[ Ref. Roger Wiegand in 210911 MMDigest

In reference to the recent question about replacing reed plates
that have been dislodged from their mounting blocks, the following
has worked well for me. Below is an excerpt taken from the book,
"Accordion Repairs Made Easy", by John Reuther, 1956, pages 55
and 56, and available from the House of Musical Traditions at
https://hmtrad.com/ 

(Begin quote)

"When you have removed all the old wax from the reed block and each
reed plate and checked all the skins, start melting the wax in your
pan. Do not let it get hot enough to smoke, but just hot enough to run
freely. The preparation of this wax and rosin mixture is described
earlier in this section. You are now ready to start setting the reed
plates back in place.

"Start with the largest one first. Hold the plate by the edges so that
you do not touch the tongues or skins. Dip the lower end of the reed
plate nearest the rivet into the melted wax about one sixteenth of an
inch and then lay it in place immediately on the reed block.

"Be sure that it is centered over its aperture with enough wood showing
along each side to support the next reed plate. The wax at the lower
end of the reed pate will be sufficient to hold it in place until you
are ready to begin the other steps of the waxing job.

"As you dip each reed plate and lay it on the reed block, be sure that
there is enough space between the reed plates to allow the wax to flow
in between each plate. On some reed blocks, especially small compactly
built accordions, the reed plates are sometimes crowded very closely
alongside each other.

"Allow at least enough space between them to pass a knife blade. At
the same time, see that each edge of the reed plate is supported on the
wooden ridges separating each aperture on the block. See that the inner
leather strip is free to move.

"As soon as the entire row of reeds have been laid in place, additional
was can be applied to the lower ends of the reeds. For this purpose a
spoon-shaped spatula is used for pouring a thin stream of wax along the
entire length of the block. Do only a short section at a time. Be sure
to lay the reed block down on your bench in such a manner that gravity
will assist the flow of wax in the right direction.

"Next dip your knife blade into the melted wax and then carefully set
the edge down on the supporting wood between the reed plates. The wax
will flow off the knife blade onto the wood and between the edges of the
reed plates. Use only a little wax at a time, repeating the operation
again and again until the wax between each is nearly level with the reed
plates. This phase of the waxing requires the greatest care to avoid
getting wax on the tongues and skins. ... ..."

(End quote)

Note also that the wood below the reed plate must be clean from any old
wax. _Do not_ use "just any old beeswax" -- it must be the right type
of mixture of beeswax and rosin. And as with any musical instrument
restoration, the right tools and supplies are required to do the job
correctly. See the links at https://hmtrad.com/ 

John Bartlett
Woodruff, South Carolina