Cairdin accordions

We have some evidence, however, that you may have to pay for the reeds.
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jazz-phil
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Cairdin accordions

Post by jazz-phil »

I'm looking for some information on Cairdin accordions, particularly the keyboard.

I recently tried out several 2 rows and found that I struggled with the spacing on Castagnaris.

I've seen a Cairdin advertised, but I'm not close enough to try it out, so I need to know whether I'm going ot have the same problem as the Castagnari.

Could an owner possibly measure the diameter of the buttons and the spacing between and let me have the dimensions.

I have a Dino Baffetti 2 row which is just about OK but anything tighter seems too much for my fingers to handle.

Thanks
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lixnaw
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Post by lixnaw »

Hi Phil,

The button size on my 2 voice is 1.3cm, and 2cm between the buttons from center to center.
I hope it will suite you.
I'll stick to my Cairdin forever, i just love everything about it!
jazz-phil
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Post by jazz-phil »

Brilliant, thanks for the speedy response.

My Baffetti is 1.5cm buttons at 2cm and my favourite 1 row is 1.3cm at 1.9cm centres, so it looks like my fingers should fit nicely.
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StevieJ
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Post by StevieJ »

I've never heard a bad word about Cairdins and certainly the two that I have tried have had a great sound, and been very light and easy to play.

However I saw one (5-6 years old) taken apart in my repairer's shop the other day and he thought that given the quality of the reeds and the cabinetwork (both excellent) the mechanics were distinctly ho-hum. A "Hohner clone" was how he put it. He also found it disappointing that in a box of this supposed quality no effort had been made to balance the volume of the two rows, which suffer from the usual problem in cheap boxes of having the pallets operated by the outer row of buttons open significantly wider than the inner ones.

The air button mechanism was spectacularly goofy: a long and rather thin wire that opens a pallet with a simple push - no possibility of using the button gradually as you can on Saltarelles, Castagnaris, etc. with their triangular levers, or even Hohners with their pull-down knobs. Worse, the air-button pallet butted up against the bellows, meaning you couldn't open it properly with the bellows closed.

This was an older model so it's possible that the internals have improved in the latest generation. However I wonder, because a friend who has a new model is having constant problems with the air button after less than 2 years. I'm going to ask her if I can open hers up to check for myself.
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lixnaw
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Post by lixnaw »

Saltarelle might be the most popular accordions for ITM with proffesional musicans, but i'm far from proffesional. They're good quality, but i think they but more effort into it when your a well known player (some do small adjustments themselfs i heard). Or maybe i was just unlucky and the quality varies. I bought a Nuage anyway, i liked the sound. But i found it hard to play as a beginner. The weight of the button pressure was very high, and the bellows stiff. I was told by a proffesional player it would take two years of playing to loosen up the bellows. Maybe i would have done that, if it were my size, but i found this box a little too big aswell. I sold when my Cairdin arrived.
The Cairdin 2 voice was the right size for me, and i couldn't find anything wrong with it. I also think size does matter a great deal.
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