Mystery Accordion I.D

[tbarnatt]

Just wondering if this Accordion looks familiar to anyone. It's my sisters and she found it a few years ago on the side of the road for free. She was taking lessons on a larger, full size but switched to this because she loved the size. I told her I would try to find out who made it. If you need more info. and interior pictures I will do that when I can get it here. Any thing I should look for inside that could be telling as to the maker for future photos? Thanks for the help. Tom

 

[Tom]

The problem, Tom, is that this is a very generic looking accordion with no details that make it easy to identify the maker. So, it could have been made by any number of companies making these entry level, 12 bass accordions. There is even a very good chance that the maker is no longer in business. That said, it could still be a decent playing instrument as you have discovered. I’m guessing the accordion was made in the “circa 1950s.” Great of luck to you! Tom

 

[tbarnatt]

The problem, Tom, is that this is a very generic looking accordion with no details that make it easy to identify the maker. So, it could have been made by any number of companies making these entry level, 12 bass accordions. There is even a very good chance that the maker is no longer in business. That said, it could still be a decent playing instrument as you have discovered. I’m guessing the accordion was made in the “circa 1950s.” Great of luck to you! Tom

Thank you Tom I appreciate your help. My sister will be surprised it's that old. She used to take lessons on a full size piano accordion but was really struggling with it's size. She found this on the sidewalk for either free or may have been $20, and she loves the size and is perfect for her ability. At her age, 76, it is much easier for her. If I can get pictures of the inside I'll post them, it may ring a bell for someone to help identify it. Thanks again.

 

[ColoRodney]

It is an inexpensive student model accordion. These were often loaned out by accordion schools to get kids started, and if the kid stuck with it, their family would buy them a more capable instrument (with more chords, notes, and registers) to continue their studies. You really cannot play a lot of music on these. They're fine for folk music, picking out melodies, and noodling around, which is fine, and clearly what your sister wants to do. But the manufacturer doesn't matter (there are no "Stradivarius" level 12-bass accordions), and can probably never be known, so I'd stop worrying about it. What matters far more is what condition it's in, how it plays, and how it sounds; and that depends a whole lot more on how it's been treated over the years than what factory built it.

 

[tbarnatt]

It is an inexpensive student model accordion. These were often loaned out by accordion schools to get kids started, and if the kid stuck with it, their family would buy them a more capable instrument (with more chords, notes, and registers) to continue their studies. You really cannot play a lot of music on these. They're fine for folk music, picking out melodies, and noodling around, which is fine, and clearly what your sister wants to do. But the manufacturer doesn't matter (there are no "Stradivarius" level 12-bass accordions), and can probably never be known, so I'd stop worrying about it. What matters far more is what condition it's in, how it plays, and how it sounds; and that depends a whole lot more on how it's been treated over the years than what factory built it.

Thanks ColoRodney
That's kind of what I thought. I suspected it was probably a student model. Of course as I said it really fits the bill for my sister, and she does exactly what you said they are good for. Regarding your "manufacturer doesn't matter" statement, I agree, and I was never worried about who made it, maybe I came across that way. I was just curious about the manufacturer knowing full well that it was probably no one of significance. If it was I'm sure their name would have been all over the instrument. Thanks again for you expertise. All the best.