someone offered me a Camroni Italia 120 bass accordion,

[sedgers99]

I have looked on Ebay and Amazon and sale sites with no joy at all for the Camroni Italia 120 basss accordion. it is a beautiful machine with black and silver Art Deco decoration with rhinestones but i cannot find any info on it ?
Can anyone tell me what i am looking at and any idea on what i should be prepared to pay for such a looker? He played it and it was delightful, no chips or cracks anywhere and i am tempted but dont know where to start???

Would appreciate any input whatsoever to help me make my decision. Thank you, Kevin

 

[Stephen Hawkins]

Kevin,

Is your interest purely academic, or is there some purpose to your query?

Your previous post mentioned some guy who brought an instrument in to you, and this one is about something you spotted on-line. It is all a little too vague, and at no point have you mentioned any particular reason for your interest in accordions.

Do you intend to buy an instrument for yourself, or are you interested in buying & selling accordions?

Good Luck,

Stephen.

 

[sedgers99]

i was buying this one myself and i was simply hoping for some expert advice. Crikey, is it a crime to ask ?

 

[TomBR]

Hi Sedgers,
Great that you've decided you want to play accordion. JimD on this forum is a professional and expert in these matters, hopefully he'll pop in with a word before long.
If you can't find anything about the maker's name that often indicates an instrument that was nothing special - perhaps it was an "own brand" for a music shop or accordion school.

The Camroni is a fine looking instrument but clearly old. That's not a good thing in accordions, they are complex machines, a portable organ really, and unless everything is in good shape, they don't play proper. With older acordions like the one you are looking at it is very easy for the cost of having repairs done to be greater than the value of the instrument. I'd suggest being wary of this one unless the seller can prove that it has had recent refurbishment work. One specific example - each reed plate, and there are at least 130 in this instrument, has two valves so that the bellows air goes the right way. These valves, often leather in older instruments, will dry and curl and crack over time and not do their job. A practical point, instruments of this era have long piano keys which can make them less comfortable to play.
As you say, it looks great, but I'd suggest treading carefully unless the price is very right and it plays well as far as you can tell.
Tom

 

[Stephen Hawkins]

Kevin,

It is not a crime to ask about instruments, though it would be nice if you were to mention the reason for your query. Most people start their query by stating their intentions. I just thought it was a little odd not to share a bit of the background story first. An introduction would have been a nice touch.

Anyway, welcome to the forum.

Stephen.

 

[sedgers99]

thank you Stephen, i have played the accordion for about 20 years after picking one up in a socila club and being taught by an old boy. I have 3 different ones and often see and chat to people locally about their machines but i am only an enthusiast. Like you said i was shown a Zarya recently but as it was Eastern European, it didnt interest me mainly as it clearly was a machine of lower quality and not easy to track down, indeed i couldnt read the name on it until someone told me what it actually said. Still i passed that onto the chap who had it and he was simply happy to get that info.
this is different and i want to that Tom BR for his assistance. Like i said it is a looker and it plays very well indeed but as i couldnt find a machine in that name, i dont want to lay out £250 that was being asked without having someone with more knowledge than me for giving me a hand. Like Tom said, if you cannot see it elsewhere then it isnt a mainstream recognised quality piece and the risk is higher. So for now i will probably leave it.
Thanks to Tom again.

 

[Stephen Hawkins]

Kevin,

I wish you nothing but good luck in your pursuit of that "special" instrument, and fully understand the need to secure the best you can afford.

You will, I hope, forgive my making an observation: The instruments you have mentioned so far are rather obscure, and I am wondering if your preference is for less common instruments.

I have recently been offered a 120 Bass instrument that once belonged to the vendor's parent. She knows nothing about it, not even the make, but assures me that it looks nice. Through informal conversation, I learned that the instrument is at least sixty years old, and that it has not been played for some considerable time.

Alarm bells are ringing, but I have agreed to view the machine in the not too distant future. It may just be a heap of junk but, you never know, it could be a fantastic accordion.