Newbie just graduated from Student Model to full size. But, the weight!!!??

[COCOJOE]

I recently bought a used Hohner Student VM model. I know NOTHING about accordion but I wanted to add accordion background tracks to my home studio recordings. I immediately fell in love with the little Hohner but also immediately realized the limits of its small size (and my big hands). Separate and apart from recording, I decided I really want to learn to play so I purchased a full size 120 bass which is apparently from the 1950’s. It’s SO much louder and SO much better suited for my hands. But it’s also SO heavy! My question is: Is the weight just a feature of 1950’s models or are the newer accordions of this size just as heavy?

Thanks so much for welcoming me into this community!

 

[Ventura]

you will get used to the weight, and having a solidly
built accordion is a good thing.. it made it last 70
years and that doesn't happen by accident..

there are lighter weight accordions you can run into,
over time you will get to try a few and if you keep an eye
on things will start to know what to look for without
compromising quality too much.. for instance there are
still a bunch of 3/4 size cream and blue colored Scandalli's
floating around.. mostly 3 reed treble 4 reed bass,
more aluminum less wood.. all aluminum action.. and there are
some full size in the same series 4 reed treble still
pretty light compared to a big thick old black 4/5 box

play for awhile and get a better idea of what you
will ultimately prefer for sound in the long run.. you might
have lucked out with this one as the sound and feel it has
might also spoil you

there are a ton of accordions around western PA.. and resources
too.. Ike is up in Newcastle (repair guy.. warehouse with hundreds
of accordions) there is a small store in Carnegie, there is a guy'
over in Ohio always fixing stuff up and posting them on Craigslist,
and a fella in Erie that finds nice ones and cleans them up

if you wander east to DC/Baltimore on vacation or whatever
plenty of resources around us too, as well as in Philadelphia

 

[PhiliGol]

Hi Joe
welcome to the forum and greetings from Bavaria.

Basically Ventura knows it all and already left his notes.
I'd say:
- There always was (and is) a remarkable difference in weight between a Student V and a "serious" instrument - just 2 different leagues.
- When you wanted a full-size instrument back in the "old days" but did't want to carry the weight you had to compromise quality/sound (skip cassotto or voices as Ventura described)
- You're lucky today: you CAN get full-size, no compromise instruments. Almost every (Italian) maker is offering a light-weight product-(line) with excellent sound; Have a look at Victoria's Poeta Piuma; Beltuna's Fly or Bugari's Essenzia. All of them fully featured instruments with high end specs at moderate weight in the 10kg range.
But be aware: less (weight) is more ($$$)

 

[Ben-jammin]

One thing to consider is that is you can get away with habits when you have a lightweight accordion that can be detrimental with a heavier one. This could be a significant discussion in its own right but some things to look at:
1) are your straps properly adjusted and make use of a back strap. I can’t recommend enough relatively wide decent quality accordion straps with a back strap to best properly distribute the weight. It’s amazing how much this can reduce how much you “feel” the weight on an instrument.
2) are you using good posture when sitting with the instrument. Do you have your seat height andjusted appropriately to support good posture. Your posture and strap adjustment both influence how your body feels the weight of the instrument and how ergonomic the keyboard is positioned relative to your right hand.
3) have you thought through your routine to get the instrument in position to play? You’ll want to avoid unnatural movements such as twisting your back while reaching down.
4) have you set up your playing area before strapping on? I try to set up my practice area so I have all my resources close at hand and accessible without having to make unnatural body movements to grab something. Trying to twist backwards and pick up a piece of sheet music from the floor is a hazardous proposition with a 35lb accordion strapped on. It’s best to have it already at hand.

 

[LibraryJoe]

Or you can compromise by trying a 96 or even 72 bass with full size keys.

 

[Ventura]

well fellas, from another post i remembered that Joe paid
200 bucks for this one, so i was tailoring my "advice" to
other lighter boxes in a similar price range that are
likely to pop up in his region and easy to spot

i don't think we have got him hooked to the
"money is no object" level yet (LoL)

Ben's advise is very good even if you need to buy
some new straps.. i guess nice wide ones with the
backstrap are almost half the cost of this accordion
but worth it and save the straps it came with for if
you sell this one off later