Hi gang,

I bought an Ariette a year or so ago thinking, how bad can it be? I'm sure some of you know the answer. The tuning is adequate and the tone is so-so. I have since bought a much nicer, LA built box which stays in my hands as much as possible.

The biggest fault I have with the Ariette as a strictly learning instrument is its shortness of breath. I opened her up, and the valves are seriously curled away from the reed plates.

My question is this: should I replace the valves in hopes of imporoving the playability? If so, does anyone have a good source for a full set of treble valves? What might a skilled repair person charge for this service, and would it even be worth it? Or should I return it to the world of eBay and hope to get my money back out without getting bad feedback for selling a barely playable "instrument?"

Buying something cheap can be more expensive in the long run.

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