Bellows Gasket Leak- quick fix

[beans n deenz]

Hello Accordion people! Hope y'all are wonderful today.

I recently purchased a bayan from Ukraine and absolutely love it. It's in great condition, plays well except for one thing, it's got enough space between the gasket and wood to let some serious air out. I tried the cigarette paper test to find more leaks and only identified one other spot, which is similarly another spot where the seal has broke.

I've ordered replacement gaskets and will be reapplying them myself, following the guide on accordionrevival as well as some other guides on youtube. Seems easy enough. Only problem is, it will be over a week before that stuff arrives and I want to play it now...... haha!

I have met Accordion players who have taped over where the bellows meet the box, and I was curious if there was a good reason to avoid doing so. I've heard that the adhesive can damage the bellows, but I would not need to put the tape into the bellows to cover the two spots where the air is escaping from. I realize I should probably just be patient, and intend to do so if it is unwise to do tape. I would of course make sure not to put much tape on the end of the bellow. And if tape IS okay, is there a specific type I should use?

If there is any short term fix to make it slightly easier to play until I can properly replace the gasket, I would love any advice. I can always play one of my other instruments, or just deal with having to squeeze 3 times more than normal, but considering I just bought this bad boy I'd love to do something to make it play better for the next week or two.

Pictures attached because we love accordions here, so why not! Circled red was where I was thinking of putting tape.

Bayan is Mechta model, 1985 from Zhitomir factory in Ukraine. It's been hard to research anything about the Soviet factories that made accordions, so I'm not sure of much of anything about this model itself, but it sounds great. The bass really roars.

Thanks fellers, and happy squeezin'!

 

[Ventura]

congrats.. very lucky it got here intact as the bass mech is
very fragile and can implode if bounced hard

Mechta name was used on many products in honor of Sputnik
and the Dream it and the era and the space race gave to the
Russian people, there is a lot of information online,
but none of it will support 1985

as far as i know, these were made in the famed TULA works in Russia
in the 1960's 1970's

some of them have Heilikon style bass reeds, some do not, they all look
the same from the outside so you have to open it up to know or tell
by the sound and feel

tape will cause a big mess.. wait

curious why you did not buy one locally ? there are plenty of old 3 row Bayans
floating around New England area

 

[beans n deenz]

congrats.. very lucky it got here intact as the bass mech is
very fragile and can implode if bounced hard

Mechta name was used on many products in honor of Sputnik
and the Dream it and the era and the space race gave to the
Russian people, there is a lot of information online,
but none of it will support 1985

as far as i know, these were made in the famed TULA works in Russia
in the 1960's 1970's

some of them have Heilikon style bass reeds, some do not, they all look
the same from the outside so you have to open it up to know or tell
by the sound and feel

tape will cause a big mess.. wait

curious why you did not buy one locally ? there are plenty of old 3 row Bayans
floating around New England area

Thank you for the reply! I will not tape it and make a big mess. I guess the folks I've seen do this are all folk punk people, after all.

As for why I didn't source locally, the price was right, the seller was reputable, and it was only 25 dollars for insurance so I would get my money back if it wasn't as listed or if it broke in transit. It was cheaper than the other boxes I found nearby, so I figured I'd take the shot and if I had to buy another one, I would just buy locally. There are indeed good options nearby, but I figured it was only ~$325 so it was a gamble worth taking. I would not have risked it if it was much more, to be fair.

I have also read that Tula made Mechta models, but the label inside the box says Zhitomir with the date 8-04-85, at least according to Google Lens translation. Seller also told me it was built in Zhitomir as well. I wonder if production of the Mechta models was moved from Tula to Zhitomir at some point, or if both factories produced the model. I'll have to read into it some more.

I do feel very lucky it made it here intact. I was definitely half expecting to be disappointed. But, the Ukrainian guy I bought it from has a history of shipping accordions across the globe for pretty cheap. He stuffed inside the bass with paper, insulated the heck out of the box. Many layers of bubble wrap and styrofoam, held together with an ungodly amount of tape. But it made it here, unharmed, as described, even without a case (Im buying it at Liberty Bellows next time I'm in Philly). The guy knows his stuff, both with accordions and with shipping accordions, ha!

I havent yet checked out the bass reeds, but regardless of what they are, I am super happy with them. The roar brings so much joy. It does feel a good bit heavier than the average box, but as you said I just gotta pull it apart to find out.

 

[John Doe]

-Nice instrument.
-Difficult to be certain, but generally usually the gasket that you will be replacing would be for the joint between the bellows frame and the upper or lower sections. In the third picture it appears that the circled leak is between the edge of the bellows frame (the amber ridge) and the bellows. The gasket would go between the upper edge of the wood frame that projects from the amber ridge and the mated wood edge on the black celluloid covered wood body (some Bayans painted, but this one appears to have the normal celluloid covering).
-If the bellows to body joint is indeed between the upper edge of the amber ridge and the black body on this instrument and the leak is, as it appears in your picture, between the amber ridge and the bellows then you would seem to have a partial separation where the bellow is glued to the frame not a gasket leak.
-You'd then have to take the bellows assembly out of the accordion (a simple task) and use an appropriate glue to reattach the bellow to the frame air tightly. I've no real experience reattaching bellows to the frame- it seems straightforward on the face of it but I'd get advice from someone who has actually done it a few times.
-If the leak is indeed between the amber ridge and the black celluloid body, not between the ridge and the bellows, or the bellows separates below the ridge (by design, not because the bellows is coming off the frame) revealing the gasket when the pins are pulled then "never mind", remove the old gasket emplace the new and ... back to "nice instrument".


