Button height, bent end plate?

[Lleanne]

I'm wondering how best to deal with reducing button height...

 

It's the LH buttons of my lachenal (anglo) the G row. The instrument is 110 years old, and the LH wooden end plate seems to have bent in a bit, over time, I guess with years of use? (the ends are really thin fretwork, not the thick mahogany ends).

The buttons are standing too high - I'm only talking about a reduction of between 1 - 2 mm, but it would make a huge difference to the playability. (The buttons are quite narrow, about 5.5mm dia., I don't know if this is relevant, but it does make hitting the correct button more of a precise art).

 

So do I try bending the arms, bearing in mind that they are made of flat metal and may not want to bend? Or could one add an additional small dot (of card or leather) to the back of the pads? I feel that the latter may be more 'reversible'. The current pads are new ones, from Dave L.

 

Is this end-plate dipping common with instruments of this age? Any advice?

many thanks

Lleanne

[Johann]

So do I try bending the arms, bearing in mind that they are made of flat metal and may not want to bend?

 

I never did repairs on concertinas, but be careful don't start bending levers.

On should always tray to get it back in the original state, i think new pads or may be one can revers the bending of the fretwork.

I manged similar problems on very old accordions.

 

I am sure you will get a good advice form someone else knowing better as me.

 

best regards, Johann Pascher

Edited May 17, 2009 by Johann

[Marien]

If the end is warped and the middle is closer to the action board than it should be, you might add small wooden pillars between the action plate and the end. If they originally have been there, you will see a hole in the end for a mini screw to connect the end to the pillar that is glued on the action plate.

 

Have a look how it is done inside a bigger concertina:

 

http://www.concertina.com/wheatstone-edeop...5074-Action.jpg

[Lleanne]

If the end is warped and the middle is closer to the action board than it should be, you might add small wooden pillars between the action plate and the end. If they originally have been there, you will see a hole in the end for a mini screw to connect the end to the pillar that is glued on the action plate.

 

Thanks... there's just the one pillar, & is still there, and I was just looking at it - it clearly has the remains of a spacer (card?) glued on the top, but there's little there now, other than the glue. I'll see if there's room for a new spacer to prevent the movement getting any worse - but I'd think that the fretwork is bent irrepareably. Its' not a huge bend, say 1mm ish? (hard to measure). The fretwork is terribly delicate - clearly wasn't designed to last over 100 years...

 

Lleanne