Repadding tone chamber accordions

[TimeSwan]

Just finished repadding a double tone chambered Noble. Putting new pads on a non tone chambered box is finicky enough, but trying to get two pads to seat perfectly at the same time is a nightmare.

Every tone chambered instrument I've ever repadded has fought me to the verge of tears and this one was no exception.

I use a light from the inside of the treble side to see where the leaks shine through and then tweak the pads until they all seat correctly. It's a lot of back and forth and swearing under my breath.

Does anyone have the secret sauce that makes this process any easier? Any insider information on how they do it at the factory?

 

[Ventura]

my opinion is, for my skill level of re-padding, a self-leveling
type mech is necessary, so i firmly avoid rigid waxed foot TC jobs..

if i had an accordion that i really really wanted to repair anyhow,
then i would first look at converting the mech to a self-leveling
type. I like the centered small rivet aluminum foot, as i am pretty
confident i can get them all level side-to-side, so the slight
built in pivot ability makes up for getting the toe not-so-perfect
as that is whare the self-leveling comes in (for me)

i do not know if those type of feet are available as an after-market part,
some Hohner's had them, unless Pigini still offers original Excelsior parts
cuz they had them too.. or harvest them off old junkers

the next best thing would be not to do a true re-pad, just a re-face
because assuming a slight loss of thickness from decades of
getting mashed, a fresh piece of suede just a tiny bit thicker than the
old facing would not alter the geometry hardly at all.. of course
that is assuming all the old facings came off the felt without argument..
because you are a $$ Tech, however, it would be harder for you to guarantee
what is still a big job unless you do the full re-pad

then the sort of rubber mounted feet like the hook-type scandalli
had was also slightly forgiving/self-leveling i believe, but i have
only ever seen them on straight boxes so those feet are all 3 or 4 holes long

didn't the Atlantics have a similar soft-mount foot ?

yeah some repairs are a nightmare unless you can charge by the hour !

 

[TimeSwan]

I would love to be able to always replace the pallets with those rubber mounted feet, they're so much easier. I can't count how many times I've had to repad my repads because I got careless and waxed the pad to the faceplate. Alas, that isn't always an option.

This Noble was the first time I ever tried removing the cover to the tone chamber so I could access the chambered pallets from the inside. This made leveling the chambered pads considerably easier, but not all mechanisms are created equally so sometimes you have no choice but to level them from the grill side.

 

[debra]

Just finished repadding a double tone chambered Noble. Putting new pads on a non tone chambered box is finicky enough, but trying to get two pads to seat perfectly at the same time is a nightmare.
...
Does anyone have the secret sauce that makes this process any easier? Any insider information on how they do it at the factory?

What I do is to first replace the pads in cassotto and adjust the levers so the keys (or buttons) are all level. When that is finished I start on the pads outside cassotto. I tape off all but the first few holes and install a few pads, so I can check whether they all close properly. Then I open a few more holes and install a few more pads, etc. If you install all the pads at once and then try to find leaks it's really hard. But if you work with a few notes at a time it's much easier.

 

[TimeSwan]

Good idea taking it in bite size pieces! I will definitely be doing that from now on.