F note sounding without anything being pressed

[Liv]

Hello there,
I just acquired a Tula 201 bayan and it seems to be in good condition (I am a complete beginner so wouldn't really know what I'm looking at) except that when pumping the bellows a constant F note sounds. I'm wondering if there is air leaking through something somewhere but can't seem to pinpoint where that might be...I've opened up the accordion and can't see anything wrong with the reed blocks but again, I don't know what I'm looking at. Does anyone have any advice as to where the best place to look in the instrument would be? The note sounds like it's coming from out of the left side of the accordion but it is the exact pitch of a treble key on the right side. I get a doubled F note when I've pressed the key and am pumping the bellows--i.e. it's not just one tone.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

 

[murathan]

Because these instruments stay in the boxes without much air for long times, these can happen. Make sure the instrument gets air for some time but dont forget to cover it. Dont keep in the box. Another tip is to press the F button and buttons around if it gets released or the problem is solved. If these doesnt make any difference about a week, you may go to the repairs.

 

[Ventura]

you notice each key has a lever each lever lifts a pad off of a hole
the air goes through the hole the note sounds

one of those pads has fallen off or slipped sideways
or the arm is not pressing all the way down and leaving a gap

if you cannot see it through the mechanism, remove the
bass reedblock you suspect holds the offending note/reed
and look through the corresponding hole .. press the
corresponding key/button/whatever to lift the arm and pad
off the other end of the hole.. carefully reach through with
some kind of probe and see if the pad is loose or something

this is the most likely problem, and should get you closer to a solution,
but there are other things that CAN cause your problem

good luck

 

[debra]

Any accordion with a note sounding constantly is NOT "in good condition". Typically when a note sounds constantly the lever for that note is bent out of shape, or the pallet has fallen off. Have a look under the grille for a pallet that isn't in the right position. If the note that's sounding permanently is on the treble side the problem can be seen when the grille is removed. The reed blocks cannot be the culprit. If the problem is with a bass note you're in for more of a challenge because to reach the pallets the bass mechanism has to be removed and that's a job for a skilled repairer.

 

[tcabot]

Tula 201 is mass-produced Soviet factory stuff. It could have left the factory with that note sounding - QC was non-existent. At some point (70s or 80s) they started cost-cutting like there's no tomorrow so the pallets can be attached to levers with rubber grommets that harden with time and are not really designed to be adjusted/replaced.

If you're very lucky, there might be something catching in the rather rudimentary soviet bass machine, in which case it's an easy fix. Otherwise, it's $$ to repair.

If you've just acquired it - take it back to the seller as it might not be worth investing into repairing it.

Any accordion with a note sounding constantly is NOT "in good condition".

Unless it's a drone note, am I right, @Walker ?