Unwanted sounds

[bocsa]

I had a problem with notes sounding when simply opening the bellows, I received the following useful help from JimD:

First of all if your accordion is a diatonic and the note is the same tone with the bellows in and out the leak is coming from the bass side. If your getting a leak from the treble then one of the pallets is not centered over the port hole. Find the button that plays the note that sounds and when you remove the grill you will find the pallet that connects to that button. Two things can be found here (1) a pad or leather has become loose and fallen off or (2) the pallet is not centered over the port. Give this a shot and if you need more assistance give me a shout. Musically yours; JIM D. ---- P.S. If you care to, please post this in the open forum as any accordion repair problems and solutions will most certainly benefit all members.

 

[Soulsaver]

Not that he needs confirmation from me, but sounds like good advice...

 

[bocsa]

Having identified which pallet is faulty I now need some advice on suitable material to re-face it.... please ...

 

[Theo]

Having identified which pallet is faulty I now need some advice on suitable material to re-face it.... please ...

Before that you need to find out why it is leaking, it could be: Weak or broken spring, friction in the mechanism, pallet not lying flat, or damaged pallet facing. Identify the cause before applying a solution.

And to answer the question, you can get pallet facing material from Charlie Marshall.

 

[bocsa]

(...) you need to find out why it is leaking (...)

And to answer the question, you can get pallet facing material from Charlie Marshall.

Thanks Theo, thats me off on another voyage of discovery :roll: If all else fails Ill thinking about having a holiday in Northumberland

 

[Soulsaver]

So it may cost nothing - often its the palett out of position after a jolt. What make/model accordion is it?

 

[bocsa]

I won't know for certain whether it's the position, spring, mechanism or facing until I take it apart. Unfortunately it may be some weeks before I get the time to explore; life's never simple!

 

[goldtopia]

I often wonder if accordion carts are the cause of some of these kind of problems. I have seen them wheeled over uneven ground, gravel and cobbles . Even professionals use them.

 

[Soulsaver]

What make/model accordion is it? Usually 'out of position' is easy to check once you know the note - 5 minutes & your done.

 

[Glenn]

I often wonder if accordion carts are the cause of some of these kind of problems. I have seen them wheeled over uneven ground, gravel and cobbles . Even professionals use them.

Thats a very good point Bill.
Some of them come with ludicrously small wheels and the bumping and vibration experienced by the accordion cannot do it any good.
Perhaps Im a bit over precious with mine but I always use my car to transport them and drive carefully, avoiding rough bumps (not easy on some roads).
Another solution is to get your case strapped to a decent two wheeled device but then the thing weighs almost as much as the accordion and takes up a lot of space.
During transport from the factory, there are pieces of card placed in the bass side to stop the whole thing jolting and finding you have the whole button keyboard under the holes instead of above them.

 

[Soulsaver]

Packing & shipping accordions could be the basis for an interesting thread... assuming anybody ever wants to sell owt?

 

[Soulsaver]

Indeed moving your monster accordion around, car to gig, could be a good one, too.

 

[Pippa]

I'm having this issue now I had it quite badly on my old soviet accordion, but now it's happening on my shiny Hohner too. I'm slightly afraid to open it up!

 

[Glenn]

Hi Pippa,
Is the constantly sounding note on the treble side?
If so, I think Jim's early intervention is pretty easy to manage, even for the two left handed species amongst us.
Removing the grill is usually a trivial matter and with any luck your problem will be obvious.
If it is in the bass side however I fear the need to open her up for inspection.....

 

[Pippa]

Yeah, it's on the treble, and only when I've got the high reeds selected. I'm just playing with L & M to get around the problem for now!

 

[JIM D.]

Pippa, Your problem and solution can be found here -- http://www.accordionrevival.com/ACCORDION_REPAIR1.php#Is_it_time_to_re-valve_the_treble_side ? -- Its under the title Is it time to revalve the treble side.