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Author Topic: Reducing button height on Cajun-style boxes  (Read 1185 times)

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mselic

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Reducing button height on Cajun-style boxes
« on: January 08, 2018, 02:44:52 PM »

A lot of Cajun-style one-row boxes feature tall buttons that protrude a fair bit from the keyboard. What are the options for reducing button height? Bending lever arms and replacing pallet felt  are not ideal options for doing this in my opinion, so I suppose it would just be replacing buttons with those with a smaller profile? I'm assuming buttons are glued to the wooden keys, so how likely is removing them without causing damage?
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Steve_freereeder

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Re: Reducing button height on Cajun-style boxes
« Reply #1 on: January 08, 2018, 03:36:41 PM »

A lot of Cajun-style one-row boxes feature tall buttons that protrude a fair bit from the keyboard. What are the options for reducing button height? Bending lever arms and replacing pallet felt  are not ideal options for doing this in my opinion, so I suppose it would just be replacing buttons with those with a smaller profile? I'm assuming buttons are glued to the wooden keys, so how likely is removing them without causing damage?
Bending the lever arms is the best option. You don't need to bend very far to achieve the desired result.

To reduce button height:
With one hand, hold the pallet firmly closed on the fondo board thingy, holding it closed by pressing on the end of the lever arm, not the wooden pallet. Make sure it is held firmly in place throughout. With a finger/thumb on the other hand, press down gently on the button and ease it downwards. You will feel a slight springiness in the lever and as you gradually get the 'feel' of it, you should be able to introduce a slight bend resulting in a slightly reduced button height. Go gently, a little bit at a time, always making sure that the pallet itself remains firmly held against the fondo.

Try not to go too far! But if this happens, you can reverse the bend by pulling the pallet away from the fondo gently until you feel the lever arm 'bottom out' inside the keyboard. Pull gently against this resistance and you should be able to reverse the bend a fraction. When doing this step, it's best to grip the lever arm itself right next to the pallet, rather than the pallet itself (risking it twisting out of alignment).

As you adjust all the lever arms, keep checking with a straight-edge so that all the buttons are at the same height along the length of the keyboard. Nothing looks worse than a set of uneven, undulating button heights.  :(
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Steve
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Theo

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Re: Reducing button height on Cajun-style boxes
« Reply #2 on: January 08, 2018, 03:37:40 PM »

Also be aware the this method reduces button travel and therefore pallet opening and at some point you may start to notice the the instrument is not so loud.   
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Theo Gibb - Gateshead UK

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Steve_freereeder

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Re: Reducing button height on Cajun-style boxes
« Reply #3 on: January 08, 2018, 04:09:42 PM »

Also be aware the this method reduces button travel and therefore pallet opening and at some point you may start to notice the the instrument is not so loud.
You are right of course, Theo. However, the Cajun-type instruments I've seen or worked on have all had plenty of available pallet opening gap, and small adjustments to the button height have not seemed to restrict the pallet opening to the extent that the loudness of the instrument is compromised.
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Steve
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Theo

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Re: Reducing button height on Cajun-style boxes
« Reply #4 on: January 08, 2018, 04:18:38 PM »

Indeed Steve, but is something that the person making such adjustments should be aware of. 
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Theo Gibb - Gateshead UK

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mselic

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Re: Reducing button height on Cajun-style boxes
« Reply #5 on: January 08, 2018, 04:25:54 PM »

Indeed Steve, but is something that the person making such adjustments should be aware of.

Yes, thanks for mentioning it. I recently added additional felt under the buttons of such a box, and discovered that I had gone too far in limiting the button travel; the innermost set of holes did not get quite enough pallet clearance with a resulting decrease in volume. I adjusted the amount of felt and reached an agreeable compromise.
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mselic

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Re: Reducing button height on Cajun-style boxes
« Reply #6 on: January 08, 2018, 04:27:27 PM »

...and thank you, Steve - I didn't realize the method you described would work with that style of keyboard. I've used that method many times on old Hohners.
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triskel

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Re: Reducing button height on Cajun-style boxes
« Reply #7 on: January 08, 2018, 10:46:53 PM »

Bending the lever arms is the best option. You don't need to bend very far to achieve the desired result.

To reduce button height:
With one hand, hold the pallet firmly closed on the fondo board thingy, holding it closed by pressing on the end of the lever arm, not the wooden pallet. Make sure it is held firmly in place throughout. With a finger/thumb on the other hand, press down gently on the button and ease it downwards. You will feel a slight springiness in the lever and as you gradually get the 'feel' of it, you should be able to introduce a slight bend resulting in a slightly reduced button height. Go gently, a little bit at a time, always making sure that the pallet itself remains firmly held against the fondo.

Try not to go too far! But if this happens, you can reverse the bend by pulling the pallet away from the fondo gently until you feel the lever arm 'bottom out' inside the keyboard. Pull gently against this resistance and you should be able to reverse the bend a fraction. When doing this step, it's best to grip the lever arm itself right next to the pallet, rather than the pallet itself (risking it twisting out of alignment).

As you adjust all the lever arms, keep checking with a straight-edge so that all the buttons are at the same height along the length of the keyboard. Nothing looks worse than a set of uneven, undulating button heights.  :(

Yep, first thing I did after getting my new Acadian - though only once I was out the door of the shop with it... ;)

mselic

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Re: Reducing button height on Cajun-style boxes
« Reply #8 on: January 09, 2018, 05:12:16 PM »

Just an additional thought - would the method described above still work on pallet levers that are fairly straight to begin with? I'm trying to understand where the "slack" would be that would allow for them to bend and consequently adjust button height.
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tirpous

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Re: Reducing button height on Cajun-style boxes
« Reply #9 on: January 09, 2018, 07:22:32 PM »

It could, provided the metal for the levers is reasonably malleable.  If levers are fairly straight, most of the bending would likely occur where the lever enters the wooden key.  I've often wondered if the fancy/curvy levers on older boxes were not meant to distribute the stress of adjustment. 
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