Funny, Christian, but don't give Chuck too many ideas, he's already made me scratch the hair off my head, and I'm not done scratching.
Nick, my woodworking experience came from building furniture, but Jude got me started with a couple half day builder boot camp visits, and a bunch of phone calls, along with a lot of advice from John Roger and Larry Miller, then a lot of stumbling and experimenting.
Patrick, I'll let you know after I get it tuned. But with the soft and light spruce, and the even softer and lighter balsa reed blocks, I really wasn't expecting much, but initial sounds before tuning are pretty positive. I doubt it will have the volume of harder woods, but it is definitely not muted, and has a nice tone.
Stop it braves, we are making Bryan shy with all our writings. But they are both beautiful looking boxes and I love the black one the most. I'm curious about the sound ?
I'm not superstitious so you can go further with number 13.
Just finished tuning tit noir, think I've just found my new personal accordion. Which is probably best because I really wonder what time and use does to the balsa. But it has plenty volume, which is the biggest surprise.
I find it surprising that no one has asked for a black accordion, and you don't really see a lot of them, but it has by far gotten the most comments, especially on facebook.
The sudden interest in the black box hits home. I've written up a spec sheet for my next box. I want a black one that visually resembles the Monarch/Sterling/Eagle, but with all the modern attributes.
I'm a little nervous about the balsa, particularly if any additional work was performed on it, such as a reed change.
Another concern is the durability of screw pull-out in the light woods. How long can a D-ring hold under heavy use when set in spruce? Are threaded metal inserts a possibility to best utilize lighter woods?
As a matter of coincidence, I just sent Bryan a mail with the same idea. A kind of reconstruction of the old 'tit noir, but with all the modern features.Would be great! Better than the original! And maybe a hole in the market for L'Anse Grise Accordions.
Ned, everywhere there is a screw that is holding much, like the frames, I installed a hardwood dowel, and put the screw into that. And the balsa was an experiment because a well known Australian builder I've become friends used to build his whole accordions with it, and now uses some kind of marine structural foam, and said how it improved sound. Just had to see. And biggest problem I see is if someone goes to work on a reed and doesn't know it's balsa may mess it up. But one just like this could be made with regular blocks.
Peer, I would say that probably every builder has made some form of a Sterling copy, if the only prerequisite is painted black. Marc is making those commemorative series, and I know Randy has. Really the only thing mine is like the Sterling on is the paint. Different hardware, different base holes, different frame profile. One partial similarity is this is not a manufactured plywood faceplate, I made it myself using mainly the same spruce.
Billy Box, no thumb groove. Won't put that unless someone specifically asks for it.
Sweet, sweet units you're making, Bryan. You're a VERY talented guy !
Would that Aussie maker be Peter Hyde?...he lives just a few kilometres from me here in Adelaide..
A friend of mine has the Bower Cajun model accordion...named after my friend actually.
They're nicely built..lack the power that the LA made boxes have IMHO, and the stops are fakes..Apparently Peter has his own opinions on the necessity, or lack of, for stops.
His accordions are nicely made but too ' folky' for my tastes...but each to his own, as they say.