buying a Russia-made button accordion?

[harum]

Hello,

Was wondering if there were online stores that would send a Russia-made button accordion to the US? Have been looking for a basic chromatic button type B accordion and contacted several stores in Russia, but no shipping these days.

Would appreciate any comment!
Thank you and Best wishes,
H.

 

[Dingo40]

Was wondering if there were online stores that would send a Russia-made button accordion to the US?

Might be a problem getting a genuine Russian-made item of any kind due to the trade embargo due to the current Russian invasion of the Ukraine?

 

[debra]

At this time (during the war) it is likely to be impossible to get a new accordion from Russia.
However, you could try to order a Zonta direct from Belarus. Trade restrictions with Belarus are less strict than with Russia.
Zonta accordions and bayans are fine instruments, just like the Russian Jupiter or Akko.

 

[Vladimir M.]

Hi,
You can't get a new Instrument, of course, but there are plenty of used Russian accordions on the market at a good price and technical quality. You should buy from verified sellers / accordion centers. Private shopping is much riskier, of course....

Best regards,
Vladimir

 

[harum]

Appreciate all the responses and thank you for the suggestions! I have been looking at one particular old Soviet-made "Kreminne" bayan in a local repair shop but thought that, for that price of 6-7 hundred, I could get a new one shipped from Belarus or Kazakhstan, provided I find a reputable online store. Yes, I have been contacting verified sellers looking for an entry level but working and a tuned instrument without the need for repairing it first. Let's see if Zonta ships internationally.

Thanks again and best wishes,
H.

 

[debra]

... Let's see if Zonta ships internationally.
...

A friend of mine bought a Zonta bayan directly from Zonta, shipped to the Netherlands. Something was wrong with it (error in the keyboard configuration) and he was able to ship it (the treble side) back to Belarus and got it back quite quickly too, and that repair work (shipping back and forth) was after Russia had started its war with Ukraine.

 

[Siegmund]

It is approximately equally hard to ship from Belarus directly to the US as it is from Russia right now.

Remember too that the import duty is very high (40%, I think) on anything made in Russia or Belarus -- it's where it was originally made, not where you bought it and not whether it is new or old, that determines how Customs treats it. You may get hit with that even if you buy from a EU or Canadian seller.

 

[Ventura]

I have been looking at one particular old Soviet-made "Kreminne" bayan in a local repair shop but thought that, for that price of 6-7 hundred, I could get a new one shipped from Belarus or Kazakhstan

Yes, i imagine Shipping and Import duty would be around $600-$700

now how much are you willing to spend on the Bayan ?

 

[petch]

I could be mistaken but I think Zonta just take a short train over the border to Vilnius, Lithuania and ship from there

they take payment in USD too

 

[debra]

I could be mistaken but I think Zonta just take a short train over the border to Vilnius, Lithuania and ship from there

they take payment in USD too

It looks like indeed it is close to the border, not too far from Vilnius. But this is not a trivial border to cross, especially now... I wouldn't try it, but I'm not known for being very adventurous...

 

[petch]

It looks like indeed it is close to the border, not too far from Vilnius. But this is not a trivial border to cross, especially now... I wouldn't try it, but I'm not known for being very adventurous...

I think it's the favoured way of getting to Minsk from the West now that there are no flights (I'd briefly looked into it as I'd gone about 4 years ago for work and have been meaning to visit as a proper holiday, but decided against it until the war is over). Although it seems Lithuania ended their cooperation with Belarus at the start of this year so perhaps my info is outdated https://eng.belta.by/society/view/l...n-with-belarus-on-border-traffic-156698-2023/

 

[debra]

A friend of mine bought a Zonta bayan directly from Zonta, shipped to the Netherlands. Something was wrong with it (error in the keyboard configuration) and he was able to ship it (the treble side) back to Belarus and got it back quite quickly too, and that repair work (shipping back and forth) was after Russia had started its war with Ukraine.

Here is the Zonta I talked about. It's a bayan with Kravtsov keyboard. Probably the only one in existence in my country.
(Note: the melody bass side also has the Kravtsov layout, and is stepped for better access.)

Based on what I have seen (inside) and heard (and measured) I cannot recommend Zonta. I have an AKKO myself and it is way better!

 

[harum]

Yes, i imagine Shipping and Import duty would be around $600-$700

now how much are you willing to spend on the Bayan ?

Yes, it looks like even with shipping and import duty there would be more instruments to choose from, and new ones.

 

[Walker]

Would appreciate any comment!

Hi Harum.

I think a nice C system Italian accordion would be superlative. Especially a chromatic converter as its got a wonderful symmetry between the right and left hand. Honestly, the mirrored systems are marvellous.

I play PA with quint free bass. It has its own charms too. But for me, if I wanted to learn button key... it would be C 4 me.

 

[harum]

now how much are you willing to spend on the Bayan ?

As a beginner not willing to spend much, $700-800 would be max. Would probably spend more on a digital, quiet instrument, if I see one!

 

[harum]

Hi Harum.

I think a nice C system Italian accordion would be superlative. Especially a chromatic converter as its got a wonderful symmetry between the right and left hand. Honestly, the mirrored systems are marvellous.

I play PA with quint free bass. It has its own charms too. But for me, if I wanted to learn button key... it would be C 4 me.

Thanks for the insight Walker! That might be an option for learning!

 

[petch]

Thanks for the insight Walker! That might be an option for learning!

You can learn on a second hand Italian C system accordion and have a factory like Zonta make you a C system bayan in the future, if you ever decide to buy new

A budget of $800 won't get you anything new anywhere other than China I'm afraid

 

[mhseeger73]

the harmony musical workshop guys have some good bayans, thats where i got mine https://accordion-bayan.com/accordions/?sort=p.price&order=DESC&filter=11

 

[tcabot]

I wouldn't recommend buying a squeezebox unseen, especially if it will cost you small fortune in shipping to return it - you are putting a lot of trust in the seller.

I've never bought anything from harmony, so cannot say anything about the quality of their offerings, but what I can say is that a couple years ago they quoted me $2.5k for an Agat + shipping + import tax.
At the time Agats in good condition sold for ~$500-600 in Russia and Ukraine, so I'll leave it to each buyer to study the market and decide whether the prices they are being quoted are reasonable or not.