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[Pete Dunk]

There is the usual transatlantic mixup in terminology here, combined with a bit of a confusion caused by the similarity of the terms "duck tape" and "duct tape" which are to a certain extent interchangable as duck tape is sometimes used on duct work instead of the ultra thin, shiny foil duct tape that is more generally used in HVAC and general flue installations. As has already been said gaffer tape (the real stuff) is a specialist product not usually sold by your local ironmongery shop, but the name has been mangled up with the aforementioned duck and duct tapes just to add a little more confusion to the issue.

I'm surprised that nobody has picked up on my apparent mispelling of the word gaffa, which is actually an informed choice, used to differentiate between gaffer tape and the other stuff. I've known quite a few other maintenance engineers using this spelling over the years as it allows them to accurately describe the material they are referring to, that's where I picked it up. 

Edit: Typo
 

[Rog]

I did notice the spelling but thought it too pedantic to either point it out or try and correct it. Which is just as well because it was deliberate on your part. 

[Broadland Boy]

Thanks Pete, I hadn't appreciated that there was more than a regional spelling difference regarding gaffa / gaffer tape either, learning something new, a daily reminder one is still alive.
Not entirely certain but I think the original Duck tape was named after the maker, like Duck oil, a WD40 similar product - neither ought to be associated with melodeons, despite their best efforts to persuade otherwise 

[Pete Dunk]

Duck tape (type not brand name) was so named because of the use of 'cotton duck', a type of cotton material used to reinforce the tape. Read all about it. 

[Broadland Boy]

That's handy, cotton duck has a long history of durability for such as tin miners clothing but hadn't realised until reading that it was also made thin enough to rip as a tape. Not surprising 3M's have a long history with it  Means that as undesirable as it might be for subsequent fettlers, melodeon repairs with it is at least legitimate from a conservation aspect, I know a few pipe organs which would barely sound without it too.

[mselic]

...I did wonder if strong little magnets would work, and still allow easy removal.

Almost certainly this would not work, even using strong Neodymium alloy magnets. Reed blocks need to be fixed as rigidly as possible to the fondo, in order that unwanted acoustic coupling* between the at-pitch and tremolo reeds does not occur, or at least is minimised as far as possible. The size and weights of the magnets required to achieve a suitably stable and rigid fixing would be totally impractical; even if you could redesign the instrument interior to accommodate the large magnets needed, it would end up being very heavy. There would also be potentially dangerous issues for a player who has a pacemaker - you don't want strong magnetic fields close to your chest .  Neither do you want the magnetic fields interfering with the steel reed tongues, perhaps even stopping them vibrating

Actually, Steve, there is a maker in Quebec by the name of Yvon Martel who did just that - he made a one-row, 4-voice box with interchangeable reedblocks, with both blocks and box frames held together by strong magnets. There was a video demonstrating how it worked by Patrick Nolet, who originally posted it on Facebook but never uploaded it to YouTube. I’ll see if I can find the Facebook link and post it here (I asked him at the time if I could share publicly and he gave permission). Apparently the box plays beautifully, and changing keys (swapping blocks on both treble and bass side) takes under 20 seconds in total! I have to admit I still have questions but the video along with his testimonial (and he’s a serious, solid box player with very picky tastes!) certainly shows that it’s quite possible!

[mselic]

For those who have Facebook, the video of the Martel box with magnets can be viewed here:

https://www.facebook.com/patrick.nolet.5/videos/vb.1059518133/10216043696099419/?type=3

[Steve_freereeder]

Well I never did! That is quite impressive! . It clearly works for a one-row four-stop box where the tuning set-up gives a very rich sound.
I still have misgivings about magnetic reed block fixings for, say, a two-row MM box with only a slight tremolo. You don't need much in the way of acoustic coupling effects to obliterate the tremolo. The only way to test this would be to actually build one, of course.
But the safety in proximity to pacemakers still is an issue.

[tirpous]

Yvon (Martel) has also modified a Corona II for Patrick Nolet.  See video of the Corona here: https://www.facebook.com/patrick.nolet.5/videos/vb.1059518133/10216158738815415/?type=2&video_source=user_video_tab

[Grumpy]

In reply to Steves comment "But the safety in proximity to pacemakers still is an issue.", shortly after having my pacemaker fitted last June I attended a lecture where a Gent with a pacemaker (the Chairman of the hospital board !) had been given a name tag secured by a magnet. This if placed on his left lapel triggered his pacemaker alarm. As stated in a previous post I was strongly advised not to use my Roland FR18 by my consultant, advice which as a coward I took, Roland now in a good new home. Traditional melodeons are safe, magnetic ones are not if you have a pacemaker. Blessed be the Pacemakers.

[tirpous]

In reply to Steves comment "But the safety in proximity to pacemakers still is an issue."

...

I assume this would also apply to (typically Hohner) one-rows modified with magnets to hold up the stops ?

[Steve_freereeder]

In reply to Steves comment "But the safety in proximity to pacemakers still is an issue."

...

I assume this would also apply to (typically Hohner) one-rows modified with magnets to hold up the stops ?

Possibly yes. But there will only be four small magnets and maybe so close to the chest when playing
But in Yvon Martel's boxes, there are more magnets and hence overall quite a powerful magnetic field close to the upper body. 

[Stotty]

I can't help thinking these magnetic boxes could be a great boon for those MAD suffers with less tolerant spouses/partners.

"Oh, by the way dear, I've bought a couple of new fridge magnets"

(Perhaps would work best in larger kitchens)