Stephen Chambers Posted March 16, 2008 Share Posted March 16, 2008 I see some brave soul has actually put in a bid on this one ... And in the closing stages there was a flurry of interest (well, two more bids anyway) and that initial bidder was fortunate enough to be outbid on it - sold for EUR 247.50! I wish the new owner the very best of luck with it... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex West Posted March 17, 2008 Share Posted March 17, 2008 I cannot tell a lie - it was me! I couldn't resist it - and the challenge of getting it to work. I'm with Dirge that it's so awful, it's good. I'll let you all know how it turns out Alex Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dirge Posted March 17, 2008 Share Posted March 17, 2008 Well done Alex, a magnificent display of taste and discernment. I was so nearly fighting your for it it was ridiculous, considering I can't even play the thing. I sat and thought about it for a hard 5 minutes! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Chambers Posted March 17, 2008 Share Posted March 17, 2008 I couldn't resist it - and the challenge of getting it to work. Alex, I hope it won't be as much of a challenge as it looks, but let's face it, there's not much a new bellows and a replacement set of reeds wouldn't cure... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex West Posted March 17, 2008 Share Posted March 17, 2008 But the bellows are the best part! (I hope that doesn't prove prophetic) I've been assured that it has worked within recent memory - if it needs a complete set of new reeds, it'll remain as a conversation piece - Hmmm. Alex Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Chambers Posted March 17, 2008 Share Posted March 17, 2008 But the bellows are the best part! (I hope that doesn't prove prophetic) But how flexible are they, and are they airtight? (I hope they don't prove pathetic) I've been assured that it has worked within recent memory ... Well I've bought several things on eBay that the seller claimed "Works", including a button accordion that arrived from the 'States in the last few days and turned out to be quite literally falling apart... - if it needs a complete set of new reeds, it'll remain as a conversation piece - Hmmm. The reeds are another big unknown, seeing that the tongues are new steel ones, and replacing ends can be a tricky business too, as the holes for the buttons have to line up perfectly. All in all, it should give you plenty to converse about... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex West Posted March 25, 2008 Share Posted March 25, 2008 Well, the bellows are actually pretty good. Well made, nice leather (if cosmetically challenged), flexible and airtight. The rest of the instrument (so far) is a mixture. The reason the thing wouldn't play is because all of the pads were stuck to the action - quite a hard leather - the key bushings were leather rather than felt, and the holes in the fretboard were too small for the buttons so the whole thing had jammed up. The pads are interesting - a plywood, felt, leather composite, stuck to the end of the levers with bathroom sealant - quite flexible in its own way but not a fast action by any means. The reeds don't look too bad so far, but I won't be able to tell until I've got the action straightened out. The reed pans were also stuck to the leather on the inside of the bellows; they weren't glued, but maybe some natural oils from the leather had given that effect. I may try to make some new ends - I don't suppose you have a contemporaneous Rock Chidley I could use as a template do you? Alex Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Chambers Posted March 26, 2008 Share Posted March 26, 2008 I may try to make some new ends - I don't suppose you have a contemporaneous Rock Chidley I could use as a template do you? Alex, There's a very nice one on eBay at the moment , in excellent condition, but it's a higher grade of Chidley than your one: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...A:IT&ih=012 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Samantha Posted March 26, 2008 Share Posted March 26, 2008 Congratulations Alex! I hope you'll be bringing it to Arran sometime! Samantha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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