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[mselic]

I have in my care a client’s Weltmeister 3-row accordion that has substantial bellows leak. Upon closer examination, I’ve discovered that the bellows corner gussets are not made from leather but from some kind of synthetic fabric. Holding the bellows up to the light, one can see hundreds of tiny holes where the outer layer of synthetic material has worn out and where air is now escaping. Some places are worse than others but the entire bellows suffers from this issue. Every other aspect of the instrument and bellows is in mint condition showing absolutely no signs of wear. Seems like a very poor choice of material for the bellows gussets...the entire design is unusual. I’m not sure at this point what to suggest to the client...new bellows? Replace all the gussets? I’m not sure about the likelihood of the latter project going well as I have not done that before and I won’t be starting on someone else’s accordion. I’ve attached a photo.

[invadm]

is that an original internal application I wonder? never seen one before..I have successfully re-finished old Hohner bellows in the past but only to realised time and cost didn't justify my DIY approach, plus taking off all the corners and putting them back on properly is a real hassle. 
you can try patching up from inside of the bellow using standard diamond leather cuts,works fine for repairs,but it might be just to much to do whole bellows..get a new set I'd say    Harmonikas makes custom bellows,good price and fast too.         

[Peadar]

is that an original internal application I wonder? never seen one before..I have successfully re-finished old Hohner bellows in the past but only to realised time and cost didn't justify my DIY approach, plus taking off all the corners and putting them back on properly is a real hassle. 
you can try patching up from inside of the bellow using standard diamond leather cuts,works fine for repairs,but it might be just to much to do whole bellows..get a new set I'd say    Harmonikas makes custom bellows,good price and fast too.       

I have an old Hohner 490 which appears to have had all the corners done from the inside....which explains why the thing just about works in spite of vible tears in the corner patches. Nonetheless it still leaks too badly to be playable.

[diatonix]

These types of bellows have a notoriously short lifespan and even without the leaks they are a pain to play. Because the cardboard is cut in a different way, there is no point in trying to repair them using traditional leather gussets.

[pgroff]

Have seen the same thing on models of E. German 2-row concertinas from some time period - (maybe it was the 1960s?). These weren't the cheapest models (had steel reeds), and I have often seen them turn up in unplayed condition looking like new -- except failure of the gusset material over time has made them impossibly leaky. I agree with diatonix, just replace the entire bellows. Kimric Smythe of this forum seems to be one North American repairman who works closely with Weltmeister; maybe he has a good replacement bellows in stock for this model?

[Steve_freereeder]

Another vote from me. Replace the bellows with a 'properly made' set.

[mselic]

Thank you for the replies. I suspected that replacing the bellows is the right way to go, so thank you all for confirming that. I don’t wish to buy new Weltmeister bellows if they’re just going to be the same thing. Recommendations on where to find a ‘proper’ set that will fit a Weltmeister 3-row?

[Rog]

There is (or was) a musical doing the rounds, Amelie, the story is the same as the French movie but the music is different (sadly not the Yann Tiersen music). It was developed at The Watermill Theatre near Newbury and I get calls every now and then from them re various accordion related issues (we have a show on tonight can we come down with a busted acccordion...this happens a couple of times a year). The accordionist in Amelie has a Weltmeister Rubin with these awful bellows. He had ripped the corner and I tried to patch it up, but advised they needed new ones. Then I get a call from a different stage manager in Southampton (the show has gone on tour), same problem, musician has some bellows on order but needs a temp fix (ans duct tape is your friend), and a bit later another call, different stage manager in Bournemouth, and again, this time from the theatre in London. I’ve also seen several of this type with leaks as described above. I've tried all sorts of things, even painting the 'gusset' with latex. None of it works. They are terrible bellows. Lesson...don’t take a Weltmeister on a theatre tour unless you also have a spare.

[Kimric Smythe]

The Weltmeisters were made like this for a few years, and so were some Honers (Arriette). Weltmeister has gone back to leather corners so replacing them will fix the problem long term. I tossed a couple of NON 20 year old pairs like this awhile back. I can get replacements.

[mselic]

The Weltmeisters were made like this for a few years, and so were some Honers (Arriette). Weltmeister has gone back to leather corners so replacing them will fix the problem long term. I tossed a couple of NON 20 year old pairs like this awhile back. I can get replacements.

Pm sent.