Excelsior accordion should I buy.

[frankpmcenroe]

My Neighbour has an Excelsior 120 bass accordion, bass buttons sticking. they should fix easy. She is looking for $450 is that too much to pay. much.

 

[Ffingers]

My Neighbour has an Excelsior 120 bass accordion, bass buttons sticking. they should fix easy. She is looking for $450 is that too much to pay. much.

Without a great deal more information and pictures of the insides of the instrument it is almost impossible to offer an opinion.

PS. Do mention a more precise locality on your info. It will help folk who may wish to assist.

 

[Dingo40]

She is looking for $450 is that too much to pay.

Just a small point, it seems the wrong bass button may have been marked: Eb instead of Ab?
Not unknown in DIY circles.
Does it have any treble couplers?
I imagine that it would have several, but we can't see them or what they are.
What does the back look like?
This is not one of the top shelf classic Excelsiors with the handmade reeds,

 

[Snoopz]

Just a small point, it seems the wrong bass button may have been marked: Ab instead of Eb?

It seems to have a dimpled C bass button and someone put a little stone on the A bass, probably to guide jumps. Rip that off and you're back to normal.

 

[debra]

If you are looking for a substantial repair job (and are skilled in things like disassembly and reassembly of a bass mechanism) then by all means there is a good deal to be had here. If you are hoping to get a good accordion in playable condition, you may be lucky or be in for a big disappointment. It's impossible to tell from this one picture.

 

[Dingo40]

It seems to have a dimpled C bass button and someone put a little stone on the A bass,

It's probably my COVID-19 affected brain, but I'm not getting your point!

 

[frankpmcenroe]

Back is good. thanks for the advise.

 

[Dingo40]

Thanks for the update picture.
It probably has 3 voices: LMM.
Which state are you in?
If in good playing condition, it's a bargain!

 

[frankpmcenroe]

Thanks for the update picture.
It probably has 3 voices: LMM.
Which state are you in?
If in good playing condition, it's a bargain!

I am in Queensland. I did some research it does look good. 40 years ago, I bought a Palo Soprani 80 bass with buttons sticking for $80 I found the sticking was caused by sugar. the person who used it last had been eating sweets/Lollie's after a good clean. it was perfect. My daughter still has that accordion. and it is always looked after, has a great sound.

 

[frankpmcenroe]

I came across this Post on another Site
. Shining like stars in the universe of sounds, EXCELSIOR accordions came to light in NY, USA in 1924.
Thanks to their quality and versatility, these instruments seduced many of the greatest American artists, and crossed the ocean to land in Castelfidardo (Italy), where a new plant was founded in 1948.

Italian craftsmanship, versatility, cosmopolitanism and the urge to go beyond the borders led to a perfect acoustic spheres of sound.
The original design and the special attention to details show a strong passion for quality.
Instruments that are jewelry, MADE IN ITALY treasure.

 

[dak]

My Neighbour has an Excelsior 120 bass accordion, bass buttons sticking. they should fix easy.

Says who? I know two causes: one is glue having seeped through pallet pads and sticking to the filling. That requires complete repalleting. The other is some smart guy having used oil containing resin (lots of older oil variants) on the bass mechanism. The fix for that is disassembling the complete bass mechanism and washing it thoroughly in solvent repeatedly, then reassembling again.

I had one instrument with the latter ailment, and the first mechanic I gave it to to work on this problem invested about 10 hours of work and then gave me back the instrument without taking payment because he said he could not make in good conscience a prediction of how much longer this would take.

 

[debra]

It's probably my COVID-19 affected brain, but I'm not getting your point!

That's because it was wrong. The rhinestone is on C, and then there are dimples in Eb and E but they should normally be on Ab and E, so at some point the bass mechanism may have been disassembled and reassembled in the wrong order.