PS Tape almost always results in a gummy adhesive mess after a few months- I'd wait and do it right.

 

[beans n deenz]

-Nice instrument.
-Difficult to be certain, but generally usually the gasket that you will be replacing would be for the joint between the bellows frame and the upper or lower sections. In the third picture it appears that the circled leak is between the edge of the bellows frame (the amber ridge) and the bellows. The gasket would go between the upper edge of the wood frame that projects from the amber ridge and the mated wood edge on the black celluloid covered wood body (some Bayans painted, but this one appears to have the normal celluloid covering).
-If the bellows to body joint is indeed between the upper edge of the amber ridge and the black body on this instrument and the leak is, as it appears in your picture, between the amber ridge and the bellows then you would seem to have a partial separation where the bellow is glued to the frame not a gasket leak.
-You'd then have to take the bellows assembly out of the accordion (a simple task) and use an appropriate glue to reattach the bellow to the frame air tightly. I've no real experience reattaching bellows to the frame- it seems straightforward on the face of it but I'd get advice from someone who has actually done it a few times.
-If the leak is indeed between the amber ridge and the black celluloid body, not between the ridge and the bellows, or the bellows seperates below the ridge when the pins are pulled then "never mind", replace the gasket and ... back to "nice instrument".


PS Tape almost always results in a gummy adhesive mess after a few months- I'd wait and do it right.

Thanks for the wisdom and your reply. When I pulled it open previously, it appeared as though the gasket has perforations...at least to my untrained eye. It looks decently worn as well. I think you might be on to something with reattaching the bellows however, I hadn't considered that.

With new gaskets already on route, I'm definitely going to apply a new gasket on the leaky side and reassess. Between your suggestion of gluing the bellows at the site of interest, and a new issue I found, Im excited to keep tinkering and expanding my knowledge of these sorts of fixings. I'm just glad theres nothing wrong with the bass side! That seems like a nightmare

(something is up with with a couple buttons on the high register of the treble end, creating a noticeable woosh with the note when the button is pressed, somethings wonky but unless Im playing the most high pitch notes its not affecting anything...as far as I can tell.)

Also, it takes a little over 20 seconds for it to close on its own. I don't think the leak is happening internally, except for playing the two notes I was saying earlier.

What gives me a lot of hope that this is a minor issue is that everything else about the box appears to be in good condition. All of the bellow tape is well intact, I can't find any other leaks anywhere except for the two areas where the gasket has perforations.

Well, apologies for rambling- But it's always nice to talk accordion. Cheers!

 

[debra]

Replacing the gasket tape is really the only fix. The most common size is 5mm wide by 2mm thick. Replacing bellows gasket tape is one of the very first things you learn in the first course on accordion repair. You should replace the tape all the way around so there is only one seam. Getting that seam to not be a source of a new leak is important. You need to put the tape on without pulling it (so it doesn't creep back), and you need to have a diagonal cut on the ends to avoid the joint from leaking.

 

[beans n deenz]

Replacing the gasket tape is really the only fix. The most common size is 5mm wide by 2mm thick. Replacing bellows gasket tape is one of the very first things you learn in the first course on accordion repair. You should replace the tape all the way around so there is only one seam. Getting that seam to not be a source of a new leak is important. You need to put the tape on without pulling it (so it doesn't creep back), and you need to have a diagonal cut on the ends to avoid the joint from leaking.

Great advice, thank you debra! I will make sure to heed it. It gives me some confidence that this process is one of the earliest to be learned with accordion repairs, but I will be mindful not to overestimate my capabilities either.

In regards to the diagonal cut, is there an ideal length for the cut? I would imagine more than an inch would have the potential to be counterproductive, but I'm a newbie, hehe

 

[debra]

Great advice, thank you debra! I will make sure to heed it. It gives me some confidence that this process is one of the earliest to be learned with accordion repairs, but I will be mindful not to overestimate my capabilities either.

In regards to the diagonal cut, is there an ideal length for the cut? I would imagine more than an inch would have the potential to be counterproductive, but I'm a newbie, hehe

A "diagonal" cut of about 1/4" is more than enough. Any angle between 30 and 45 degrees will do.

 

[Ventura]

I do feel very lucky it made it here intact. I was definitely half expecting to be disappointed. But, the Ukrainian guy I bought it from has a history of shipping accordions across the globe for pretty cheap. He stuffed

it is nice to hear how about your seller.. likely a few others may take a chance
with him now, as there are a lot of cool old odball boxes in the Ukraine to
tempt the curious..

i did find your auction listing, price was very reasonable even with ship and ins

for a laugh, here is another "Mechta"

https://english.nv.ua/nation/mechta-pilot-boat-sinks-in-kerch-as-a-result-of-missile-attack-media-50423094.html

i mean to hear it told they had everything from Toasters to Vacuum cleaners
with that pet name for awhile during the 1960's.. and no doubt there is a Boy named Sue
in Siberia grew up being called his "nana's little Mechta"