim,

 

no, no, I won´t blame someone and I won´t give up so easily either

I was just wondering whether they´re currently away or something like that.

The box is playing so I the answer is not that urgent anyway...

 

Thanks for the examples - as much as we rely on the computer these days there are still many

things that are weird. Last week at work the computers (in a network) had a severe failure and suddenly my collegues and I realized that working was getting very difficult without them.

 

Greetings

Christian