Where do you keep your accordion?

[Hilobox]

Mine's all dressed up, with nowhere to go ... but practice, I guess

Very cool shirt: plumeria, monstera, dracaena—our backyard on a shirt. Don’t rush the practice, that accordion is now on Hawaiian time.

 

[Johnny]

Very cool shirt: plumeria, monstera, dracaena—our backyard on a shirt. Don’t rush the practice, that accordion is now on Hawaiian time.

Thanks, Hilobox! Excellent advice. I'm envious - the only way I'm going to see those flowers in central Texas is printed on a shirt. Enjoy!!

 

[Dingo40]

Mine, as usual, sit in their boxes on top of the wardrobes in the bedrooms accompanied by moth balls.
Leaving them out to be admired does run the risk the admirers may turn out to be felt-loving moths (there being lots of felt items in an accordion!)
See here:

https://entomology.ca.uky.edu/ef609

 

[Gonk]

Jim - this got me thinking. Should I store my Sonola SS-4 - the model that has just two sets of reeds; all in the chamber - in the playing position?

Hi Zevy,
I also have an SS4 and did full reedwork on it. It's best to store it in playing position, yes. But every single valve on these has a metal spine, so if you have stored it on its feet, it has likely endured well regardless.
If it still has its original leather valves, it's probably time for new ones, anyway. Even valves that still look good and lie flat lose their flexibility and responsiveness over 60 years.

 

[debra]

Jim - this got me thinking. Should I store my Sonola SS-4 - the model that has just two sets of reeds; all in the chamber - in the playing position?

Whether all the reeds are in the chamber of just some makes no difference: always store the accordion in the playing position.
And even for non-cassotto accordions (and non-Winkelbaß) it's still best to store them in the playing position, because even on those accordions when the reeds are "vertical" with the accordion on its feet they are not really vertical so some are still somewhat hanging down.

 

[Hilobox]

Very cool shirt: plumeria, monstera, dracaena—our backyard on a shirt. Don’t rush the practice, that accordion is now on Hawaiian time.

No such plants grow in Utah, either. If you ever find yourself waaay out west, I have accordions for you to play. Aloha.

 

[vivdunstan]

From 1976-1994 I would keep my accordion in my bedroom, in its hard case, on its feet. Since 1994 I’ve kept it in the same posture but in the sitting room. Always in the case. That’s my main accordions anyway, including my 72 bass Paolo Soprani I’ve had since 1981. That was recently retuned for the very first time and needed many of its leather valves reglueing, but that was all that was wrong in its 40 years. I now have a second spare 48 bass that I keep in a gig bag, on its feet, in my bedroom. That is more convenient than keeping it in its rather bulky and inconvenient hard case. But my main box is still in its hard case in the sitting room. I’m in Scotland, so the temperatures are generally not too bad. Humidity can get a bit bad, but we have a dehumidifier in house to help. But yes, my 40+ year old accordion has managed fine like this. I certainly wouldn’t keep it out of its case.

 

[Zevy]

Hi Zevy,
I also have an SS4 and did full reedwork on it. It's best to store it in playing position, yes. But every single valve on these has a metal spine, so if you have stored it on its feet, it has likely endured well regardless.
If it still has its original leather valves, it's probably time for new ones, anyway. Even valves that still look good and lie flat lose their flexibility and responsiveness over 60 years.

Thanks so much. Who worked on your SS4?

 

[Gonk]

Thanks so much. Who worked on your SS4?

Sure thing. I did the work on mine.

 

[Zevy]

Sure thing. I did the work on mine.

I’m jealous. I’d love to get mine up to specs.

 

[Hilobox]

What has been missed in this whole discussion thread so far, but you just mentioned another aspect of the "where" question:
Always keep an accordion as far away as possible from a corrosive environment like the sea!
I have had a few older generation Hohner Atlantic IV accordions in for repair/tuning. They are all roughly around 60 years old. Generally speaking the ones from my area (roughly 60-70km from the sea) were fine and one from an old avid player living at the coast had reeds that were rusted very badly (no longer salvageable).
So for your accordions keeping the window facing the sea always open is a very very bad idea!
In the room, for just storing the accordions, keeping them in their case (and in the playing position) is always the best, to keep dust out. On display and on their feet means dust keeps falling through the grille, eventually clogging up the keyboard mechanism.
If you like looking at the instruments, put a clear plastic cover over them.

After reading all this amazing theory and practice, the guilt of having naked accordions was too much for me. Now they all happily live in their cases, in proper orientation, some with extra velvet for protection. I vow to no longer abuse them. Well, except for my mediocre playing, that is.

 

[davidplaysaccordion]

Mine are on the floor of my office, basses down. I mostly play the Roland Fr4x so the. Pésimo is covered to keep dust off. I pick it up from time to time to give it a workout.

 

[Hilobox]

So, to reiterate, just because it's called an Atlantic model doesn't make it waterproof!

I thought it must be waterproof to handle the wet tuning.

 

[John Doe]

Just out of curiosity, where do the several registers of bass reeds- virtually all with valves and many with boosters of some sort- fit in all this as they stand bolt upright when the accordion is on its feet?

Second the caution on accordions and exposure to sea air- even a good way in. I was stationed in Hawaii for several years a block and a half up on the North Shore of Oahu and not only did my beloved Weltmeister- acquired years earlier in a German floh markt (SP)- wind up with an unbelievably harsh tone as a result of surface corrosion on everything, my freezer door came off in my hand one morning as it had rusted through from the inside...

 

[debra]

Just out of curiosity, where do the several registers of bass reeds- virtually all with valves and many with boosters of some sort- fit in all this as they stand bolt upright when the accordion is on its feet?

Second the caution on accordions and exposure to sea air- even a good way in. I was stationed in Hawaii for several years a block and a half up on the North Shore of Oahu and not only did my beloved Weltmeister- acquired years earlier in a German floh markt (SP)- wind up with an unbelievably harsh tone as a result of surface corrosion on everything, my freezer door came off in my hand one morning as it had rusted through from the inside...

When an accordion stands on its feet some valves may be subjected to gravity more than others. This is obviously true for accordions with cassotto (treble) or Winkelbaß (bass side), but to a lesser extent also to other reeds/valves that are not completely vertical. See the example photo below... With a cassotto accordion it may take only a decade or so for valves to stay open far enough that you can start noticing a lag in the notes starting, especially low M notes on pull and low L notes on push.
Regarding corrosion, accordion players should ideally stay as far away from any coast as possible, preferably 30 miles (50km) or more. I was once asked to do tuning on an old Atlantic IV from an old guy (now deceased) who lived by the coast. The reeds were severely rusted, beyond any possibility of repair. Even when you buy something from "stainless steel" (like outdoor lights) it is pretty much guaranteed to show severe signs of rust after just a few years (and warranty does not cover rust if you live "close" to the cost, "close" actually being something like 50 miles or thereabout).

 

[Lilian]

An accordion-specific backpack that I can take with me anytime.

 

[Rodney]

When you’re not playing your ? where do you keep it/them?

On a substantial accordion stand that only requires the removal of a dust sheet and switching on the mains switch.