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[blunderbox]

The buttons on my box are about 91.3% perfect.  That is, twenty-one of the twenty-three buttons stop at just the right spot when they are pressed.  However, there are two that sink into the keyboard a little.  Anybody have a 'these things are perfect!' thing that they use to pad individual notes slightly.  On other boxes, I have crafted things out of bits of leather or vinyl etc, which works OK.  I just wonder whether there is something out there that works like a charm, right out of the box.  No pun intended.

[Mike Hirst]

The simple answer here has to be no.

I learned to play on a instrument with buttons which stood well proud of the keyboard and disappeared deep into the holes. i used this to advantage, articulating the sound, by opening the valve, then moving the pallet to vary the note, (without closing the aperture).

I now have an instrument with buttons which are almost flush with the keyboard. I sometimes find this awkward, but I have learned to work with it. I must confess a fondness for raised buttons, open mechanism, and open pallets. Clearly, this is not what you seek.

Ergo, there is no perfect setting.

[Steve_freereeder]

The buttons on my box are about 91.3% perfect.  That is, twenty-one of the twenty-three buttons stop at just the right spot when they are pressed.  However, there are two that sink into the keyboard a little.  Anybody have a 'these things are perfect!' thing that they use to pad individual notes slightly.  On other boxes, I have crafted things out of bits of leather or vinyl etc, which works OK.  I just wonder whether there is something out there that works like a charm, right out of the box.  No pun intended.

In detail it depends on the way your keyboard and lever action is constructed, but yes, you are on the right lines with the leather buffers, etc. Most of the higher-quality boxes have felt buffers to limit the button travel.

The 'mushroom'-type buttons generally have a felt washer around the button shaft which limits the travel by contacting the top surface of the keyboard. Various photos here.

The squat cylindrical buttons typically found on Hohners typically disappear into the depths of the keyboard when fully pressed, but on the higher-quality instruments there is a felt buffer fitted on the keyboard base plate which is then contacted by the lever arm. Instruments like the Hohner Erica and Pokerwork do not have such a felt buffer fitted as standard but upgrades to the keyboard can be obtained (and here) which do have a felt buffer.

Fitting a felt buffer to a standard Erica/Pokerwork keyboard is a bit tricky as there is no removable base plate and although the keyboard can be removed and a buffer fitted, it is then difficult to replace because the felt fouls the lever arms. In this situation, an alternative method to limit the action is to fit a strip of softwood under the lever arms near the axle rod pivot. Theo (the owner of this forum) describes the process here.

[Steve_freereeder]

Wayne - I've just looked back through your previous posts and see that you have asked the same sort of questions a couple of years ago. The answers you received then seemed to satisfy you. Is there now something different?

[John MacKenzie (Cugiok)]

I have stuck individual felt bump stops for each key on my Hohner Erika. As Steve says this isn't possible with a one piece keyboard, where the limiting needs to be done along the bottom of the treble casework. (See Theo's excellent teach-in on this method) However with Erikas and others with two part keyboards, other remedies are possible.

Sir John

[playandteach]

Has Wayne told us anywhere what type of box he is playing?

[Steve_freereeder]

Has Wayne told us anywhere what type of box he is playing?

Previously he said it was an "older Paolo". Maybe it's a different one this time.

[blunderbox]

Thanks for the responses folks.  The box is a Manfrini Bosca Ceoil.  I can just pop the bottom plate under the keyboard off and add padding to the existing material.  As Steve noted, I have asked something quite similar in the past, but in this case I was more referring to padding individual notes, rather than all at once.  I can just cut little pieces of felt/leather/vinyl and attach them individually, so not a huge deal, just thought someone might have the perfect tiny adhesive pad.  No need to take up any more of your time on this!  Thanks.

[playandteach]

For what it's worth I've used old table tennis rubbers (quality European ones) for this as they are resistant to compression over time. You don't want Chinese as most of them are tacky top sheet.

[george garside]

Whilst all of the ideas  given on this thread are indeed valid ways of preventing one from shoving buttons down holes it is just as easy to get the hang of not so doing! A relatively small movement of the button lifts the pallets clear of their holes and that lets enough air through for whatever volume you want.  Pushing the buttons right down does not to any degree increase the volume which is controlled entirely by bellows pressure. 


I have never found the need to restrict button movement on any of my boxes ranging from pokerwork to costalloti - but I don't waste energy pushing them as far as they will go'

george

[Stiamh]

The buttons on my box are about 91.3% perfect.  That is, twenty-one of the twenty-three buttons stop at just the right spot when they are pressed.  However, there are two that sink into the keyboard a little.

Might the problem be that the levers are a little bent somewhere?

[Steve_freereeder]

Thanks for the responses folks.  The box is a Manfrini Bosca Ceoil.  I can just pop the bottom plate under the keyboard off and add padding to the existing material.  As Steve noted, I have asked something quite similar in the past, but in this case I was more referring to padding individual notes, rather than all at once.  I can just cut little pieces of felt/leather/vinyl and attach them individually, so not a huge deal, just thought someone might have the perfect tiny adhesive pad.  No need to take up any more of your time on this!  Thanks.

I thought it must be for a different box!
Self-adhesive felt pads are readily and cheaply available, sold as furniture protectors. Here's an example. I used them myself once. They tend to be a bit on the thick side but it is possible to shave them down with a sharp blade. Difficult to shave them all to the same thickness though.

The best felt is that used by piano technicians and tuners. It has a dense composition so it is durable. One source here. Have a look at 'cushion felt' and 'check felt'. Also 'celeste felt' which I've not used before but it is quoted as being tapered across the width, so it should be possible to cut a strip the thickness you need. None of these are self-adhesive but a thin smear of solvent-free contact adhesive will do the trick.

Another possibility is bushing cloth/felt used for bushing concertina buttons (and melodeon bass buttons). This is more a woven cloth than a felt but it is flexible and durable. Mark Loyd-Adey sells it here.

Hope this is of help.